Drugstore Cowboy

At least I THINK that's what it was called.
I just seemed to remember seeing this gadget that was essentially a hand turned lathe -- but instead of using carving tools -- the cutting was done by a router mounted on rails.
Just curious --
Does anyone else remember this?
Or am I just imagining things on this rainy Sunday night?
Did anyone ever actually USE one?

Advertising

challagan

Yup they sold quite a few of these things for awhile. They even sold them on QVC during the Craftsman Hour several years back. You could make some neat looking carvings like lamp bodies, walking sticks etc. Never did see one working in person though. There is actually a tool called the legacy mill that is a real expensive tool that is similar to that. It has chain drives etc. on it but can do small like a pen or big stuff.

Corey

__________________
My Carving Website: The Iowa Woodcarver
http://iowacarver.tripod.com/

My Shop Website - Woodshop 51503
http://woodshop51503.tripod.com/

Visteonguy

Yes, Thats what it was called. I bought one from Sears back maybe about 1970 and I played with it right after I got it home. It was a neat little rig, I turned out some nice figured spindles that had spirals that you could NOT produce on a regular lathe. But I was only about 16 at the time and had a lot of interrest going at the time and after I made a few spindles on it,, I pushed it back in the corner and figured I would get back to it later,,, hahaha,, still got it but still have not gotten back to it yet. But if you come up with a project that needs some interresting spindles, that could be just the tool you might want to use. Sears stopped selling the Crafter after a few years and I thought I read some place not too long ago, they were thinking of trying to market it again,, I am not sure if they ever did or not, though. I have seen them turn up on EBAY once in a while and I ran across a web site once that delt with owners and their discusion groups.

__________________
Terry

It seems like every where I go,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, there I am...

challagan

Visteone I believe they produced them again in the late 80's to mid/early 90's for awhile. Like I said I remember them selling them on QVC for awhile. That's where I first learned of it.

Corey

__________________
My Carving Website: The Iowa Woodcarver
http://iowacarver.tripod.com/

My Shop Website - Woodshop 51503
http://woodshop51503.tripod.com/

Visteonguy

Yes Corey,, I cannot remember where I seen that article,, I am sure it was in one of the wood working magazines or maybe even in popular mechanics a few years ago. I just looked on Ebay and I see there are 2 selling right now. A brand new one that was never used and with just under 4 days to go, its up to $84 I think. But they are quite the toy to make fancy spindles that will keep your friends guessing how you made them.

__________________
Terry

It seems like every where I go,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, there I am...

Drugstore Cowboy

Thanks
It's been a LONNNGGG weekend on a LOT of levels - and I was just sitting here with my brain kinda in free flight.
That was just one of many strange thoughts that floated by.
Glad it wasnt an illusion.
Sounds like it might have even been more useful than I gave it credit for.

The time frame is about right -- I got my first router - about 1977.

bobj3

I had one also they can do many .many router jobs that the standard router table can't do and the lathe can't do as well.(fluting,craving,etc.)

If you a search on the forum you should see many posted items popup on them.
If I recall a web site called Twisedwood or something like that ,shows all the items you can make with the Sears jig.

http://www.whois.ws/whois_index/t/do...ist.t.0874.php

Bj

__________________
PodCast videos
RWS on YouTube

http://www.routerforums.com/86898-post1.html
Besure and click on the Up Arrow key ▲ on the Youtube video, you can select other youtube videos on router tables
http://www.woodworkingonline.com/?s=dovetail
Machine Cut ▼
http://www.woodworkingonline.com/200...cut-dovetails/

http://www.woodworkingonline.com/woo...podcast-store/

http://www.woodshopdemos.com/menu2.htm

Bob J.

harrysin

Hi Drugstore Bandit, here in Australia they are known as router lathes.The timber is mounted as in a normal lathe and the router is mounted on a traverse plate to which a stranded steel cable is attached and goes around the headstock then the length of the bed, around a pulley and back to the head stock which has an indexing system. In use the router is physically moved along the bed and because it's connected to the headstock it rotates, the ratio of rotation to horizontal movement of the router can be altered because there is a stepped pulley on the headstock around which the cable goes. Using this system single or multiple spirals can be routed, there are 36 indexing points. For parallel flutes the headstock is locked and the cable unhooked from the traverse plate. I hope all this makes sense to you.

__________________
Harry

bobj3

Here's one that you can make if you have a lathe and you want to put on some flutes or make a rope turning

http://woodworkersedge.com/FlutingJig.htm

Bj

__________________
PodCast videos
RWS on YouTube

http://www.routerforums.com/86898-post1.html
Besure and click on the Up Arrow key ▲ on the Youtube video, you can select other youtube videos on router tables
http://www.woodworkingonline.com/?s=dovetail
Machine Cut ▼
http://www.woodworkingonline.com/200...cut-dovetails/

http://www.woodworkingonline.com/woo...podcast-store/

http://www.woodshopdemos.com/menu2.htm

Bob J.

Drugstore Cowboy

Thanks Harry - and everyone -
Yes -- makes perfect sense.

Sounds like I was about to give a somewhat useful tool a bad rap. Like I said - all I was going on was a foggy 35 year old memory of a picture in a catalog.

I still have a feeling its actual VALUE depends a LOT on the creativity and skill of the user.
Then, again, that could be said of any tool.