Quince Yo-yo......Step by Step

Stuart Ablett

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Tokyo Japan
OK, I'll not call this a "Tutorial" as this is only the 3rd yo-yo I've made, thus, I'm still learning :eek:

I used some "Quince" wood for this, I thought it was harder than it actually is, but the end result is still fairly good, I think.

I started by cutting two pieces of wood about 7 cm square by about 3 cm thick (2 3/4" x 1 1/4").

I marked the center of each piece and then I drilled a 35mm hole 10 mm deep

quince_yo_yo 001.jpg
It is really important to get the depth of the hole just right, I drill a bit under and check, several times, if it is too deep you can fix it on the lathe, but it is a bother, I find it quicker to sneak up on it on the drill press.

quince_yo_yo 002.jpg
I next test fit each piece, like I said, it is much easier to get it right here, than fix it later, IMHO.

quince_yo_yo 003.jpg
Now I glue them in place, the instructions say that they are "Press fit" and if you need to glue them, well my drill bit is exactly 35mm and they are way too loose, so I glue them. I use the medium thickness CA glue, then a spritz of accelerant and wait for about 5 minutes and they are good to go :thumb:

quince_yo_yo 006.jpg
Here is a shot of the Yo-yo mandrel in the drill chuck (yes the drill chuck has a draw bar in it, to keep it from coming out). The mandrel is a must for doing these, but it is also cheap, maybe $8 :huh: I don't remember :rolleyes:

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OK, now I have one piece on the madrel with the tail stock up for support. The manrel is steel and the inserts are aluminium, so you have to go easy on roughing the squares out, as you CAN strip an insert DAMHIKT :(

quince_yo_yo 008.jpg
Once round-ish, I change to a bowl gouge and make a nice smooth cut, this yo-yo is for my eldest daughter, so I made it a bit bigger as she has larger hands than her sister and cousin.

quince_yo_yo 009.jpg
I then part it off to a bit over sized from what I want........

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Do some shaping, to add some interest to it, but nothing to complex to replicate, as I have to make another one as close to the same as I can make it! :eek:

quince_yo_yo 011.jpg
I sand from #120, #240, #320, then I put a good coat of sanding sealer on it, then I let that dry for about 5 minutes then I sand it with #400, again a coat of sanding sealer, dry then sand #600 and #800. I then use my stick of turners Carnuba wax on it, first buffing with a cloth, but then power buffing with a small buff in the drill.

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here I've inserted the ballbearing shaft of the yo-yo.........

Cont.....
 
...........OK, now here is the results.....

quince_yo_yo 013.jpg

quince_yo_yo 014.jpg

I sure hope she likes it :D

I'm toying with making a box for each yo-yo, with their names in each box and the date etc, but it will depend on when I get the other half dozen Xmas gifts done............. :rolleyes:

Well thanks for looking, if any of you have any ideas to make this process speedier or easier, PLEASE share! :thumb:

Cheers!
 
Well, I'm still struggling to do them right the first time, it seems I usually remount the first one for an adjustment :rolleyes: once........

They are fun to use, man alive do they spin! :thumb:
 
Hi Stu,

I have mead a few yoyos as well and the only short cut is to get fly cutters to fit your drill press to cut the general body shape and then only do the fine shaping and finish work on the lathe. You may have gotten lucky on your first few and had them come out perfectly balanced but, I wasn't so lucky. Any difference in weight between the two halfs of the yoyo sides and it will not spin right. It will either tilt or spin in a direction perpendicular to the string when in a stall. Good luck!
 
Hi Stu,

I have mead a few yoyos as well and the only short cut is to get fly cutters to fit your drill press to cut the general body shape and then only do the fine shaping and finish work on the lathe. You may have gotten lucky on your first few and had them come out perfectly balanced but, I wasn't so lucky. Any difference in weight between the two halfs of the yoyo sides and it will not spin right. It will either tilt or spin in a direction perpendicular to the string when in a stall. Good luck!

Chris, I'm not "Lucky".............. I'm just good...................... ;) :rolleyes: :rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl:

Oh I wish! :eek:

Cheers!
 
Hi tod,

I'll let the physics pros around here debate this but, from my own experience weight is not the only factor but, how the weight is placed. I have tried to make each side identical and have even made templates for this but, it's almost impossible to do this freehand without a lot of practice. In talking to the few that make these regularly they all say go to the fly cutter and them just "refine" the basic shape on the lathe...
 
Nice little project there Stu. Did you get the yoyo kit from LV?
Thanks Alex.

Yes I did, they are not badly priced, and most kids enjoy them, the first one I made, for my Nephew, I had to take away from my daughters, as they were going to wear the finish off of it, and they were fighting over it :D

Heck, the forgot about thier gameboys for all of 10 minutes :eek: :D

I'll get some more kits and make some more, they are fun, I bet they would sell well too :rolleyes:

Cheers!
 
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