# 1st bottle opener



## Gardnaaa (Dec 9, 2019)

Turned my first bottle opener over the weekend. I’m pretty sure it was a piece of oak (I got it in a bin of cutoffs from local wood shop). Not my favorite to turn because it was extremely hard, and I broke a few of them trying to get the shape correct. And then when I finally got the shape of this one, I had to sand it forever and ever to try and get it smooth. It had some tear out and
Chips in it. Anyways, it’s a Christmas present for my brother in law who is obsessed with baseball.

Reactions: Like 7 | Way Cool 3


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## Rocking RP (Dec 9, 2019)

Very nice. Sure he’ll like it. I use mine a lot.

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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## T. Ben (Dec 9, 2019)

Nice work,looks good.

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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## Mr. Peet (Dec 9, 2019)

Have you tested it yet? Did you orient the grain correctly? Couldn't tell from the pictures.


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## Gardnaaa (Dec 9, 2019)

Mr. Peet said:


> Have you tested it yet? Did you orient the grain correctly? Couldn't tell from the pictures.



I haven’t tried it yet, no beer in the house at the moment! :( and what do you mean orient the grain? Still new to this stuff lol.


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## Mr. Peet (Dec 9, 2019)

Gardnaaa said:


> I haven’t tried it yet, no beer in the house at the moment! :( and what do you mean orient the grain? Still new to this stuff lol.



Like a bat, if used as a tool, versus a show piece, the grain, growth rings, are oriented to best resist the force applied when in use. Basically, place the opener on the top of the item to be opened, in position to open, when looking down at he top of the item to be opened, the wood growth rings should be vertical, lllll.

Reactions: Informative 1


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## Gardnaaa (Dec 9, 2019)

Mr. Peet said:


> Like a bat, if used as a tool, versus a show piece, the grain, growth rings, are oriented to best resist the force applied when in use. Basically, place the opener on the top of the item to be opened, in position to open, when looking down at he top of the item to be opened, the wood growth rings should be vertical, lllll.



Ah gotcha! I never even thought of that, I was just going for the shape to be honest. I’ve already learned so much here! Thanks everyone!


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## Mr. Peet (Dec 9, 2019)

Years ago (maybe 30?..) there was a company that had a 3", or maybe 4" long 1/4" dia. shaft that was part of the opener head. The shaft carried a lot of transfer energy. Then they went to shorter coarse threaded nippled studs for wood or fine threaded for threaded receivers. I see some of them have a short shaft that threads into the opener head.

With today's recycling abilities, I would have hoped that the old school style would return. There is a company in Honesdale, Pa that makes the hardware for bottle stoppers and openers (modern style). An uncle and nephew business, if allowed I could post the contact information for them. Have to find where I put it.

Reactions: Agree 1


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## Tony (Dec 9, 2019)

Mr. Peet said:


> Years ago (maybe 30?..) there was a company that had a 3", or maybe 4" long 1/4" dia. shaft that was part of the opener head. The shaft carried a lot of transfer energy. Then they went to shorter coarse threaded nippled studs for wood or fine threaded for threaded receivers. I see some of them have a short shaft that threads into the opener head.
> 
> With today's recycling abilities, I would have hoped that the old school style would return. There is a company in Honesdale, Pa that makes the hardware for bottle stoppers and openers (modern style). An uncle and nephew business, if allowed I could post the contact information for them. Have to find where I put it.



I don't believe there's a problem posting their info as long as you don't have any interest in the company personally.

Reactions: Agree 1


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## Nature Man (Dec 9, 2019)

Never seen a bottle opener like that! How does it work? Chuck

Reactions: Like 1 | Agree 1


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## Gardnaaa (Dec 10, 2019)

Nature Man said:


> Never seen a bottle opener like that! How does it work? Chuck



honestly I haven’t tried it out yet! It’s a Ruth Niles bottle opener. The threads are the ones that match her bottle stopper chuck. I like it because it stands up, and the bottle stopper head is really heavy, so it’s actually pretty sturdy. They run about $8.70 where a normal opener runs about $5 depending on where you get it. I have 1 regular opener head as well, but I’m not sure what size drip bit I have to use for it yet. Have to do some research to see what other people are using.

Reactions: Informative 1


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## T. Ben (Dec 10, 2019)

Gardnaaa said:


> no beer in the house

Reactions: Agree 2 | Funny 2


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## Mr. Peet (Dec 10, 2019)

Gardnaaa said:


> honestly I haven’t tried it out yet! It’s a Ruth Niles bottle opener. The threads are the ones that match her bottle stopper chuck. I like it because it stands up, and the bottle stopper head is really heavy, so it’s actually pretty sturdy. They run about $8.70 where a normal opener runs about $5 depending on where you get it. I have 1 regular opener head as well, but I’m not sure what size drip bit I have to use for it yet. Have to do some research to see what other people are using.



Saw her in October at a show, they were $5 bucks there. Assume the savings was in shipping on her end.

Reactions: Like 1


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## Mr. Peet (Dec 10, 2019)

Tony said:


> I don't believe there's a problem posting their info as long as you don't have any interest in the company personally.



Catch 22, being somewhat local, I'd like to see them succeed.

Reactions: Like 1


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## Gardnaaa (Dec 10, 2019)

Mr. Peet said:


> Catch 22, being somewhat local, I'd like to see them succeed.



they are pretty heavy and seem pretty well machined. So I’m sure they are good quality


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## Nubsnstubs (Dec 10, 2019)

Nature Man said:


> Never seen a bottle opener like that! How does it work? Chuck


Chuck, it is new to me also, so had to do a search. Totally different take than what I grew up using. When you look at the last picture closely, you can see the catch ring that snags the bottle cap.

Great job on that piece of wood. It looks like oak to me. My concern would be not enough wood at the end of the threaded hole and the narrowest portion of the handle. ............... Jerry (in Tucson)

Reactions: Informative 1


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## Mr. Peet (Dec 10, 2019)

I didn't realize that was the style either. Being the opener is 360 degrees, it is up to the user to use the opener with the proper orientation. I had assumed the "c" style opener and the cut out was hid from view.

@Gardnaaa @Nubsnstubs @Nature Man

Reactions: Like 1


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## Nature Man (Dec 10, 2019)

Got it! Thanks! Chuck

Reactions: Useful 1


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## Maverick (Dec 10, 2019)

Nice job Zack. I bought 3 of those recently but I haven’t turned a handle for one yet. When I showed them to my wife, her reaction was much like everyone else’s… “What’s that”....LOL

The bat shape was a great idea.

Reactions: Agree 2


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## Gardnaaa (Dec 11, 2019)

Maverick said:


> Nice job Zack. I bought 3 of those recently but I haven’t turned a handle for one yet. When I showed them to my wife, her reaction was much like everyone else’s… “What’s that”....LOL
> 
> The bat shape was a great idea.



thank you I appreciate it!!! I told my wife I was making a bottle opener with a baseball theme for her brother. When it was all done and I went and showed her she was like “that’s nice, but what is it?” Lol. But the oak was hard to turn for me. Since I’m pretty new and haven’t turned anything that hard yet, it kept like splintering. So it took a lot of sanding to get it down smooth. Plus I just use cheap 3M sandpaper right now. I’m trying to find a good brand to use.


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## sprucegum (Dec 11, 2019)

Gardnaaa said:


> Turned my first bottle opener over the weekend. I’m pretty sure it was a piece of oak (I got it in a bin of cutoffs from local wood shop). Not my favorite to turn because it was extremely hard, and I broke a few of them trying to get the shape correct. And then when I finally got the shape of this one, I had to sand it forever and ever to try and get it smooth. It had some tear out and
> Chips in it. Anyways, it’s a Christmas present for my brother in law who is obsessed with baseball.
> 
> View attachment 175283
> ...



Nice job I have never seen that style of opener before but I like it. Should be much easier to get the rite side up after having a few too many. I will definitely be making some if and when I get a shop to work in again.

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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## Maverick (Dec 11, 2019)

Jerry bring up a good point when he said "My concern would be not enough wood at the end of the threaded hole and the narrowest portion of the handle." If you do another one, you might want to consider putting the stopper on the other end of the bat so it has a little more meat at the business end of the opener. 

As far as sandpaper goes, I have found the best thing to use is an Abernet style sandpaper. It is kind of like a mesh and you can shake out the dust and keep using it.

Reactions: Like 1


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## Nubsnstubs (Dec 11, 2019)

Maverick said:


> Jerry bring up a good point when he said* "My concern would be not enough wood at the end of the threaded hole and the narrowest portion of the handle." *If you do another one, you might want to consider putting the stopper on the other end of the bat so it has a little more meat at the business end of the opener.
> 
> As far as sandpaper goes, I have found the best thing to use is an Abernet style sandpaper. It is kind of like a mesh and you can shake out the dust and keep using it.


A funny thing happened on this post when I first saw it. The only thing there was what I have in bold above. Thought I would be funny and say I was gonna bring on a law suite for John plagiarizing my statement. When I clicked on Reply, his whole comment appeared. I clicked out, and looked at his comment again, and only my statement appeared. Went back to reply, and his whole comment was there. I started typing my funny, but for some odd reason went back to his comment, and it was all there. This is the first time I've seen that...... Any ideas why, or anyone else have that happen??? Don't panic, John, I ain't gonna sue ya.

Sandpaper quality depends where you get it from. My opinion of Home depot paper is it isn't worth crap, and should be outlawed in this country. It's the red stuff. Bought some in Branson, Missouri back in 08, and the humidity was up about80-90%. When I started trying to sand the wood, the grit just rubbed off. I took a putty knife to one sheet and scraped it off like I do with excess putty.

3M has good paper these days compared to stuff they were selling back in the late 70's up until the early century.. I try get the cloth backed media, but that only up to 180 grit. Anything finer is all paper or the sponge backed stuff which isn't too bad as long as you don't catch corners or burn it while sanding your turnings.

Zack, if your town is large enough to have a 3M supplier in it, go talk to them and see what you can come up with. I'm using 314D 120 grit, and R245 180 grit in J weight cloth backing. It lasts longer, and will do what it necessary to remove scratches. From there it's all paper backed discs that are supposed to be used on my orbit sanders. But like someone said earlier, a lighter touch will sand better than a heavier pressure.

One more thing. White Oak sands pretty good, but Red Oak is terrible. Try Hickory or Ash if you're gonna make more bats. They turn with less tear out and sand better............ Jerry (in Tucson)


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## Maverick (Dec 11, 2019)

Jerry....I can explain.....I accidentally hit "Post Reply" after I copy/pasted your quote. While I was editing and finishing my comment you read it before I finished it. That's my story and I'm sticking to it....so sue me!!!! LOL


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## Gardnaaa (Dec 11, 2019)

Jerry thanks for the tips! I’ve read things about mirka gold sand paper I think. But that was way back in the past. Not trying to shell out a ton of money on sandpaper, just wanted some that are decent. I think I grabbed a couple of small packs from Walmart a couple years ago maybe and a couple packs at Lowe’s. As far as the handle goes, it’s actually quite strong believe it or not. There’s no flex to it. The picture doesn’t do it justice unfortunately. I hope it lasts! The reason I put the stopper at that end of the bat is because it’ll still look like a bat when it’s standing up since my brother in law will probably put it on his counter. But it would make more sense to go on the other side I think. I really appreciate all the feedback!


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