These still need to have the protruding axles trimmed and be sanded, but I think I’ll be pretty close to the 1-hour mark.
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Would you consider turning one similar to my Mother T but rounding the outer rim edges to make it a little more organic?
Thanks, Jeff
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Here’s the 1-hour process.
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Plane a board to thickness.
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Cut out circles using a hole saw. (This cuts the diameter and axle hole in the same step.)
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Use a router table to cut the classic butterfly profile. (I made a jig to help me not lose fingers in the process.)
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Drill response holes.
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Cut a axle to length.
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Assemble with epoxy. (I’m now using System Three epoxy on the recommendation of @vegabomb .)
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Clamp and cure for 36 hours.
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Mount in the lathe jaws and sand.
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Beeswax? We’ll see. I bought some to try like @RC_yo-yo does in one of his videos.
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I made variation of the Mother T with some profile adjustments, and @chaselawrence97 may post a video soon that shows it.
With this router method, I could easily make an organic profile for the Mother T.
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I would definitely like to have one.
Jeff
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I’ll keep you posted.
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Should be out by Tuesday night I think!
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Can you please post a picture of the jig you made to hold the pucks on the router table?
Otherwise sounds similar to my process.
Let me know what you think of the beeswax? I like it.
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@RC_yo-yo , here’s the jig I’m using. Not as cool as yours, but I like that I can easily turn the puck against the router bit.
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You’ll need a much better jig than this if you intend on continuing to rout yoyo halves. This one is too dangerous.
I threw out my old one, but I will write an explanation of its design later.
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That would be great if you’re willing to share. A less dangerous setup is always better.
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I mean, I was also using the jig to trim my fingernails on the advice of the guy in this video, so I figured it must be ok for yoyo making.
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Great movie! 
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This is the very earliest jig I made for making yoyos. Its not quite right, but the concept is there.
The yoyo half secures underneath using a large washer on the bolt. It sits underneath a spacer which is the exact diameter of what you want the half to be. The guide bearing on the router bit makes contact with that part.
To stop the spacer and the half spinning during the routing process, glue some 120 grit sandpaper on the underneath of the jig around the hole the bolt protrudes from. Also stick some sandpaper on the face that makes contact with the half that is to be routed.
You will want to use a very stable wood to make your jig, preferably plywood as its less susceptible to warping.
You dont need the fence set up on your router table. You just use this jig freehand and move it in a circular motion around the bit.
I hope this all makes sense. I wish I had much better photos to.show you.
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That does make sense, and I really like that setup. I wonder if I could use fiberglass instead of plywood so I could more easily see the underside. Would that be crazy to try?
Edit: I guess I would need thick enough fiberglass so that it wouldn’t flex.
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Acrylic seems like it would work if you have a slab.
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You could probably use fibreglass, although you don’t really need to see it while you are routing. You can feel it when you are done.
I would actually suggest using LPDE or HDPE. It would give it a bit more mass to make it feel safer and smoother as well as lower the friction of the jig sliding over the table.
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That’s a great idea.
I just want to add that I don’t recommend routing hard exotic woods. They tend to chip and tearout easily. Stick to woods like oak, maple, beech, walnut and cherry, which are the best woods to use for yoyos anyway.
Routing is a brutal way of processing wood. There’s no cutting involved, the bit just spins ultra fast and scrapes the wood away which is why it leaves such a poor finish. I hate using routers.
This being said, it’s still a quick and effective way of making yoyos, it will just require more finishing.
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Yeah, I even had some tear out on the maple halves. The oak and purpleheart worked really well though. I think the oak showed the most potential in the little test I did, but adjusting the router speed might help the maple.
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