Making an alloy gear knob, help needed

I want to make something like this **LINK**

I know how to up to a point but am struggling once I have made it how to drill the hole and thread it without damaging it.

Any suggestions, looked to YouTube but could not find anything

I suggest tapered soft jaws or tapered split bush.

Tony

Edited By Tony Pratt 1 on 01/01/2018 13:28:47

I would have thought that the hole and thread is the starting point and from which you hold the raw stock to do the shaping operations. i.e threaded onto an arbor.

I think I would be looking to drill and tap the blank first, mount it on a matching threaded shaft. You could then hold the shaft in the chuck and turn the shape of the knob.

Yep, drill and tap then turn taper on threaded arbor then use ball turner and shape end over

Damn.

As a teenager and before I ever had a driving licence, let alone a car, (probably 17th birthday) my parents gave me a leather gear knob with a sterling silver insert.

If I could find it, I could fit it to my car, just nearly four decades late

As said drill, tap and cut the taper then screw it onto something while you round the end.

They are not the nicest things to use, my Ltd Edition Scooby has one, if it has been sitting in the sun you can't touch it and in winter it is like holding a block of ice.

It’s not for a car but a racing sim Ihave in the loft.

Can’t decide if it’s the correct one, or should I make it out of nylon instead of ally

Very retro

So retro that it would likely need a thread on the forum of how to hold it while cutting a metric thread (to replace the imperial one) without damaging it.

I bet Neil has also got the crochet backed driving gloves and cravat tucked away somewhere safe too

He probably also has bead seat covers

I think they are under the fluffy dice

I accept no gip from someone with gold alloys!

Neil

I suspect that the nylon / plastic on would be comfortable to the hand, it might be worth making a threaded brass insert with a parallel knurled outside to it, pressed into the nylon knob. Set up the hole first, and screw this on a short bit of thread, hold in the lathe chuck and turn the taper, then rough out the hemisphere and finish with a hand scraper as used in wood turning.

Ian S C

And what is wrong with gold alloys

Well have enjoyed making my new knob

You got your lathe in your bedroom? Or aquick recovery from you sick bed, yesterday!

Absolutely nothing!

Its just man flue so was sick of bed and decided to take my mind off it yt playing in the workshop with the heater full blast

Edited By petro1head on 02/01/2018 13:54:45

I'm quite happy with the knob that Citroen provided (234,000-ish miles on the clock).

But, were a replacement ever needed, it would be a choice between fabric-based Tufnol or some off-cuts from an ex London Underground railway sleeper, Jarrah wood, polishes and waxes up nicely to a rich deep red/brown.

Best regards,

Swarf, Mostly!