How to Make Checker Pieces on a Wood Lathe

Simple and Complex Checker Pieces

• 1

  Find a block of wood that is roughly the size of one square on your intended checkers board. You can obviously use a bigger block but you will be wasting a lot of wood. Cut the wood down to a length that will fit into your wood lathe.

• 2

  Measure both ends of your wood and find the midpoint. Using a compass, draw a circle whose diameter is no larger than the squares on your board. Darken the circle in so you can better use it as a guide when you are operating the lathe.

• 3

  Using your gouge, roughly lathe down the wood until it is nearly down to the diameter of your circle marks. When you are close, switch to your skew chisel to make the final piece smooth. Continue lathing until you are at least down to the darkened circle on each end. You may want to go slightly further into the wood but don't go too far.

• 4

  Depending on your lathe, you may or may not need to sand down the piece of wood. Once it is smooth enough, measure the length of the wood and divide that number by 24. Have at least 14 to 16 inches of wood so you can make enough 1/2-inch checker pieces. Using a band saw or whatever tiny saw you have available, cut 24 even pieces out of your block of wood.

• 5

  If you are content with these pieces, stain, varnish or paint your checkers as you see fit and challenge your opponent to a game. If you want to go a little more complex, read on for some more options.

• 6

  For the truly advanced, try making a tongue and groove on each checker piece. On one side, make two to four small grooves around the edge of the piece. On the other side, router out ridges that will fit into the previous grooves on other pieces. This way, when you are ready to be crowned or kinged, you can stack two pieces without having them slip apart. Practice this before committing as it will take some time and effort but will make a memorable checker set.