Making Custom Beer Tap Handles For Your Bar: A Woodworker’s Guide

Mount the blank

Start with a wood blank (turning term for a rough block of wood) that is 2-1/2-in. x 2-1/2-in. x 12-in. Find the center on both ends and create a divot at the center point with a nail set. The more accurate the location of the center point, the less vibration you will have when you start up the lathe to get the wood balanced.

Using a mallet, seat the spur drive into the center point and ensure all four prongs dig into the wood. Place the end with the spur drive into the headstock and secure the center point on the end into the tail drive. Turn the tail drive tightly to secure the blank between centers.

Balance the blank

The most important part of basic woodturning safety is to ensure your blank is always well-balanced and centered. Use a roughing gouge to work from one end of the blank to the other, slowly removing the sharp, square corners of the wood until there is no longer any flat surface. The piece will run smoothly once it is balanced.

Mount it on the chuck

Cut a foot and a shoulder at the headstock end of the blank for mounting it back on the lathe with a chuck. Determine whether your foot should have a dovetail profile or a straight foot by consulting the chuck you intend to use. Use a caliper set to the desired chuck size, and a parting woodturning tool to cut it. Create a dovetail profile by using a skew chisel, resting it on its side, on the tool rest.

Take the blank off the lathe and remove the spur drive from the headstock. Attach the chuck to the threaded spindle of the lathe headstock. Insert the blank with the newly created foot into the chuck. To ensure that your blank is well centered, secure the tail drive in the divot created by the spur drive on the opposite end of the chuck. Advance the tail drive towards the center to secure the blank between the centers (chuck on one end and tail drive on the other). Tighten the chuck end first, and then the tail drive end.

Turn the profile

Shape the now cylindrical piece of wood to the desired profile with a spindle gouge. Beads and coves will make any piece interesting, but they are the secret to an attractive-looking beer tap handle.

Combine beads and coves made with the spindle gouge with clear starts and stops to the movement of your tap handle to create interest.  Using a parting tool will make this very easy.

Drill hole for the tap handle insert

Leaving the piece secured in the chuck on the headstock side, separate the tail drive. Insert a 5/16-in. drill bit into the tail drive with either a Jacobs chuck or the appropriate Morris taper drill bit for your lathe. Slowly drill a one-inch deep hole into the tail drive end for the threaded tap handle insert. Be sure to lower your lathe speed to about 400 RPMs when drilling. Mark the depth on the drill bit before drilling and double-check it with a depth gauge before moving on.

Once the hole has been drilled, remove the drill bit from the tail drive and insert the center. Then, tighten it back into the hole. Don’t worry, this won’t distort or damage the 5/16-inch hole you just drilled.

Sand and seal

Starting with 150-grit sandpaper and working consecutively through 220, 320, and 400. Sand the entire beer handle to smooth out and remove any tool marks.  Make sure to get into all the beads and coves and never skip a grit.

Once the beer tap handle has been sanded, apply a walnut oil sealer with a clean shop rag.  Run the lathe to heat up the oil and help it penetrate the wood.

Part off the tap handle

Once the custom beer tap handle has been sanded and sealed, you will work with the spindle gouge to round off the end attached to the chuck, removing material until it is completely cut off from the foot. A parting tool will be handy for cutting off the inner 1/4-in. of the blank.

Sand and finish the top nub

When you have fully removed the beer tape handle from the chuck on the lathe, you will find a nub where you have parted and separated it from the foot. This area will need to be sanded and finished to blend in with the rest of the piece.  Take your time, run through all the grits with sandpaper and apply the walnut oil finish.

Glue in tap handle insert

Dry-fit the threaded insert to ensure a good fit.  If the threaded insert is loose, add sawdust to the hole before you glue it.  Secure the insert with medium viscosity CA glue. Ensure the insert sits level to the tap handle to prevent a misaligned tap handle when connected to the beer tap.

FAQ

Is woodturning difficult?

As with any craft, woodturning projects are only as difficult as you make them out to be.  It is very important to have someone teach you how to safely and properly mount the wood. Woodturning requires focus and dedication, with an investment of time and money to get started. Woodturning has a steep learning curve, and understanding the safety elements that must be put in place is a huge factor when first trying it.

Do you have to be a carpenter to learn woodturning?

Being a carpenter is not required to learn woodturning. Carpentry knowledge will help with understanding the orientation of the wood grain and basic measurements, but not prohibitive to learning how to turn wood on a lathe.

Can I learn how to turn wood on a lathe by myself?

I would not recommend learning how to turn wood on a lathe without proper instruction.  It is also likely you will learn much faster when someone shows you the step-by-step process to woodturning, as it is not necessarily an intuitive process.  There are safety processes in woodturning that must be followed to work safely and avoid injury.

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