For unto us a lathe is given

Welcome to the World of Turning Drew,

There are many good books and videos on the market these days. Three DVD's that I've reviewed recently are "Bowl Basics: A Workshop with Mike Mahoney"; "Woodturning Projects with Rex and Kip, Volume I" and "Woorturning Projects with Rex and Kip, Volume II". These three videos would be very helpful to you. You have two of the books that I might recommend for a beginner. I should mention that I've written two books that will answer many of your questions: "A Guide to Work-Holding on the Lathe" and most recently "The Woodturners FAQ Book". The first of these gives a lot of information on ways to mount wood on your lathe. It is pretty much sold out at most US Suppliers, however, I recently ordered 25 copies direct from the publisher for resale. I'm selling it for $27.00 plus $5.00 shipping and handling. The Woodturners FAQ Book was published by Linden Publishing in California. It should be available from most sources. I know that Amazon.com has it on hand or you can order it from me, address at my web site.

There are some good magazines on the market: "Woodturning" (published in England 13 issues per year), "Woodturning Design" (you may find it on the newstand, published four times a year), "American Woodturner" (published quarterly by the American Association of Woodturners, a worthwhile organization to join. It is published four times a year), and "More Woodturning" (my publication published 10 times a year and available as a printed copy or as a PDF file. You can see a sample at my web site listed below). All four of these magazines are full color and provide some good reading concerning woodturning subjects.

You don't need small tools to turn on a small lathe, unless you are turning very small things. Probably one of the best buys for a beginner is the set of High Speed Steel tools sold by Harbor Freight. I personally have never used them, but I understand from others that are a good buy for under $50.00.

For turning spindles, I recommend a 3/4" skew with the edges rounded (Hamlet makes a good one), a 3/8 inch or 1/2 inch spindle gouge, and a parting tool. It doesn't hurt to have a spindle roughing gouge, but it is not necessary.

For bowl turning, I recommend a 3/8" bowl gouge (with swept back wings, a grind similar to the Ellsworth Grind), a heavy duty round nose scraper, and a parting tool. With these tools, you can turn most bowls on your lathe.

When it comes to tool brands, I prefer the better brands; i.e., Robert Sorby, Hamlet, Crown, Henry Taylor, and Ashley Iles.

I also recommend that you get or make a jig set up for sharpening your tools. If buying, the Oneway Wolverine set is good and the Woodcut Tru- Grind jig is excellent. I believe that Darrell Feltmate has plans or instructions for making a sharpening jig at his website.

Finally, for your last question. The lathe spindle should be as high as your elbo with your arm bent at a right angle. That works for most people. Measure the distance from your elbo to the floor and then put you lathe on a table that will put the center height equal to that distance.

Have fun and remember, the lathe is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the cost of woodturning. There is always that other tool that you can't live without.

Fred Holder

Sorry Drew,

The link to my web site is missing the .com in my previous post.

Fred Holder

Good lathe stand for now is your trusty workmate... You DO have one, right?

I use my mini at shows on a workmate with a stand made out of 4x4's and a piece of plywood.. Just to avoid bending, me being an ol' fart..

You'll get lots of suggestions from folks here that have built tables and stands..

I had built one, and in answer to your height question: I went to a local store and measured the bed height of a few display models with factory stands... they were all about 37 or 38" tall so I went with that..

I think for a beginner, you'd be better off starting with this set:

Personally, I think spindle and pen turning is an excellent way to learn basic technique and skill, but that's just me.. I do mostly bowl turning but pens sell well and the better I get with the skew and sharpening it on pen work, the better my bowls are... The reason that I'd recommend this set is because it sets you up for basic bowl AND spindle turning.... Learning to use spindle tools will help you on the outside of bowls, boxes, etc.... If you get the set that you did the link for, you have NO spindle tools.. not even a skew or parting tool.. I get a lot of my stuff from Penn State and they are good tools for the money... also, they sell individual chisels so don't think that one set leads to another..... As in flat work, you add tools as your skill level leads you into different things and you need a specific tool to do it..

If I knew then what I know now department: I wish I'd bought this video or one like it 20 years ago so I didn't have to unlearn so many bad habits:

hmm... funny link

Go there and hit "video".. I learned SO much from this DVD and Bill is very accessible through email and this group..

mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

All the tools used for spindles can be used for bowls. Some people even use the longer deep-fluted things they call "bowl" gouges on spindles. A standard set of tools has a couple gouges, a parting tool, a skew and two-three scrapers.

or if you want PSI. >

Yep, learn the tools before you buy the chuck. Decent Chinese stuff out there now, as well as the old standards. Just get one with a removeable insert in case you want to migrate it to your next (there will be one) lathe.

The old bent elbow recommendation is good, your forearm/wrist angles work pretty well from there. Since you're using your own stand, start high and work back as required.

is a good idea, or any other variation that gets you in close to the lathe in front, while extending the legs or sheetgoods (my preference) out about 25% or so greater than the swing. Use geometry rather than weight to hold against imbalances. That way you can store things other than sand in that precious floorspace.

You are going to get more wisdom than you can use from this group.

Welcome the joy of turning.

My advice..find turning friends.

The American Association of Woodturners has a listing of local chapters. There is NOTHING like having a person take hold of your hands and chisel and say, "Do it like THIS!" Books or videos can't compete.

Have a grand time....we do.

Old guy

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I do, but I'd assumed that it wasn't rigid enough. I may start out that way. If nothing else, it'll make it easier to experiment with heights to find my comfort level.

And that's my first task -- basic shaping and control of the tools. That and sharpening (and scrounging wood, hmm, suddenly wishing for a good heavy ice storm).

That seems to be the only sort of hobbies that I find.

Thanks. I've always liked the overall attitude when reading here. That's less and less common on usenet as time passes.

I once totaled the lathe "accessories", they came to 2x the cost of the lathe, and I don't have a cheap lathe

Rigid is over rated..lol If you're turning big, irregular size stuff, you need a stable platform and a lot of weight... You don't want to do that for a while because it's more fun doing this with all your body parts attached.. Before I made my "riser" for the workmate, I'd just clamp the tail stock end to the workmate..

I'll repeat what lots of us say here... make Darrell Feltmate's web site your reference library....

mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

Absolutely.

Robert

The next time I need another bowl gouge, I will buy theirs, knock the handle off, polish it up, reahandle it, and will be in and out for under $30.

When you are starting out, I think there are a couple of things that really haven't been touched on here yet. First, a good set of tools at a reasonable price is a good idea. That way you can play, experiment, learn the grinds you like, and learn how to sharpen without doing it on a $65 tool. But... I have never known anyone that uses all the tools that come in a $350 Henry Taylor, Robert Sorby, etc., set. The have one or two that they like, and the rest just sit in the shelf. Buy something like the Penn State set and concentrate on having fun and experimenting.

Second, if you can join a club. For some reason unknown to me, most woodturners can be the most accessible, ready to share guys and gals you will meet. It may be because many take it up later in life and for them they are eager to learn as much as possible as well, or because it is just a hobby for them. I don't know. But one of the real inspirations to get out and grind wood came for me when I joined out turning group a few years ago. At that time, the folks there were just great.

You can learn more in a meeting from someone you how you need to move your elbow, place the tool on the work or how to change the angle in less than a minute than you can sometimes in the shop alone for a couple of days. Besides, it's more fun and probably everyone one there does things differently and that makes it more fun still if you like to learn.

Just my 0.02.

Robert