tutorials

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Can any one offer some advice about the best video tutorials available online, problem with finding them myself is that I don't know if what I am watching is correct or not :)
One thing I have found with youtube over the years is that just about anyone can upload a video & some of the videos I have seen to do with things I know about are complete rubbish but I only know that because I know how those things should be done :):)

So the best thing to do is ask you experts on the forum what I should be watching to help me learn & progress
 
You're right. I remember seeing one on scraper sharpening that was really messed up. I've watched a lot of woodturning videos, and I find that I can pretty quickly assess whether this person knows what he's talking about. Also, some of the videos are backed by reputable companies, which are generally very good. My biggest problem usually isn't that the presenter is inept at his work, but fails to explain fully what he is doing. It took me a while to find a good video on turning the inside of a bowl. They would tell you things like "ride the bevel" without really giving a good look at what they were doing. I finally ran into one by Brendan Stemp who showed exactly how he presented the tool to the wood. So now I know, but I had to watch a few videos first.

What kind of tutorial are you looking for?
 
Martin, yes that is correct.

I find it very frustrating when I post something that I have learned from being a professional over 30 plus years, only to be contradicted by someone with less than a year of hobby level experience.

The reader or watcher, usually wants a surface level answer, and wants a "quick easy" way out.

It's really frustrating to a professional.

To someone like you, whom by the way, I consider to be a professional, it is frustrating to try to sort out the pro advise, from the amateur.

But, don't be discouraged. Youtube really does have great and professional content. The trick, as you already know is HOW to sort good from bad.

We do know good sources, for all sorts of information. BUT, you gotta know, we all have differences of opinion - even in here.

One fer instance.

I like the scary sharp method of sharpening. Been doing it for years, I swear by it. A friend of mine taught me how to professionally fettle a hand plane, but he was a waterstone guy, and we had many discussions about the "better" method. Yet others will argue that oil stone is the best. The bottom line is - they are all GREAT. That's what difference of opinion between professionals will get you. Personal choice means you need to choose the method that you like best. For me - scary sharp.

NOW, it taking a blade to be sharpened and jabbing it into a bench grinding wheel to sharpen it correct. I do not consider Tormek sharping to be in this category, as that is a proven method.

Sometimes it's obvious, but not always.

What we need to know from you is - what tutorials do you want to know about? What do you want to learn? We can steer you to certain places and certain youtubbers that we like. I have a list of them myself, but I am into everything from hand planes to sign painting and glazing to cutting stone on my CNC machine.
 
thanks for the replies Gents, sorry in the delay replying but been away for a few days & the laptop I took with me didn't contain the log in for this forum & I wasn't sure what I had used either lol
I am really looking for general turning type tutorials at the moment, nothing to specific really. Something covering the different types of turning tools, how best to use them & when/how to decide which tool is best for each type of job. At the moment I am not even sure if I am holding some of the tools correctly :huh: I can leave the skew for now lol, probably need to get a bit more experience with other tools first, I am not scared of it as I have read some people are, no tools/machinery actually scare me. I have a healthy respect for & am more cautious with some but they don't actually scare me.
Leo it doesn't discourage me at all, I just happen to know that not everything that is posted is good advice but being new to a lot of this it is sometimes difficult to sort the good from the bad. By asking the experts I know (or at least hope) I will get pointed in the right direction. Yes there will always be differences when it comes to peoples opinions but that can be a good thing for someone like me, 2 people recommend different tutorials, I can watch them both & then decide which method works best for me :)
Funny enough I bought some tormek sharpening jigs. I had read some good reviews about their system so it seemed like the best thing to do. I was taught some basic tool sharpening during my engineering training in the Royal Navy but never did a great deal of it during my career & nothing really since my medical discharge. Knowing the importance of correctly sharpened tools I figured if I used something almost foolproof like the tormek system to sharpen the tools correctly any problems I was having wouldn't be caused by an incorrectly ground tool.

Haha, yes I know exactly what you mean when it comes to others contradicting some advice you may have given. Some of that though is down to what I have been talking about in this post. If you know nothing about a particular subject then how do you know that the tutorial you are studying is wrong ? You then pass that incorrect advice on to others believing it to be right :doh: As you already know I work as a signmaker dealing mainly with cad cut vinyl. It is so cheap & easy now days to get a computer & some pirate software that everyone has become a designer. Occasionally someone will come in with a really good design but the vast majority are really bad. They then go on to tell you how good it is & that their Son, Daughter, Aunt, Uncle, Friend etc etc had done it & they were a Professional Designer. Next question is do I use Microsoft Word because that is the design software that has been used to create it :):)
 
I am not a spinny thingy guy. Tried it, never got beyond a pile of pens. Just not my thing. All I know is that a skew will require some learning.

There are some decent spinny people in here.

Perhaps getting pointed to some decent youtube spinny channels will be helpful. Yep - I know - that is what you are asking. I can point to other stuff, but not spinny stuff. Err - CNC - Metal cutting, spinny stuff - yeah, I can do THAT, but not hand held chisels in wood.
 
You can't go wrong watching the John Lucas Youtube videos as Carol suggested. He is a wonderful teacher, a wonderful turner and does a fine job of videography making it easy to see what he is doing. He has videos from sharpening to hollowing and almost everything in between.
 
Thanks for the replies, will have a look when I get a bit of time. I doubt I will ever be really good on a wood lathe, I do far to many other things to be able to devote the time required but I would like to know that what I am doing is done the best possible way.
Leo, I am a little surprised to hear that you have tried it & it's not your thing, from what I have seen & read you enjoy being creative & you have a love of wood which to me seem to be 2 of the main ingredients :) or is it a case of simply not being able to devote the time required as you feel your time would be better spent doing something else ? Something I have been thinking about just lately is do I want to carry on as I am doing lots of different things where I am mediocre at best or do I want to put most of them to one side & concentrate my efforts in just one small area & focus my attention on that alone. Not an easy decision to make because I enjoy them all & would like to be better at all of them but I simply don't have enough time to devote to each of them. What I really need is a ground hog day :) :)
 
Martin, YES, you are correct. I like being creative. I love wood. BUT, I also love lots of other stuff as well and find my release in other things.

I just didn't find my love on a wood lathe.

If we take, "creative and wood", and combine it with other things I love, being, CNC and colors and computer design, I love to create things like my Wolf box.

We had a swap project a year or so ago and I made a "paradise box" with some of my mods to it. I called it "wolf box"
http://familywoodworking.org/forums/showthread.php?36434-Swap-project-received

I REALLY enjoyed making that box and I want to do a lot more of that.

As to turning - I find it to be boring, not creative enough, and the end result is always the same ole same ole. To me, a bowl is a bowl is a bowl. A pen is a pen is a pen. Sorry - I don't mean to offend, the work is wonderful, but this is what it is to me.

If I want a bowl - I can make that in CNC. I can make a pen. BUT, I can also add a LOT of flair to those things and I don't need to follow the "round only" convention. I can make a leaf bowl - with sections in the inside. I can use wood, plastic, brass or aluminum. Really, only imagination limits me there. I want to make colors, textures, shapes, stains, dyes, glazes. I want to push the limits of my mind, design software, and CNC.

I feel like my mind wants to explore the galaxy, but a lathe limits me to a tiny island on earth. It's a really beautiful island in the south pacific with beautiful hula dancers, but I want to explore the rings of Orion

On the other side of the coin - I am being SEVERLY restricted by getting my house in order so I can retire. I am replacing windows on my house, installing vinyl siding, doing some landscaping, remodeling my kitchen, building cabinets from scratch, plumbing, wiring. HOPEFULLY, I will still be alive and healthy when and if this is all completed. Then, I can delve, uninhibitedly into the rings of Orion.

OK - enough - eyes rolling up in my head.

I guess really - I am a space shot.
 
Another + for Brenden Stemp and John Lucas (john60lucas).
I would suggest a very narrow topic and view videos on them alone. Not that one is right/wrong but everyone explains things in a slightly different manner.
Others that present a wealth of info very clearly are Brian Havens, Lyle Jamieson (for bowls).
"Old timers" would be Richard Raffan and Alan Batty but they do have a few videos on line.
One of the very best to me is Stuart Batty (Alan's son) and has about 30 excellent videos on Vimeo. In these he does not turn any projects but covers many topics others may only mention off-hand (He has three on Stance). There are some of Stuart posted by various turning clubs but the video and/or audio is usually lacking. The Vimeo are professionally recorded.
https://vimeo.com/woodturning/videos/sort:alphabetical/format:thumbnail

I would search for all of the above turners and drop their listing in favorites. Then if you want to know about the parting tool search the listing to see if they have one. Your focus would be narrow and get up to four presentations on the one tool.
 
Martin,
I've watched a lot of wood turning videos and still do from time to time... I've taken something away from each one, I've rejected parts from each one as well. I've also rejected some videos as being either outrageous or just plan not so smart... I don't believe there is any one tutorial available that is a be-all or tell-all for any individual turner. We all have different talents, different experiences, different expectations and will all come out with different results... some good and some not so good. When you watch a video, take the parts that make sense to you.

I agree that some of the videos are more for the ego or edification of the video-er than for those who want to learn from them... some are just professional video producers and aren't really for the purpose of teaching. I hate it when you're looking for a particular technique and the party making the video will tell you they sanded or hollowed or whatever off camera, when that is exactly the lesson your are looking for.... a number of very prominent turners are guilty of this.
 
Thanks Mike, had a quick look at Stuart Batty videos last night, never even considered how I was standing might be a factor. That may actually be a problem for me, having one duff leg it's actually difficult for me to shift my weight from one side to the other but I normally can find some sort of work round :)

Chuck, thanks, yes I am not expecting to learn everything from one tutorial or even from one turner, I realise there are many different ways something can be done. I just wanted some opinions from experienced turners so I knew I was watching the right tutorials :)
 
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Your quite right Leo, you can't do this on a wood lathe

bowl exp.jpg

Problem I have with CNC is I can't really do bowls, with no rotary axis & only about 2" clearance under my gantry it's not really possible to do anything other than a shallow dish :) To add a rotary axis or increase the gantry height would involve major surgery, not something that I couldn't do but would not be the easiest of jobs. Maybe one day I will get round to it lol
 
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