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Lathe Question from an extreme Newby

Dom DiCara

Dom DiCara

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The LOML has given me permission to get a Lathe and the accessories to go along with it. My knowledge of wood turning is almost null and have NEVER operated one. Again, my knowledge is from what I have seen here and A few videos from youtube. The Lathe itself will see light work, Chair legs, etc.

Any unit or kit that anyone would recommend?

Your responses are appreciated indeed.:)
 
well thats a loaded question. Any idea on budget,Are you talking new or used.
There are some real good deal that come up on Craigs list. If you want new then you could get a Jet mini or a Rikon like mine and just buy bed extender for the long pieces or you could go for broke and get a big ole Mustard 3520 like Vaughns got or anywhere in between. It realy depends, most start out small and end up up grading at some time in the future.
 
I was going to suggest you go up to Jax to Woodcraft and ask for a demo, but I just googled for directions and see that it is about 2 hours away.

Try to find a turning club in your area that would have a meeting with some demonstrations to get a better feel for what all is involved. Also have a few areas that you are interested in (such as you mention of table legs) that you might ask some of the members for their recommendations of lathes and tools that would best suit your needs.

Good luck, and make you first purchase a good face shield!
 
I would suggest not only asking for a demo, sign up for lessons. After having tried it on their equipment, you will know if you have the nack for more, or how much lathe you want. Shop for theirs or start the Craigs List search.

Good luck and let us know how it works out. Budget and shop space are also factors.
 
I'll echo the good advice you've gotten so far. Getting a bit of hands-on experience and input from other turners will be very beneficial. (Plus a turning club is sometimes a good place to find deals on equipment.) Also be aware that for most of us, the lathe purchase is just the tip of the iceberg. Then there's tools, safety equipment, tools, grinder, tools, sharpening jig, tools, a chuck, tools, sanding supplies, tools, and tools. On the plus side of this, if you're like a lot of us and you get hooked on turning, then your flatwork expenses will go way down. ;) :p
 
Vaughn McMillan said:
I'll echo the good advice you've gotten so far. Getting a bit of hands-on experience and input from other turners will be very beneficial. (Plus a turning club is sometimes a good place to find deals on equipment.) Also be aware that for most of us, the lathe purchase is just the tip of the iceberg. Then there's tools, safety equipment, tools, grinder, tools, sharpening jig, tools, a chuck, tools, sanding supplies, tools, and tools. On the plus side of this, if you're like a lot of us and you get hooked on turning, then your flatwork expenses will go way down. ;) :p
Click to expand...

And Vaughn forgot to include to budget for more TOOLS!:)
 
Roger Newby said:
Frankly....I am the only authentic Newby on this forum. :eek: And I have genealogical data back to about 1655 to verify it. :D:thumb:

:rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl:
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Now that's funny stuff. :p

Although to Dom's credit, he did say extreme Newby. I'm guessing an extreme Newby is a lot like an authentic Newby, just more into skateboard and bicycle stunts...X-Games style. :D Drinking a lot of Red Bull and Mountain Dew along the way, of course.
 
Vaughn McMillan said:
I'll echo the good advice you've gotten so far. Getting a bit of hands-on experience and input from other turners will be very beneficial. (Plus a turning club is sometimes a good place to find deals on equipment.) Also be aware that for most of us, the lathe purchase is just the tip of the iceberg. Then there's tools, safety equipment, tools, grinder, tools, sharpening jig, tools, a chuck, tools, sanding supplies, tools, and tools. On the plus side of this, if you're like a lot of us and you get hooked on turning, then your flatwork expenses will go way down. ;) :p
Click to expand...

Don't forget to mention the tools. :eek: ;)
 
Vaughn McMillan said:
Now that's funny stuff. :p

Although to Dom's credit, he did say extreme Newby. I'm guessing an extreme Newby is a lot like an authentic Newby, just more into skateboard and bicycle stunts...X-Games style. :D Drinking a lot of Red Bull and Mountain Dew along the way, of course.
Click to expand...

x-games and Red Bull?...more like Yankees games and Pain medication:rofl:

Never understood those x games though.

I got lucky and found an older guy...75....I am only 51...in the neighborhood I live in that has a lot of gear and is willing to take the time to show me a few things. I am meeting with him this Sunday. I lucked out and am taking everyone's advice all at the same time:D

Thanks to all.....also keeping an eye on Craigslist
 
Dom DiCara said:
woops!:rofl:
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TRUST me on this one!!! you dont want to get into the vortex of spinny stuff:eek::eek: if you need support we have a few here that can help you along this very dangerous road. we can listen and wont lead you astray like the others above have tried to do.. you would be better of letting them do the spinny stuff for you than to get the fatal disease that they have.. and it would be much cheaper for you to do so.. i remember when vaughn had a old craftsman lathe i think, and before long he kept wanting something bigger and better and now he has it.. although he is one of the lucky ones that can make them pay for them selves there are many out there that dont and are just paying lease payments each year to a never ending debt:) :D although the quick turn around of projects and the extremely unique final outcomes from these spinny things is very inviting..so go cautious Dom. and watch out for the black hole your thinking of falling into:rofl::rofl::rofl:
 
larry merlau said:
TRUST me on this one!!! you dont want to get into the vortex of spinny stuff:eek::eek: if you need support we have a few here that can help you along this very dangerous road. we can listen and wont lead you astray like the others above have tried to do.. you would be better of letting them do the spinny stuff for you than to get the fatal disease that they have.. and it would be much cheaper for you to do so.. i remember when vaughn had a old craftsman lathe i think, and before long he kept wanting something bigger and better and now he has it.. although he is one of the lucky ones that can make them pay for them selves there are many out there that dont and are just paying lease payments each year to a never ending debt:) :D although the quick turn around of projects and the extremely unique final outcomes from these spinny things is very inviting..so go cautious Dom. and watch out for the black hole your thinking of falling into:rofl::rofl::rofl:
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In other words...."you have seen the abyss, never to return":rofl:
 
Dom, I have this t-shirt, and it's very true:

come_to_the_darkside.jpg


Wanna see something funny? I found this spreadsheet a few days ago on my computer. I had found an inexpensive lathe on Amazon (plus I had a $25 Amazon gift certificate to spend), so I was doing some math to see what it was gonna cost me to get into woodturning.

Lathe $74.99 Amazon
Grinder $79.98 Woodcraft
Starter Kit $30.00 Berea Hardwoods
Chisels $38.96 Harbor Freight
--------
Grand Total $223.93

I have probably spent more than that on sanding supplies alone since I crunched those numbers about 4 years ago. :rofl:
 
Vaughn McMillan said:
Dom, I have this t-shirt, and it's very true:

come_to_the_darkside.jpg


Wanna see something funny? I found this spreadsheet a few days ago on my computer. I had found an inexpensive lathe on Amazon (plus I had a $25 Amazon gift certificate to spend), so I was doing some math to see what it was gonna cost me to get into woodturning.

Lathe $74.99 Amazon
Grinder $79.98 Woodcraft
Starter Kit $30.00 Berea Hardwoods
Chisels $38.96 Harbor Freight
--------
Grand Total $223.93

I have probably spent more than that on sanding supplies alone since I crunched those numbers about 4 years ago. :rofl:
Click to expand...

But I notice that even then the tooling was more than the lathe, I am counting the grinder as tooling...
 
Vaughn McMillan said:
Dom, I have this t-shirt, and it's very true:

come_to_the_darkside.jpg


Wanna see something funny? I found this spreadsheet a few days ago on my computer. I had found an inexpensive lathe on Amazon (plus I had a $25 Amazon gift certificate to spend), so I was doing some math to see what it was gonna cost me to get into woodturning.

Lathe $74.99 Amazon
Grinder $79.98 Woodcraft
Starter Kit $30.00 Berea Hardwoods
Chisels $38.96 Harbor Freight
--------
Grand Total $223.93

I have probably spent more than that on sanding supplies alone since I crunched those numbers about 4 years ago. :rofl:
Click to expand...

Now that is funny........I don't care who you are!
 
Dom since i am the only serious one here i will give you my 5 cents. Last time i had turned on a lathe was at high school way too many years ago.

Made a mistake of buying a cheap lathe under pressure long story. Net is it can turn something but lots of issues.

There is some sense in what Larry says. Think carefully about this. It may be the end of your flatwork. Then take heed from what Allen has learnt in his ventures into lathe land. They are recorded here for all to see. He ended up taking back the first lathe and buying up.

My advice would be try the whole idea out by going to a class and seeing if the bug bites. But think about what you gonna make. It can go two ways. I dont particularly want many more bowls in my house. I do like to do handles and other bits and pieces on the lathe and for that mine will get me by.

But whatever you think in the budget for the lathe is probably only 1/3 of what you gonna spend on the rest. Lathes dont come with Chucks, then Chucks have certain opening and closing ranges. Then you need centers. Then you need lathe chisels/tools. The cheap set well it will get you by for spindle stuff but if you want to venture to the land the guys here are in then its gonna cost ya lots of coin. You can spread it over time as you learn but the net is you gonna have a lot invested.

You only need to see the hollowing rigs the guys have here and see what that is all about. Oh and as Vaughn has said dont forget the supply of sandpaper.:D

If you just want to do a few spindles and few pens then you can get a nice small lathe like Jet and others make.

One thing i would advise is get a variable speed whatever. Make sure it can go low in rpm.

Make sure to get a decent faceshield.

But most of all try to get a feel for it before you buy. Then try to the best of your ability to decide just what you wanna do.

You do great flatwork. I ride the edge of the vortex, admiring the guys who do great work, getting to make the odd turned knob or mallet handle. But there is nothing like a plane and flatwork.;):thumb: You get to savor a project longer. :D
 
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