First Lathe

Marcel,

Answer your last question first- I skimmed the specs and customer reviews and it looks like this lathe has a 10” swing. That means that this the largest diameter you can turn so a 10” bowel would be max. With the horsepower of that lathe, you might find it bogging down if you tried to turn something that big in diameter. For smaller objects- pens, pepper grinders, smaller bowels it should work fine.

Buying the tools set is probably the way most of us started. It is the economical way to go. That said, I have replaced most of my original set with higher quality tools that stay sharper longer. If I had it to do over, I would have bought some books on how to turn and figured out what tools I really needed for what I wanted to make. Some tools work great for one type of turning but will not work for others. I don’t know if it would have saved me any money but I would have learned how to use the tools I had purchased as my skills developed.

For the grinder, a recent post here recommended an 8” grinder over a 6” (mine’s a 6”). To prevent overheating the tools, check into a “slow” speed grinder. Get a book- or better yet a DVD on how to sharpen lathe tools- it will save a lot of frustration. Also, I use the diamond honing “sticks” to touch up the tips instead of going to the grinder every time.

There are a whole bunch of very talented turners here. For more information, perhaps a PM to one of them could get you some professional tips.

Hopes this helps.

Lew

http://www.woodturnerscatalog.com/store/Pen_Making___Starter_Sets___Deluxe_Pen_Turners_Starter_Kit___deluxe_pen_starter?Args=

Try this link. It is a whole started kit, jet mini lather, tools, pen blanks, and other stuff.

Let me know what you think.

-- Adrian ..... The 11th Commandment...."Thou Shalt Not Buy A Wobble Dado"

Marcel, I would recommend either the Jet or Rikon for a mini lathe. Both machines are well built and will serve you well. The tool I use the most is a fingernail bowl gouge. Keeping your tools sharp is definitely a must. I use the Wolverine grinder and jigs. The grinder must be a slow speed. I would recommend joining a local wood turning club. They will be your greatest resource. Some of the many things clubs typically offer are; teaching programs, mentoring programs, library with books and DVD’s, guest speakers, discount on supplies, and fellowship with great people passionate about the craft. The clubs make-up is typically from beginner to professional.

-- My favorite piece is my last one, my best piece is my next one.

From my own experience, I own the Grizzly G0624 10” lathe. So it is akin in size to the one on Amazon. I just started turning about a year ago and wanted to do so in a relatively inexpensive manner. I figured I would put more money into the tools than the lathe. I also got the tools from Grizzly, H1064 and purchased an additional bowl gouge. Like you I just wanted to experiment and play around in hobby form.

Depending on what you want to turn you might find a chuck to be useful as well. The grinder I got was the DeWalt 8” from amazon, at the time it was $90 with free Super Saver Shipping and arrived 2 days after I ordered it. I “upgraded” one of the stock wheels with a finer wheel at the recommendation of my local turning teacher/coach.

I have been very happy with the Grizzly and the tools. I just added the bed extension since I want to get into turning some larger items, like NA flutes.

I would suggest that you find a local turning club that you could go talk to the members. You might find people willing to let you look over their lathes and play with them. Also, if you have a wood working store in the area, they might have classes. Our local Rockler has classes every month for turning, from basic to specific projects. They supply the lathes, the tools, the wood, etc. It is a great way to try out the various models and tools and learn from experienced turners.

I played with the Jets at class and they are nice. I was also able to go to the Grizzly showroom and play with their lathe prior to purchasing it. The Jet is nicer and I am upgrading more and more off the stock grizzly every year, but I do it at my own pace and financial budget rather than worry about dumping a lot of money into a machine up front and not using it. There is even an entire day of class dedicated to nothing but sharpening your tools. The upgrades I have made to the grizzly is to get the bed extension and upgrade the tool rest to SS round bars, plus since I am doing bowls, get the S-shaped bowl rest.

Though I must disagree with trifern, all my turning coaches here have high-speed grinders and when they can afford it, have the Wolverine jigs. So there might be a different technique depending on your grinder speed, but everyone I know uses a normal speed grinder. Though by no means am I an expert, my tools are always sharp and still in shape after a year of use.

-- Rich, WNY, www.nyrockingchairs.com

Thanks for your very in-depth answers guys, it has really helped.

LazyFireman, I won’t be going for that package, but thanks anyways.

Unfortunatley, there are no turning clubs, or even woodworking clubs where I live. There’s a Lee Valley around, but I don’t want to pay $150 for the lesson/seminar.

I decided to ditch the lathe from Amazon-I don’t feel like I’d get my moneys worth. I’m also ditching the Jet-to expensive. Now I’m down to the Rikon 70-100, or the Grizzly G0624. It boils down to: do I want to spend ~$70 (Calculating this with rough shipping costs) for 2” more swing, 1/2” more bed, 2” more tool rest, slower speeds and 1 1/4” less tailstock travel? (Did I miss anything?) I’d love to hear from a Rikon owner!

I hate researching.

Marcel, up until the point when I lucked into a Delta Midi for only $150, I was aiming squarely at the Rikon when the budget allowed, things changed when the Midi dropped in my lap, though. Keep an eye on craigslist, you might luck into a similar deal.

-- Ned - 2B1ASK1 http://nedswoodshop.blogspot.com

I have been keeping an eye on Kijiji (Canadian version of Craigslist) but it’s really slow.
Cheers :-)

i would really recommend the jet mini lathe. thats the one that i have and it is very well built. also don’t get a slow speed grinder for sharpening turning tools. you want a regular high speed grinder. this is because on a lot of turning tools you want to have the burr that is left by the high speed grinder for cutting purposed. if you have a slow speed grinder it will not leave a burr or at least as much of it.

Alright, thanks for the info!

One other suggestion, have a good permament spot you can bolt or clamp your grinder too, it will tend to walk when it is at speed, at least mine does, I bolted it to a block of wood and that was enough to keep it from walking. You will find you sharpen a lot, so have a nice colocated setup is kind of important. Building the setup into a corner, so all you do is turn your hips to sharpen, is a good plan. My grinder just sits next to the lathe, though with the extension on there the lathe now takes up the entire table so I need a new home for the grinder.

-- Rich, WNY, www.nyrockingchairs.com

I was thinking of bolting both to a piece of ply or a few 2×4’s or something. Not sure how high it should be, but from the videos I’ve seen on Youtube, waist height?

Thanks for all of your help! :)

I have my lathe set so the spindle is elbow high. The reason for using a slow speed grinder is to help prevent over heating your tools while sharpening. Most quality tools are made of high speed steel. If they get too hot they will lose their temper, then they will not stay sharp as long. I get plenty of burr while sharpening. Even with my slow speed grinder I have to be careful not to overheat my tools.

-- My favorite piece is my last one, my best piece is my next one.

Thanks Trifern :)

Is there a huge difference between normal and slow speed grinders? (I do realize this is probably a ongoing debate) In your opinion, is is worth the extra money?

I just found this little beut. Do you think it is adequate, and what grit of wheels would you recommend?
http://www.grizzly.com/products/G9717

When you sharpen on the grinder, you literally press the tool against the wheel and rotate if it is a gouge, or just play it across quickly for a flat blade. You should not be in contact with the wheel for no more than 1 or 2 seconds, yes they get warm, but no where near the temperatures to lose temper. You need to be around 500 degrees F to lose temper in most steels.

-- Rich, WNY, www.nyrockingchairs.com

Thanks again Rich!

I bought this grinder:
dewalt

I took the 36 grit wheel off and replaced it with an 100 grit wheel.

Another tool is called a wheel dressing tool. It is basically a metal bar with diamond bits on it. Eventually your grinding wheels get clogged up with dust, dirt, metal bits, a quick 2-second pass with this dressing tool cleans up the grinding wheel so it is ready to go again. This is one example. Dresser

-- Rich, WNY, www.nyrockingchairs.com

Marcel,
I believe the slow speed grinder is worth the money and the way to go. If I’m sharpening tools that cost between $50-$150 dollars each, an extra few dollars for the slow speed grinder seems insignificant. Here is a link to an economical slow speed grinder.

-- My favorite piece is my last one, my best piece is my next one.

Rich – So now you have a 100 grit and a 60 grit? Why do you need two for that matter?
ANOTHER thing to buy? lol :P Thanks for bringing it up. Grizzly sells one, but it’s not diamond studded, it’s something called a starwheel or something of that sort. I’ve also heard they are really dangerous? Thanks again :)

Trifern – I see where you are coming from, but I plan for my whole set of turning tools to cost $50. Thanks for the explanation! :)

Marcel,
Please pick up the latest issue of American Woodturner magazine/journal. It has an article titled “Get a Good Start at the Lathe” by Bob Rosand. He addresses the most commonly asked questions for beginners.
1) What grit do you recommend for sharpening tools?
2) What speed of grinder do you recommend?
3) Should I buy a sharpening jig?
4) Why is sharpening so important?
5) What set of tools should I buy?
6) What tools should I start with
7) What’s the best lathe height?
8) How much light do I need?
9) What’s the big deal about safety glasses?
10) How high should the tool rest be?
11) How close should I put the tool rest to the wood?
12) How much upkeep does a lathe require?
13) At what speed should I turn?
14) When am I ready to turn big bowls?
15) What is the best chuck?
16) What grit of sandpaper is that?
17) What’s the best finish to apply?

If your local bookstores do not carry this periodical, you can order it from the AAW website.

-- My favorite piece is my last one, my best piece is my next one.

Awesome! Thanks Trifern!

Marcel,

I honestly don’t remember the justification for the 2 grits, but I was definitely told not to sharpen with the 30. Depending on the tool, the higher grit is better for the finer edge. Since I predominately use the coarser grit for my roughing gouge and fast-cutting tools and the finer grit for my detail spindle and bowl gouges I am pretty sure that is the reasoning, the finer grit is better for the finer cutting tools.

If you don’t get one of the fancy-schmancy tool holders, then you will want to set your grinder rest plates to the angle of the tool. Always sharpen your tools to the same angle they came from the factory with.

I have one plate set to the angle of my roughing gouge and then the other plate set to my spindle gouges, which also coincides with my bowl gouge. For the parting tool I just eye-ball it and for the shaving tool I use a diamond hone sharpener by hand.

Again, I am not an expert and there are whole-day classes that focus on nothing but sharpening. This is just what I was taught.

-- Rich, WNY, www.nyrockingchairs.com

Thanks again Rich, very informative as always!

Marcel, you have been overloaded with a lot of information. Some of it is very good and some of it is VERY bad. The best info you got was from Trifern! Get that Fall 2008 AAW issue and read the article starting on page 50 which will give you great info. It will be worth the money! Most of the professional turners I have seen prefer the Norton 3X 80 grit for all round use, and the 1750 RPM grinder. Don’t buy poor quality tools! You can buy excellent tools that are not terribly expensive, such as Thompson (USA) and P&N (Austrailia). Many of the Pro turners use these even though you have to make or buy handles. I have used a Thompson Detail since April and have not had to re-sharpen yet. The edge from the factory for most of the tools is NOT what you want to use, the Pros say. There are many sources for tools & supplies, but one of the better to get an idea is Craft Supplies USA. www.woodturnerscatalog.com There are many more.

-- BillyUP