Turned Leg Table - Walnut and Osage Orange

[Jason Strauss]

I've wanted to give turning a try, but didn't want to spend a wad of cash not knowing if I would enjoy using a lathe. I've had my eye on a very cost effective, but low quality "Tool Shop" lathe at my local Menards. It was their last one and had been on the floor for some time. I figured if I could wait them out, and if no one else snatched it up, they would liquidate the lathe at some point. Just after Christmas, they did just that. For $110 out the door, I picked up the lathe, a set of 'cheapo' turning tools, and a face shield.

After set up and a few practice spindles, the project below is the result. No mechanical fasteners here. The top is affixed with a wedge and some epoxy; the feet are mortis and tenon. This is not exactly "fine" furniture, but I like the "folk art" feel that resulted.

Needless to say, I really enjoyed this project on my sub-par lathe. I did go ahead and spend a few more bucks on a set of Lee Valley's low end turning tools which are a VAST improvement over my initial set. I've also begun saving for a better quality machine.

Constructive criticism welcomed. Thanks for looking!

[Keith Westfall]

Looks good.

You may find that the 4 legs tend to rock a bit in some situations. 3 legs never will...

[Ben Arnott]

Nice job Jason. I like the contrasting woods a lot. Very nice design. I also like that you left the natural edge to the board. Its not so much rustic, but rather, it works to draw one's attention to the table top and focus on the grain. Nice job.

Ben

[Jeffrey Makiel]

I'm glad you posted the way you did. It's not about the tools, it's about the craftsmanship, patience and care.

As I've read: A carpenter blames his tools, and craftsman blames himself. In your case, you have no reason to complain about anything as this is exceptional work and is the signature of a craftsman that truly has talent regardless of tooling.

Nice work...keep posting,
Jeff :)

[Jason Strauss]

Thanks, guys. A couple of thoughts...

Keith, you're right. After attaching the legs, my first thought was "three would have been better". It may not be evident from the photos, but the attachment points for the legs were left square, so three legs would have been tough on this piece. I think i'll turn it round next time and go with three.

Ben, I'm a big user of contrasting woods. For some reason, I rarely make anything that doesn't have at least two species in it.

Jeff, thanks for the encouragement. The Tool Shop lathe actually performs okay for spindles. It just lacks some features that would be useful. The quality is also very low grade making me worry about safety to some degree. For less than $100, though, it will keep me satisfied for at least a little while.