Jacob Reverb
05-14-2011, 8:00 AM
Hello, all,
I have only used a lathe once, about 20 years ago when my Dad was still around, and really enjoyed it. I remember my Dad, who was a lifelong woodworker, saying not long before he passed away that the more turning he did, the more he loved using the lathe.
In doing my daily rounds at Craigslist, I saw what I believe to be a twin of Dad's old lathe (now long gone), a Delta Rockwell 46-111, on a stand with 1/3 hp motor and two sets of gouges for $175 so I bought it.
Now I have a few questions I hope someone can help me with:
1. I seem to recall Dad's lathe had a switch that had 3 positions - fwd, rev and off. Am I misremembering this? Is there any reason to reverse a wood lathe, possibly for sanding the "whiskers" off of bowls or something? Is the reversing switch worth getting? This machine just has the on-off switch, but the motor has a label showing how to reverse-wire it.
2. Is there anything I need to "true" or "tune up" or "check" before using it (i.e., like making sure a table saw blade is parallel to the miter gauge slots and the fence)?
3. Can anyone recommend any good books or online resources that I could read to learn about turning? My main interests would be in making large turnings (as for a pedestal table) and maybe turning segmented bowls down the road.
[Speaking of segmented bowls...I'll never forget visiting Dad once, and there were all these smashed husks of fluorescent tubes around his lathe...I asked him what happened and he said a bowl glueup fragged in the lathe :eek: and shrapnel hit the light fixture :rolleyes: plunging him into darkness but he didn't dare move as the glass rained around his ears :cool: because he had a big slick in his hands! I laugh every time I remember that story...]
Thanks in advance for any clues or help. I can't wait to start turning stuff!
Jacob.
I have only used a lathe once, about 20 years ago when my Dad was still around, and really enjoyed it. I remember my Dad, who was a lifelong woodworker, saying not long before he passed away that the more turning he did, the more he loved using the lathe.
In doing my daily rounds at Craigslist, I saw what I believe to be a twin of Dad's old lathe (now long gone), a Delta Rockwell 46-111, on a stand with 1/3 hp motor and two sets of gouges for $175 so I bought it.
Now I have a few questions I hope someone can help me with:
1. I seem to recall Dad's lathe had a switch that had 3 positions - fwd, rev and off. Am I misremembering this? Is there any reason to reverse a wood lathe, possibly for sanding the "whiskers" off of bowls or something? Is the reversing switch worth getting? This machine just has the on-off switch, but the motor has a label showing how to reverse-wire it.
2. Is there anything I need to "true" or "tune up" or "check" before using it (i.e., like making sure a table saw blade is parallel to the miter gauge slots and the fence)?
3. Can anyone recommend any good books or online resources that I could read to learn about turning? My main interests would be in making large turnings (as for a pedestal table) and maybe turning segmented bowls down the road.
[Speaking of segmented bowls...I'll never forget visiting Dad once, and there were all these smashed husks of fluorescent tubes around his lathe...I asked him what happened and he said a bowl glueup fragged in the lathe :eek: and shrapnel hit the light fixture :rolleyes: plunging him into darkness but he didn't dare move as the glass rained around his ears :cool: because he had a big slick in his hands! I laugh every time I remember that story...]
Thanks in advance for any clues or help. I can't wait to start turning stuff!
Jacob.