OK, I have to ask?

[Richard Wolf]

While I am a turner of necessity, turning newels post and balusters for my staircases, I am pretty amazed at some of the very fine turning done on this forum. I am most impressed with the very thin turnings used for holding up goblets and vessels. So my question is, are these very fragile and difficult to turn? Any direction in resources for learning more about it?

[Roger Chandler]

There is a learning curve with the proper technique to back the pressure of the tool cutting on really narrow spindles like the stems on some of the goblets .......especially like the ones David DeCristoforo does.............but spindle turning is pretty much spindle turning and once you learn really good tool control, you can do a lot of things!

[Curt Fuller]

Richard, I'm not one of those that does the ultra delicate spindles but I've done a few that are pretty small. I've also done some large spindle work such as coat trees. I would say that the difference is mainly in tool control and controlling the vibration or flex in the wood. If you have a slip or catch on a big spindle it usually just means you have a flaw you need to turn away. But on a small piece, it usually breaks and you start over. Also when you have very small spindles between centers, the pressure from the tailstock will cause the wood to flex and vibrate. If that doesn't break the wood it will at least cause chatter marks in the turning. So you either use some sort of steady rest or you learn to hold a finger or two against the back of the spindle to prevent the flexing and vibration. On shorter pieces, 6-7" or less, I try to turn them without support on the tailstock just to prevent that flexing. But it takes a light touch and plenty of practice to know what the limits are. And you definitely learn to cut with your tools rather than scrape.