Minimum tools for newbie??

[Eric Erb]

So I was out garage sailing and found a Cummins lathe 350 watt and brought it home.

No idea if I'm going to like turning, or what I'm going to make with it. Yet.

I don't want to drop a lot of money into the cutting tools for it yet, but don't want junk either. I've heard advice about bench chisels to not buy a whole set at first because you only use a few of them, and to get just what you need as the need arises, and this sounds good to me.

But I know very little about turning, so where do I start?

[Kevin Wolfe]

I am in the same boat as you accept I had a feeling I would really like turning. I just got my lathe about two weeks ago and I love it. Like you, I didn't want to spend $80 per chisel so I got the 8 piece set from harbor freight for $45 after my 20% coupon. Don't get the $20 set as I heard they are bad. These get good reviews and they seem to hold and edge well. I also order a 1/2" bowl gouge from penn state industries as I new it wanted to try bowls. I think it was only maybe $30 with shipping.

[Roger Chandler]

Spindle gouge, parting tool, bowl gouge, and at minimum, a face plate to hold the work, and spur (drive center) and a live center for the tailstock, If you can swing a scroll chuck, all the better!

[charlie knighton]

a turner in my club only has one 1/2 Thompson bowl gouge......he manages........another only uses a hand made skew & round scraper......he manages

it what you get used to

[Thom Sturgill]

Spindle gouge, parting tool, bowl gouge, and at minimum, a face plate to hold the work, and spur (drive center) and a live center for the tailstock, If you can swing a scroll chuck, all the better!

I would add some sizes - 3/8" spindle gouge and 1/2" or possibly 5/8" bowl gouge for starters. And add a 3/4" skew. If you are handy, it is easy to make a thin parting tool, but the standard diamond tool is maybe easier for starters as it does not bind up as easily.

Buy un-handled and make handles as your first project. Plenty of videos on You-Tube. Buy good tools and they will retain some value if you contact a turning club (YOU SHOULD) to sell them. Junk like the Harbor Freight tools have no value.

[Kevin Wolfe]

I don't agree with the harbor freight statement. These chisels have gotten good reviews and for a beginner, I would rather not learn to sharpen on an $80 tool. When I find what I really need, I'll buy a more expensive tool but these are great for learning.

[Thom Sturgill]

I don't agree with the harbor freight statement. These chisels have gotten good reviews and for a beginner, I would rather not learn to sharpen on an $80 tool. When I find what I really need, I'll buy a more expensive tool but these are great for learning.

I stand by my statement. In the long run you are ahead buying decent tools. About $180 for Doug Thompson's Skew,Spindle and Bowl gouges - the same for Sorby, about $175 for D-Way still a little less - $145, for Packard's store brand. Dougs's and D-Way's are unhandled, the others with handles. Doug's and D-Way have longer flutes and harder steel and will outlast the Sorby or Packard. About $80 for the better HF set but....

Be aware that some users have reported finding un-hardened tools in a set. In my case, only about 1/2 to 3/4" was hardened. when you are trying to learn to sharpen only to find that the problem is the TOOL - not good. We also have a recent report of someone clogging up a CBN wheel when the HF gouge he went to sharpen was not hardened properly.

Check out this thread: http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?225800-Warning-Check-the-hardness-of-steel-before-grinding-with-a-CBN-wheel

[Kyle Iwamoto]

Welcome! Find a woodturning club to join.

I'll add that I still use the cheapo starter set from HF. I got along with that set and a Sorby 3/8" (1/2" Thompson size) bowl gouge for a long time. After those 2 purchases, you'll need some sort of sharpening system. After you get good at sharpening the HF tools, you can plink down monies on a good tool. I re-ground a few of the HF tools to make specialty tools/scrapers, so they are not a total waste. I still use the 1/4" parting tool as my main parting tool.

Don't get me wrong though, the HF set is a cheap set. I have better tools now. But they are still useful. Not throwing them out just yet. Pretty soon. I may donate them to our club's tool sale.

[Marvin Hasenak]

First decide what you want to turn, then do some research on what it takes to turn what you want to turn. If you are wanting to make pens, you don't need a lot of gouges and high end tools to learn with. While learning to turn you will also be learning to sharpen your chisels, you can choose to learn sharpening by grinding down a $100 chisel or a $10 Harbor Freight chisel. If you look on Craigslist sometimes you can find tools good and bad for next to nothing, a $5 carbon steel chisel will be enough to practice sharpening.

If you will need a chuck, look at the Penn State chucks, good prices for starter chucks. You can buy better, but these will be sufficient for getting started. If your budget allows go for the better brands, but if you are not sure of your staying with turning, try the lessor priced brands, they will keep you busy for a long time.

You will need some sort of sharpening system, either buy or check out the You Tubes and the info on Google. There are lots of shop made versions of sharpening using everything from grinders to belt sanders to hand sharpening with wet stones. Buying is your choice, they all get to the same end point.

Sandpaper, buy the better known brands, Norton is my choice, skip the cheap stuff, it only creates more work. In my opinion the best basic finish is an oil finish, simple and easy, a can of Watco Danish or Teak oil and you are in business for most woods. Later you will want other finishes, but for learning keep it simple.

This is the basics, without blinking an eye you can spend $2000 in tools and accessories or you can piece meal it with a lot less. It is your dollars, spend them like you want, but if you drop the hobby, someone else may get a bargain at your expense.

[Michael Mills]

If it is like this one I would not invest in a bowl gouge at this point. This was the only listing I found for 350 watts; it states 1/2 hp but I suspect it is more like 1/3. The lowest speed is 810 which is fast for a bowl or any size but fine for spindles.
http://www.amazon.com/Power-Wood-Turning-Lathe-Speed/dp/B005GXAK4M

Pens, bottle stoppers, ... hundreds or items are turned in spindle orientation.
I would go with one of the inexpensive sets or individual (parting tool, skew, 1/2" spindle gouge).

[David Bassett]

(I skimmed, so I apologize if I missed it and someone already said this....)

Try to get into a class and see what you use. The local turning club, your local HS, Adult Ed., or Community college, or commercial class (e.g. our local Woodcraft has classes.)

Thinking about the minimum for what you might want to do, a spindle gouge (probably 3/8") for spindle work. A parting tool, either home made or purchased. You'll use this not just for parting, but also for setting depths to outline a spindle design. You'll be limited to dowels until you can round blanks, a spindle roughing gouge is traditional choice for this. (I've seen some claim you can use a larger sturdy bowl gouge.) A 1/2" bowl gouge seems most recommended first bowl gouge, but your lathe may not handle blanks that big. A skew can do wonderous things and create incredible catches, I'm not yet sure what I think about them. It seems most have a love / hate relationship. Once you find a need for something else, then you can supplement. Oh, you need a way to sharpen. I suggest, to start, you get whatever your class or mentor uses. There is enough doubt about the skills without trying to do something that you can't easily get hands on instruction with. (Around here that means a bench grinder with the Oneway Wolverine system. I'm sure other systems work well too, but here they'd be self-taught.)