Pulling the trigger

[Chris Daigh]

Well after seeing so may great pieces posted here, I have slowly been looking into turning. I believe I have found me a lathe, a 1987 General 260, variable speed and 20" swing. I want to turn bowls and someday HFs. I can get it for $1,000.00. I believe this is the most lathe I can get for the money and its more than I really want to spend being a newbie. Any opinions would be great.

[Bruce Smith]

Chris grab it before someone else does. Thats a great lathe and Canadian made, well worth one thousand dollars. I'm sure you will get lots of enjoyment out of it they are well made and still in production.

Good Luck
Bruce in Saint John, N.B. Canada

[Fred Floyd]

Turning is addictive. Buy as much lathe as you can afford. The General will be enough for a long time. With a solid machine like that, you can concentrate on tools acquisition. The price of the lathe is only the down payment.

Gouges, chucks, buffing wheels, the list goes on and on. At least with the General and that 20-inch swing, you won't be needing a new lathe any time soon.

[Chris Daigh]

Thanks for the reinforcement. It sounds like a great lathe. I just don't want to buy a smaller one and then need to sell it and upgrade again. I have been reading almost every thread in the turning section. I have seen a lot of creekers producing very nice things in a short amount of time(not that I will be that blessed). Lots of things to get prepared.

I have been reading about the skew chisel. I hope to start with this and learn how to use it. Any suggestions as to what wood to start practicing on, something cheap. I plan on buying the chisels at harbor frieght and a few bowl gouges as I learn. I really know very little but have been reading and I Tivo all the Woodturning shows on DIY Network.

Thanks.

[Glenn Hodges]

Chris, a good investment when you want to start turning bowls would be the Bill Grumbine video. I would also recommend joining a local club. You can find these clubs by finding the American Association of Woodturners website which has a list of clubs all across America. In the latest edition of the AAW magazine states it now has clubs in all 50 states. I travel 1.5 hours to get to a meeting once a month, and consider it very valuable. Club members are helpful, and free wood is usually available at all of our meetings. A lot of new turners get frustrated because of dull tools, get yourself a sharpening system no matter what type of tools you buy. Learning how to sharpen the tools is essential to enjoying woodtruning. I did not mean to be so long winded, but I hope this will help.

[Chris Daigh]

Very helpful Glen, thanks. I have been thinking about Bills video too, also looked at the Wolverine system. Anyone have this and really what attachments will I need for scrapers, gouges and such. I have a Woodcraft very close to work and they have classes and demos. I plan on doing these and a turning club. Probably the most useful is this website. There are a ton of useful threads. Thanks to everyone.

[Glenn Hodges]

Chris I use the Woverine for my bowl gouges, and sharpen my skew with a course diamond credit card type hone. A lot of people use the Tormek for sharpening, and love it. Good luck, and let us know if we may help you with the many other questions you will have.

[Chris Daigh]

Thanks Glen, for bowls what gouges should I look at buying. I would really like to just get the best and not have to buy a bunch if I can get away with it. I would think the Harbor Frieght chisels are fine but I want the best gouges, am I thinking correctly.

[Glenn Hodges]

Chris, I do not own any HF tools so I can not comment on them. I have found the P&N Tools in the Lee Valley Catalog to be good, I have found no fault with most of the name brand tools on the market. I would caution you to buy high speed steel or better. I use all different sizes, and I turn fairly large stuff. When I first started I turned smaller bowls so I would say 3/8, and 1/2 in bowl gouges with swept back grinds. These have different names for the grinds such as Ellsworth, Irish, Celtic, etc but they will help you to prevent catches when you are turning bowls. I really like the P&N big skew and I use it a lot. I think the other people on the creek can give you better advice on which gouges to buy for a beginner. An inexpensive parting tool will do for a start, and I use a bedan tool a good bit. I bought a lot of tools when I first started hoping to find one to make up for my inept ability as a turner, and now I use only a few basic ones. The best thing you can do is practice with any type of free wood you can find. Make friends with the first guy you see cutting down trees in someone's yard, and make him a free bowl from the tree. Soon you will have all the free wood you can use. That walnut NE bowl I just posted is going to a guy that gave me a nice walnut tree. That was a small price for me to pay for that tree. When I first started turning I did not know where I was going to get my wood now I am selective and turn down free wood every week.

[Don Baer]

Chris,
I own the HF set and for the $30+ it's hard to beat. You'll want to add a few pieces later but it a great start. There all High Spped Steel. You get three differant size gouges, a couple of scrapers, a couple of chisels and a parting tool. All in a nice wooden box.

[Anthony Yakonick]

BUY IT!! I've been using one for 6 years, I can afford a big$$ lathe but choose not to.

[Jim Becker]

'Gotta admire a guy who wants to learn the skew from the get-go!! Just remember it's a spindle turning tool and takes a lot of patience to learn. But if you do, you'll have the smoothest spindle work possible!

Don't forget you need a full face shield (and I also recommend you continue to wear your regular safety glasses under it)

Also, go to the American Association of Woodturners site (http://www.woodturner.org) and find your local chapter, join it, attend meetings and find some mentors to help you. Turning is something that the learning process is greatly enhanced through instruction and "show me" experiences.