Hello...I am new here and need some help.

[Richard Rizzolo]

Hello,

I am in the market to purchase a lathe and start to learn turning.
I would like to make wood balls. Please tell me what is a good
lathe without spending a ton of money.

Is anything under $1000 okay, or am I kidding myself and need to spend more.
Thank you,
Richard

[Steve Eure]

It really depends on what size balls you want to make. If smallish, you could go with a mini or midi lathe. There are several midi's that are nice machines for $600-$900. You also will get sticker shock at the price of the tooling . Chucks and accessories can be pricey. I would start my search on CL or some other forum to see what is used before buying new, especially with a limited budget. Turning can be a vortex as they say, and if you let it suck you in, can cost you a ton of money. Many jigs can be shop made if you are so inclined, but things like sphere jigs can be costly.
Good luck with your search.

[Perry Hilbert Jr]

Tools chucks and accessories are often a bigger financial investment than the lathe. Frankly, figure about 40% of you investment for the lathe. Some lathes are relatively cheap and can do everything a beginner can do and more. Some are exceptionally well built with bells and whistles and easily run a month's pay. For a beginner, The two current harbor freight lathes are pretty fair quality for the price, but both, especially the smaller one, have disadvantages and limitations. a large lathe can turn small stuff, but a small lathe cannot do large stuff. It would be nice to have a $7,000 lathe and another $5,000 in accessories, but, it is way overkill for the turning I do. If at all possible join a turning club and try to get exposure to several lathes. Variable speed is nice, but excellent pieces have been turned and produced on more primitive lathes for a few millennia already. Don't skimp on the tools. ie don't get the $29.00 wonder turning chisel set. Three or four good tools can do far more and last longer than a 12 piece $29.00 set. One of the more intimidating parts of beginning turning is sharpening the tools. You will need a method and tools to sharpen them. A skew or scraper can be easy, a fine 40-40 grind on a bowl gouge, is another story altogether. Many like carbide tools. I don't, but there are a great many folks who swear by them. You don't have to sharpen carbide, just turn the tip and eventually replace it.

[John K Jordan]

Welcome to the forum, Richard!

Deciding on the first lathe is hard - there are so many choices! You say you want to turn wooden balls. Do you have a size in mind? Most of what are call "mini lathes" will work fine. I keep a couple of Jet minis to carry places and if I need an extra lathe in the shop when someone comes. These lathes will turn up to a 10" round which would be pretty big for a wood sphere! Perfect for baseball size down to marble size though.

You can sometimes find used lathes for a very reasonable price. I paid less than $200 for one of my mini lathes (with no stand). $500 or so will get you a new mini lathe - a lot of people like the Rikon that will turn (swing) up to 12" diameter. Many, many people start with a small lathe and then replace it with a larger lathe when they discover how much they love turning wood! Some are happy with the small lathe.

Spending more money can get you a larger lathe with more power and the ability to turn larger things. You can still turn very small things on a big lathe and with the advantages of heavier and more solid construction and smooth variable speed. For my primary lathe I use a Powermatic with a 20" swing. I rarely turn anything that big but the lathe will handle anything from tiny to large.

In between the mini and the full-sized lathes are many choices. Sometimes these are called "midi" lathes but that's a loose classification. But one of these might blow your initial budget. One thing that would really help is to try out some different lathes. If you go to a woodturning club in your area I can guarantee there will be people who will gladly let you try their lathes. You don't mention where you live but if you are anywhere near East Tennessee stop by and you can try three different sized lathes in my shop.

Joining a club and talking and visiting other turners will also give you an idea of what you need in addition to the lathe. The amount you can spend on accessories is almost limitless! Realistically, to turn small spheres you probably will need a basic chuck and a couple of tools, probably $300 minimum. Depending on the tools, you will need a bench grinder for sharpening.

You can always start with the minimum and add tools later.

As for specific recommendations on tools to turn spheres, a Nova G3 chuck, a parting tool, and a spindle gouge (and a way to sharpen it) will get you started for about $300. Instead of a spindle gouge, a Hunter Hercules or Osprey or Viceroy tool will let you turn many things without having to learn how to sharpen (these have razor-sharp replaceable cutters that never need sharpening.) Trying various tools is another good reason to join a turning club and visit some turners! Many of us have spare and used tools for loaners or give-away to get started.

Hey, how about tiny spheres. Here are some I made a long time ago and the tool I used - a piece of steel pipe! (I called it a "tube gouge" but technically it's a scraper instead of a gouge.)

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Here is one I turned from white oak using a spindle gouge.

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JKJ





Hello,

I am in the market to purchase a lathe and start to learn turning.
I would like to make wood balls. Please tell me what is a good
lathe without spending a ton of money.

Is anything under $1000 okay, or am I kidding myself and need to spend more.
Thank you,
Richard

[Reed Gray]

Try to find the nearest club. There are listings through the AAW (American Assn. of Woodturners) or you can just google it. You can probably find a good used one and tools for less than brand new. Most clubs have mentors as well.

robo hippy

[Kyle Iwamoto]

I'm with going in the used lathe direction. Just recently there was 2 Jet Minis for sale for 3 and 400 bucks, with some tooling. I think for small stuff the Jet mini is a great lathe. I have 2. I would have bought that 300 dollar one just because it was a good deal, but money is a bit tight at this time......
Yes, find a turning club nearby. The members may have a used lathe that they may want to sell, and many of them will take you in and let you turn. I got a 12" Rikon from a fellow club member, we upgrade all the time. Where are you located?

[Richard Rizzolo]

Thank you very much....this is a great bunch of guys...I really appreciate the help...

[Richard Rizzolo]

Perry,
Thank you so much for all the info...
Richard

[Richard Rizzolo]

John,

I really appreciate all you info and help...thank you very much.

Richard

[Richard Rizzolo]

Reed,

Yes...I will try and find a club...thank you so much...

Richard

[Richard Rizzolo]

Kyle,
Thank you for the information, it is very helpful....
Richard

I live in West Palm Beach, Florida...about 60 miles north of Miami...

[Randy Heinemann]

I purchased the Nova Comet II a couple of years ago when I started turning. It's capacity would be 12" (although I think it does best no more than 10" bowls). It has been a great beginning lathe for me and, unless I go to much larger bowls, I don't think I would necessarily even need to upgrade to a larger lathe. I bought mine for about $550 when it was on sale, which included the G3 chuck with jaws, which is a great chuck, especially for bowls. I'm not really sure what is required to turn balls as I've never done that.

[Alex Zeller]

When you say balls how big are we talking about? Are you talking small ones or something larger like a croquet ball? What are your plans for the balls? I've never made a ball but I've seen it done. If you watched videos on how to make them without a jig just remember that the people doing it have been turning for some time. I've watched hacks like using a drill press with a lathe but I don't think you'll be happy with the results. You can get there but making a perfectly round ball does take some skill. If you decide to speed things up you can easily spend half of what your budget just on the tools and jig. If you're handy you can make most of what you will need.

I personally think it would be a fun journey learning the skills if you have reason to make balls. Probably the best part is that all you need is a small saw (a cordless sawsall) and access to some medium sized (6" diameter) branches and you would have unlimited practice wood. Just keep your saw in the car and if you saw a down branch you could cut some chunks. Around here the power company is always cutting branches and usually leaves them in firewood sized pieces on the side of the road vs dragging a chipper with them. I don't know how hard it would be to dry the wood without it splitting.

Another option would be to find a woodworking shop. If you are making 4" balls I think you could easily get as many scraps for free that you could glue together to make a cube you could turn into a ball. The key would be to have lots of free wood and time to practice. While I think you could do it within your budget I think you'll find that you are going to want to do so much more that you will want to add more tools, a good grinder to sharpen them, a lathe upgrade, and adding the equipment (bandsaw, cabinet saw, etc.).

[Mike Goetzke]

I have neither but do a search for Vermec Sphere Turning Jig and Carter Perfect Sphere. (these may take up 1/2 of your budget)

[Kyle Iwamoto]

My $0.02.
You don't NEED a sphere jig. I've turned spheres, all you need is to first turn 2 cup centers, that fit over your spindle and tailstock center. The other side will hold the sphere, so dish those accordingly. Threading the drive side to fit on the spindle is nice, but not necessary, as friction is good enough to finish the sphere. Turn the sphere (rough) as best you can between centers. I turn a cylinder first, measure the diameter, and translate that diameter to the length on the cylinder. This is your sphere dimensions. Turn the sphere. Sounds easy. It is not. Everyone knows what a sphere looks like, so turning an egg shaped sphere is not going to do it. It is by far the hardest object to turn IMO. After the sphere is roughed out turn the ends off as best you can. Put the cup centers on the lathe and clamp in your sphere with the turned off ends vertical. This allows you to turn the other cylinder perfectly, and now you should get a sphere. Right? No, the first time you do this, you will see how your right (left) eye differs from your left (right) eye when turning. Also your skills in going left and right. This is a good time to practice turning with your left (right) non dominant hand. Learning to turn your your non dominant hand will pay benefits long down the line. Good luck!

[Dick Mahany]

There have been some very useful suggestions posted regarding your first lathe and turning spheres. If you proceed down that route and want to make spheres, it can be fun and rewarding. I'm in the camp that likes jigs to help me achieve my desired results repeatably with more precision than my skills alone (at this time) would yield. I use a sphere jig and enjoy using it.

I built this jig from wood after watching an excellent video from Larry Marley.

It wasn't expensive to build although it took some time to make. Here are a few pics of a home made adjustable sphere jig and the process for turning a sphere from a hollow glue up. The sphere shown was approx 3" in diameter and came out perfectly round. The process does involve changing chucking tooling midway through the process, but that was a non-issue.

Glue up chucked with steb center drive.
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Rough turning.
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Final turning after changing to wooden cup chucks.
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Finished sphere on vacuum chuck.
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The sphere jig was surprisingly solid for being constructed from Baltic Birch ply and Maple and no chatter was present. The cuts were small as this sphere was maple and walnut hardwood and a sharp radius nosed cutting tool made for quick work. The lathe used here was a 16" lathe but the principle could be readily adapted to other lathe sizes.

[Richard Rizzolo]

What a great group of people. Thank you all for so much info and support.

[John K Jordan]

What a great group of people. Thank you all for so much info and support.

Very few woodturners are not glad to help where they can!

Someone mentioned sphere jigs. A good jig will indeed make sphere turning far quicker and more precise with little effort. I have the Vermec and it's incredible for both spheres and internal spherical shapes, arguably the best. However, most of the time I turn spheres without the jig.

But some jigs are made to fit a certain size of lathe. Since MOST people getting started buy a relatively small and less expensive lathe then upgrade to a larger lathe, it might not make sense to buy an expensive jig right away that fits only your first lathe. People often jokingly refer to the "vortex" of woodturning - it is so addictive it is easy to get sucked into spending all your free time and more than all of your budget on tools, and even wood! (At them moment I have five lathes, several bandsaws, almost every tool imaginable, seven grinders/sharpeners, built a shop with the emphasis on woodturning, and have more good wood than I can possibly use in two lifetimes! This happened over almost 20 years, but still... :))

By not getting too much at stuff first you can save a bunch of money by not buying things you might not even use later!

Far better is to take it slow and learn the fundamentals of woodturning before you even try making a sphere. I start students by turning spindles with a skew chisel then move to gouges and other tools. This way they learn the basics and begin to develop the fine tool control that will let them turn anything. After gaining expertise with spindles, moving towards their goals is a lot easier, whether it be bowls, platters, hollow forms, or spheres.

If you do get a lathe and hopefully join a club, and get some experience, we can give you ideas and details about lots of ways to turn spheres. If you learn and try them all you'll have the flexibility to use different methods depending on the situation. For example, the method I showed it the earlier photo of the white oak sphere is quick and can be very accurate. There are other methods that are even quicker and take less figuring and measuring. If your goal happens to be making precision spheres, there are other proven methods.

JKJ

[James Tibbetts]

I will add to the list of folks suggesting that you visit/join a turning club before you buy. There will be a wealth of knowledge in addition to the prospect of finding a suitable machine and tooling locally.
But be warned.. the danger is in how much you will enjoy all this. Welcome to the rabbit hole :D

[Kent Weakley]

Hello Richard,

I had the Jet 1221vs and it is a great machine for a reasonable price.

Happy Turning,
Kent

[Dave Mount]

Coincidentally, I just started turning spheres about two weeks ago. Thirtieth anniversary was coming up, the "pearl" anniversary, and I was struggling with a way to mark that -- my bride is not the type for pearl jewelry, and pearl jewelry is too expensive to buy "just because" if she's not going to wear it. Anyway, came up with the idea of turning her a "pearl" (and no, this was not the extent of her gift, just fulfilled the "pearl" part).

Can confirm you don't need a commercial sphere jig to make them. Go to youtube and search "turning wood spheres" and you'll get vids that show how to do it with only shop-made fixtures. On the drive side I have block much like shown in a previous thread, but I hold it in a chuck. Could just as easily be screwed to a faceplate. I started with a cup center for the tailstock side that was drilled to fit over the conical tailstock, and I didn't find that to my liking -- getting quickly to spherical is in part dependent on being able to rotate the workpiece to a new orientation and have it as close to perfectly centered in that new orientation as possible, and there was too much play in my first setup. I invested $40 in a threaded live center (such as this one: https://www.pennstateind.com/store/LTCA18.html) -- screwed a block of wood to a 3" faceplate, turned it conical with a cup on the end, and threaded it onto the new live center to hold the tailstock side. This works much better because when you bring the tailstock up, the cups on both sides are automatically sitting on center. Another hint is to make your cup fixtures out of a wood that is softer than the one you are making balls out of, or the cup centers can end up bruising the workpiece (since you are holding the sphere in compression).

The gouge was held freehand, but I agree with an earlier poster that this may not be the first turning project you want to tackle. I think you want to be proficient just turning beads on a spindle before trying spheres. When you do start turning spheres, don't get frustrated, it gets easier pretty quickly as you figure out the process, and your first spheres are likely to end up smaller than your initial plan. A piece of scrap 1/4" plywood with the right size arc cut out of it will be a big help in training your eye to "see" spherical. And don't start with your prize piece of wood, raid the firewood pile for stock for your first few.

Pic below of SWMBO's "pearl." Sorry about the smart phone photography. About 2.5" in diameter, Shellawax finish, base from scrap cherry.

Best,

Dave
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[Reed Gray]

Like all new skills, the first one or 10 will take you far longer than the next 10 or 100. It isn't difficult to do them free hand and there are a lot of tricks.

robo hippy