New to turning - hand tool advice

[Matt Day]

Hello,

I've been thinking about giving turning a go for a while and I found a good local deal on a Jet 1442 that I'm going to be picking up tomorrow. So I'll have a lathe tomorrow, but withing some cutting tools it's not very useful! I'd like to start with some bowls and will probably do some spindle work shortly after.

I've read in FWW that a lot of the turning sets aren't a good value and include tools you never use, but that may have been an older article and maybe the retailers have caught on.

What do you all think about the Economy Turning Tools at Lee Valley? Is the set of 9 a good deal? I tend to trust that Lee Valley offers nothing but quality and sensible items. Any other sets you recommend that won't break the bank?

I plan to either buy a book on turning or scour the internet for videos and articles.

Thanks!

[Bruce Pennell]

Matt a lot of new turners like the Harbor Freight set $39.00 and a 1/2" bowl gouge. If you are going to do videos and books and want to start with Bowls, the best bowl teacher I found was Bill Grumbines "Bowls made Easy" (http://www.wonderfulwood.com/) Best bowl video I found. I've seen guy's recommend PSI tool set. Welcome and good luck ...Bruce

[curtis rosche]

take a look at Penn State Industries. bengimans best seams to be a good starter set. just make sure that you get a set of HHS(high sppeed steel) as they will last a lot longer.

[Ron Ainge]

Check out the turning tool set form Harbor Frieght for less than $50. I bought them when I started and I am still using most of those tools 5 years later. They are all High Speed Steel and will do most of the work you want to do. The only other gouge you will need is a bowl gouge because all of the starter kits do not have them. If you get sucked in as far as most of us have been take pictures of you money you have left because you won't have it much longer. Best of luck and welcome to the creek.

[curtis rosche]

to go with what ron said, youve been a member since 05, acording to the site, you might want to sell the rest of you tools, cause when you start turning the rest of your shop will be neglected, this will also help your funds, dont forget the chuck, the facesheild, the WOOD...

[Gordon Seto]

Alan Lacer did a "Putting the Steel to the Test" article in the current issue of American WoodTurner.
The steel composition analysis from Benjamin's Best sold at EBay and Bodger (Highland Hardware) were the two that didn't meet High Speed Steel standard.
The hardness test from Benjamin's Best (from Penn State) and Bodger had low hardness.
The Sears Craftsman was made from M50,a HSS that is primary used for bearings; with low wear resistance.
Harbor Freight is made out of T1 HSS, (not the popular M2).

I am disappointed somewhat with the article, it failed to include some of the popular choices such as, Henry Taylor, Crown, Glaser, Thompson, Oneway Mastercut, Crown ProPM, P&N, Ashley Iles and different grades of Hamlet.
I am also disappointed they didn't take more than 1 sample on what they tested, at least in the hardness tests.

I am no expert in tool steel or tool making. I believe the hardness is the result of heat treating. I think some tools from China are not heat treated in a strictly controlled environment. It depends on the experience of the tool makers to heat and hold the steel to a certain temperature and quenching. As a result some batches may be too hard, some not hard enough.

I also know certain tools are not heat treated all the way, only the tip is heat treated. I want to know how far down the flute is still hard enough to use.

[Scott Conners]

Having just recently started myself, here's what I'd do if I were doing it again:

You're going to need a setup to sharpen your tools. Most common is a 8" low speed grinder (~1725 rpm) with good aluminum oxide wheels and a jig, other options include wet grinder sharpening systems (Jet and Tormak), and belt grinder setups (Sorby Proedge etc). Unless you are already experienced, you'll get much better results with a jig such as Oneway's wolverine system.

YOu'll also need to learn to sharpen your tools.
Harbor Freight sells a set of tools for about $36, it has most of the basic tools and is a good way to get some usable HSS tools that you can learn to sharpen and not grind away expensive tools. The small gouge is a bit odd shaped, but works, but a lot of the other tools are simple shapes and you grind them properly anyway.

If you want to do bowls you'll definitely want a good bowl gouge, there are many good names and brands, look for a nice strong 3/8" or 1/2", many people prefer one with a side type grind, such as the Ellsworth or Irish/Fingernail type grinds.

I've never used the Lee Valley tools, but they look quite decently designed, and they say they are decent steel. I may have to invest in a few of them myself, for testing purposes. ;)

[Nathan Hawkes]

Congrats on getting that Jet. I saw the ad, too. I have an older Rockwell/Delta that I modified to swing 16" and beefed up the motor, but was considering it b/c of the extra weight. I decided to build a stand out of heavy locust instead....


Welcome to the forum, and we'll definitely have to meet up sometime. I'll send you a PM with my contact info. I'm still green myself, but I've been turning for about 8-9 months now. Three books I've read are "The Lathe Book", and "Turning a bowl with Ernie Conover" both by the same author, and "turning a bowl with Richard Raffan". They all had good info, and were worth the money. I originally bought an old craftsman lathe and some cheap ebay tools, still M2 steel, but not great. The lathe I now have came with a bunch of Sorby tools, and I added a few P&N gouges to complete the set. I really like the P&N "SUPA" bowl gouges, with the "U" shaped flute. I don't really like the smaller 1/2" gouge--really a 3/8" flute, with the V shaped flute, but that's really a personal preference. I just work better with a U shape.

Good luck with your purchase, and get a chainsaw if you don't already have one and start scouring your neighborhood for wood! (bandsaw is also a must-have!)



Nate

[Bernie Weishapl]

Matt here is the set I started with 2 1/2 yrs ago. It has been a good set and I still use all of them on my midi lathe. For $59.95 you can't go wrong. It has got everything you need including a bowl gouge that you will need. If you want to turn bowls I would recommend Bill Grumbines Turned Bowls Made Easy. Excellent DVD as he explains every cut and step.


http://www.pennstateind.com/store/LCHSS8.html

Welcome to the turning Vortex.

[Will Branson]

I just started off with a JET mini lathe, and I picked up the Benjamin's Best 8 pc set from PSI. Comes with a decent wooden box. I've been very happy with them. Here's a link.

http://www.amazon.com/PSI-Woodworking-LCHSS8-Piece-Chisel/dp/B000KI8CTS/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=hi&qid=1212716953&sr=8-1


Anyhow, let me know how you do. My first project was a candlestick holder (success), then a honey dipper (success, great video on youtube). Blown up 3 mushrooms, and made a scratch awl tonight by turning a block of hard maple and hacking the head off of a nail with my dremel and gluing it inside the handle.

Good luck!

[Steve Schlumpf]

Matt - looks like you already got lots of good advice - just wanted to jump in here and Welcome you to the vortex! Looking forward to seeing some of your work real soon!

[Geoff Hanha]

Matt hi and welcome, my couple of pences is that if you wana get into this game, and want to save money to start get yourself a couple of cheap tools and have ago, i have seen guys buy loads of tools and never use them or ruin them with to much grinding trying to sharpen them. sharpe tools are a must so you need to be able to sharpen them. A jig is the best way to go as you will get the same everytime. You can make tools if you like just buy the tips, you hear turners go on about the type of steel and its hardness, the tip is the bit that cuts the rest is just a surport, and years back they did not have the tecno we have now but there were some great turners, if its cheaper tool then the chances are that you have to sharpen more often thats it. to sharpen a gouge takes but a few seconds, wolverine type jigs are about the best you can also make these very easy. Get stuck always ask someone will always give advice, its your choice then to sort it.
My Favorate tool 1/4" 3 point tool, wicked little thing to use for alsorts. Have fun Geoff
http://www.shapewood.co.uk

[Scott Lux]

I decided to build a stand out of heavy locust instead....
Not to get off topic, but I'd love to see a pic of that. Which locust (honey or black)?

Lux

[Nathan Hawkes]

black locust. I'm still working on it, though. I need to rearrange my shop & pour a slab underneath where the lathe will sit in its new location....it has a wood floor that was originally meant to hold up a riding lawnmower.