I've been toying with the notion latley of trying to somehow get my Rikon
lathe laoded into the camper without stirring raw emotions from my wife.
Aside from making the wife mad (which sometimes seems easy for me to do),
I've realized a couple of situations that need remedied prior to slinging
saw dust in the national parks. 1st is it allowed? Since this could be a
hazardous situation what with a 30-50 lb. piece of wood turning at 1000-2000
rpm and the potential for this thing to go flying off and through the
nearest neighbors tent, do campgrounds prefer that we not participate in
this type hobby while visiting?
Another question would be where to set up the lathe? I mean where
physically. Can I drill some extra holes into the wooden picnic table that
has "Johnny loves Sally" carved into it. How about the grill stand or
whatever it is that seems to be on the edge of most Corp of Engineer
campsites around here, I could see that coming in real handy for mounting a
lathe to. Or, should I build some sort of portable contraption that doesn't
take up a lot of precious camper space that can be folded and unfolded
numerous times at numerous camping destinations?
How about wood? I've seen numerous trees around the campgrounds that have
been cut up for firewood and left for the campers (or sold), probably
wouldn't be a problem. Transporting my own wood to the site for turning?
That becomes a problem in some states that prohibits you from bringing wood
in from out of state to prevent the spread of insects.
How about turning your neighbors firewood into a keepsake? With their
permission of course and for a small commission for doing so. The only
problem I see here is that I will be giving to them a piece of turned wood
(probably in the shape of a bowl) that hasn't been allowed to dry properly
and will warp and possibly crack in the future. I quess this could be
explained to them in advance of their making the purchase. Also, if turned
down to a rather thin turning, it might warp some but is less likely to
crack.
I went camping this weekend and these were a few of the questions I pondered
while sitting about watching the sun set over the lake. I fished, swam,
biked, walked, hiked, ate, slept, and everything else you do while camping
(at least camping in an RV). The one thing I kept wanting to do was ask the
neighbor if I could turn a piece of elm he had cut for fire wood into a bowl
or other trinket, but my lathe was at the house. And so I daydreamed about
turning the elm branch into the most beautiful small bowl.
Today, after cleaning up the camper, I began again to ponder how a man might
get his lathe to the campsite with him and thought perhaps I could pass this
question (and others) off to some of the more esteemed wood turners who have
helped me in the past. I've read a few of your responses on here and you've
mentioned camping and perhaps you've already answered these questions for
yourself. If you have and wouldn't mind doing so, could you please enlighten
a fellow about what should or shouldn't be done. If you can help me out with
these problems, I'm sure I can sneak the lathe into the camper without my
wife knowing anything about it. Well, at least till we get to the campsite
and she hears me fire up the electric chainsaw.
"I'm just cutting us some firewood sweetie."

Thanks,
JD (Kentucky)

--
He that will make a good use of any part
of his life must allow a large portion of it
to recreation.
- John Locke