Well, not exactly "bought." I'm checking with my work tomorrow to see
if I can save $70 by having it dropped off at our loading dock at the
warehouse. However, I'll most likely be ordering one way or the other
tomorrow evening. Jet 1442, and I'm completely clueless. Hot damn.

As for turning tools, my boss's boss lost his lathe in Katrina, so he
offered me his turning tools. He isn't a serious turner (the
impression I got) and he said that his inlaws bought him a set of 8 for
about $300. When I asked him if he wanted to sell them, he said that
he would open some of his 5-gallon buckets full of tools soaking in
WD40 and locate them. As for price, well, I'll just say, "Drive-by
gloat."

Now I need grinders and jigs and slipstones, oh my! Or do I? I guess
a 6" bench grinder will do me for now, but beyond that, I have no idea.
Chucks, centers, rests, faceplates, sanders, wheels, dressers and
slipstones are all terms I've seen thrown around, and I would like some
input as to where to start. Assuming I've got a lathe, a rudimentary
set of turning tools and a bench grinder, what do I do? Start making
shavings? My interests at this point run to table and chair legs, so
fancy chucks and vacuum attachments seem a bit of overkill.

BTW, any turners in the Red Stick area willing to teach a new dog old
tricks? I'll buy the beer/coffee/cold drinks/lunch.

'Preciate the input,

-Phil Crow

On Mon, 06 Nov 2006 19:42:22 -0800, phildcrowNOSPAM wrote:


'Preciate the input,

-Phil Crow

Phil,
At the moment you're all set. Grab a hunk of wood, tap the drive center
into one end and set it up in the lathe between the drive center and the
tailstock center and cut off all the wood that doesn't look like a leg.

Your needs and interests will change (particularly once you get around to
joining AAW) soon enough. That will be plenty soon to consider your next
tool purchase.

Recommend you grab some sort of instruction on sharpening lathe tools (I
use a belt sander for major re-sharps and a 'credit card' diamond file for
a few quick licks between pieces.) and take a look at the online galleries
a lot of private folks and clubs have posted.

There isn't a woodturning club near me so I am not a member of one, but
membership in such a club is highly touted by those who have access.

Above all, don't be afraid to grab a refugee from the fireplace and turn
a toothpick from it. In other words, 'practice, practice, practice'. Turn,
if you can, daily.

Phil
You are set to go. Mind you, you can spend a fortune on all sorts of stuff
for the lathe, but you have plenty to get started. If I may blow my own
horn, go over to my site and take a look around. Start with the sharpening
pages. Then the "quick gifts" beginner projects. Have fun.

--
God bless and safe turning
Darrell Feltmate
Truro, NS, Canada
http://aroundthewoods.com
http://roundopinions.blogspot.com
wrote in message
oups.com...
Well, not exactly "bought." I'm checking with my work tomorrow to see
if I can save $70 by having it dropped off at our loading dock at the
warehouse. However, I'll most likely be ordering one way or the other
tomorrow evening. Jet 1442, and I'm completely clueless. Hot damn.

As for turning tools, my boss's boss lost his lathe in Katrina, so he
offered me his turning tools. He isn't a serious turner (the
impression I got) and he said that his inlaws bought him a set of 8 for
about $300. When I asked him if he wanted to sell them, he said that
he would open some of his 5-gallon buckets full of tools soaking in
WD40 and locate them. As for price, well, I'll just say, "Drive-by
gloat."

Now I need grinders and jigs and slipstones, oh my! Or do I? I guess
a 6" bench grinder will do me for now, but beyond that, I have no idea.
Chucks, centers, rests, faceplates, sanders, wheels, dressers and
slipstones are all terms I've seen thrown around, and I would like some
input as to where to start. Assuming I've got a lathe, a rudimentary
set of turning tools and a bench grinder, what do I do? Start making
shavings? My interests at this point run to table and chair legs, so
fancy chucks and vacuum attachments seem a bit of overkill.

BTW, any turners in the Red Stick area willing to teach a new dog old
tricks? I'll buy the beer/coffee/cold drinks/lunch.

'Preciate the input,

-Phil Crow

Phil
i've been turning for about 1 year.
I started with a lathe which came with a face plate, drive center and tailstock center. One set of eight HSS (high speed steel) turning tools.
I then brought a very cheap wet/dry stone grinder (£25 or $40 approx) and free handed the sharpening, trying to reproduce the shape that they came by. But if you look at Darrel Feltmate's web site you can then make grinding jigs to get a constant bevel on your tool
http://aroundthewoods.com/sharpening01.html
which take the guess work out of sharpening for very little money. With a constant grind on your tool you can then spend more of your time practicing instead of re-learning the way you present the tool to the wood.
Also if you google woodturning + projects, you will find a whole host of projects to turn, with step by step pictures and info on how to make it. I have learned no end of new skills by following these simple projects.
My next two major investments where a chuck to hold my turnings and a bandsaw. The first time you put a lump of firewood on your lathe without removing the surplus corners, spin it up and the lathe starts to shake its self accross the room, you will learn alot about the lathe speed and preparing your wood.
Another thing to consider is dust. Once you have sanded your first masterpiece and look around you will find every surface coated with fine dust, including your lungs. Over time this will kill, so at the very least wear a dust mask and consider buying some form of extractor.
I hope i have helped you and not put you off this great hobby ( all right i will say it, obsession)
Mark

Besides the dust mask as a safety item, I would recommend a face
shield. So far it has only been needed once when a catch threw a
splinter at my face - but once is all it takes.

Find what ever wood: dry, green, with the only purpose to make
shavings. It will fulfill your inner spirit to be destructive and
creative at the same time. :-)

I had a mallet I was turning fly off the lathe. Fortunately my nose didn't
get broken but there was a scar and there was some pretty good blood flow.
Made a believer out of me about face shields.


"cpetito" wrote in message
ups.com...
Besides the dust mask as a safety item, I would recommend a face
shield. So far it has only been needed once when a catch threw a
splinter at my face - but once is all it takes.

Find what ever wood: dry, green, with the only purpose to make
shavings. It will fulfill your inner spirit to be destructive and
creative at the same time. :-)




--
Posted via a free Usenet account from http://www.teranews.com

Thanks, everyone, for the input. My lathe should be arriving today or
tomorrow. I'm giddy as a schoolgirl. Should I just arrange for
storage for all my "square" machines now, or give it a while? I pride
myself on my bargain-hunting ability, and this is the first machine
that I've bought new; my new lathe cost me more than my table saw, band
saw, jointer, planer, drill press, sander and biscuit joiner put
together. With that in mind, I had better like turning!

-Phil Crow

Well, that's it. I'm hooked.

Got the lathe home--wait, that's a story in and of itself. The phone
rang on business day 9, and it was a lady from Estes, saying that she
wanted to arrange pickup for a package. I would be working the next
day, so I called my roommate to see if he could be there to pick up the
"package." After his reply, I called Estes back to see what they could
do. I was informed that I could drive to Hammond after work and pick
up my new lathe after work, as they would have folks there until late.

With a bad case of the Jimmy-legs, I walked into the office of the
shipping hub. The nice lady there called someone in to show me my
parcel. I was escorted onto the loading dock and saw one big and one
freaking huge box sitting on a pallet. Both appeared to be in good
condition. A nice guy with a forklift loaded the boxes into the back
of my pickup, which lowered noticeably in the ass-end area. I shut the
tailgate and I believe two drops of pee came out from the excitement.

Got it home and set it up. No problems there. Except, of course, for
the very high mass of the thing. If my roomie hadn't been there, I'm
not sure I would have done it so easily. In fact, the setup was almost
anti-climactic (sp?). With my jointer, drill press and belt sander,
there seemed to be lots of instructions, with very specific directions.
With the lathe, it was more like, "Screw the legs on, screw the
adjusting feet in, plug in to 120v, start turning."

Now, here comes the best part. I fired that sucker up at about 6:45pm,
and forced myself away from it at 9:40. As soon as I did, I realized
that I *really* had to pee. I didn't (or wouldn't) even recognize
basic body functions while that chunk of wood was spinning near that
tool rest. I spun the spur center, broke a thin piece, walked the
lathe across the floor and turned a tool handle and a baseball bat.
It's all freakin' awesome. I've thought seriously more than once about
cutting a class or two in order to come home and finish up a set of
candlesticks or bookends or whatever-the-hell-ever. I think I may have
a problem.

So, the short version of this letter is, to all those turners, thanks a
lot and go to hell. I'll never get anything done around the house
again. But I'll have a ****load of candlesticks

-Phil Crow

wrote:

Well, that's it. I'm hooked.

snip

So, the short version of this letter is, to all those turners, thanks a
lot and go to hell. I'll never get anything done around the house
again. But I'll have a ****load of candlesticks

-Phil Crow

This is only the beginning? WOW!
Congratulations!

--
Gerard

wrote in message
oups.com...
Well, that's it. I'm hooked.

Got the lathe home--wait, that's a story in and of itself. So, the
short version of this letter is, to all those turners, thanks a
lot and go to hell. I'll never get anything done around the house
again. But I'll have a ****load of candlesticks


You were warned. It's as close to instant gratification as you'll get in
woodworking, and it's fun even when you don't go start to finish (pun
intended) in one sitting.

Ask the guy with a couple hundred bowls on his shelves in various states
from rough to awaiting finish who can't wait to rough out some new big
chunks of maple.

wrote:

So, the short version of this letter is, to all those turners, thanks a
lot and go to hell. I'll never get anything done around the house
again. But I'll have a ****load of candlesticks

-Phil Crow


You have a lathe. Your next purchase is a chainsaw. And a pickup truck.
To cope with, um, 'roadside emergencies' involving neglected trees
growing in the median where they could become a traffic hazard.

;-)

DAMHIKT

Bill
--

Never again clutter your days or nights with so many menial and
unimportant things that you have no time to accept a real challenge when
it comes along. This applies to play as well as work. A day merely
survived is no cause for celebration. You are not here to fritter away
your precious hours when you have the ability to accomplish so much by
making a slight change in your routine. No more busy work. No more
hiding from success. Leave time, leave space, to grow. Now. Now! Not
tomorrow!

Og Mandino