Ian Gagnon Posted May 30, 2014 Report Share Posted May 30, 2014 Hey guys, So, recently I acquired a Jet Mini Lathe with extension bed and a set of Crown Tools for $150 from a friend who used it 6 times than lost interest. I've been wanting to add a lathe to my shop for a while, but never had enough extra cash to purchase one. I added a Nova Chuck to it and some wider tool rests. I have done milling before, but never turned ANYTHING on a lathe. I've watched a bunch of videos on turning to familiarize myself then threw 2 pieces of scrap on to try out the tools after sharpening. After an hour of playing around, I was feeling pretty comfortable and ready to actually MAKE something. So, for my first project I figured I would make a box (because, you know, that's the obvious choice for an easy first project. Hahahaha.) We recently lost our rabbit Louie to cancer (2 months before his 10th birthday). When we got his ashes back, they were in a small metal tin that we didn't really care for. I felt it was fitting that I make something for his ashes. It came out pretty good considering it was the first thing I ever turned. I was pretty happy! I made it out of a solid blank of Oak. The top fits nice and snug. I hit the joint with my parting tool to make it a bit more pronounced. I felt that it helped to break up the shape a bit. It's very basic, but I didn't want to bite off more than I could chew on my first outing. A week later I had 30 minutes to kill and it dawned on me that I've been meaning to get a new carving mallet, so what the hell, I'll just make one! Again, I turned it out of a solid Oak blank. (I have a bunch of them hanging around from a table leg project from a while back. So far I have to say I'm really enjoying turning. It is such an organic process. I've found that my round nosed scraper is one of the most useful tools, but I am fairly inexperienced, so I'm sure that point of view will perhaps change with time. What is everyone's go-to/favorite tool for the lathe? I'd love to hear from more experienced turners! Thanks, Ian. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..Kev Posted May 30, 2014 Report Share Posted May 30, 2014 Awesome work, sorry for the loss.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TerryMcK Posted May 30, 2014 Report Share Posted May 30, 2014 great job on both the pieces Ian. Turning is addictive - enjoy your lathe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhighlander Posted May 31, 2014 Report Share Posted May 31, 2014 Wish my first attempts at lathe work turned out so well! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jHop Posted June 5, 2014 Report Share Posted June 5, 2014 That box is far better than anything I've ever turned out... Keep up the great work. As for tools, I'm partial to my 1" skew chisel. I'm still struggling to sharpen it, but it's the easiest one I have to sharpen right now. (No grinder, owner error.) Next would probably be my 1/2" skew, then my 3/4" spindle gouge. Considering I only have 8 tools right now, I'm not worried about the basic set. Have to pay for the tuition before I can add more tools anyway. So, any ideas what you are going to tackle next? (And how much decision process did you go through to choose the Nova chuck?) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian Gagnon Posted June 6, 2014 Author Report Share Posted June 6, 2014 My chuck choice - Since it's a mini lathe, my options became a little more limited off the bat. As for choosing the Nova over other possibly slightly cheaper options like the WoodRiver, etc... I like the selection of jaw sets that you can get for the Nova, and the general construction of it as well. To boot, I got it on Amazon for $100, then used a bunch of Amazon points so it only cost me $50. Win/Win all the way! I haven't had a chance to do much in my shop since these pieces, although I did do a test run on doing asymmetrical turning of a blank (2 separate planes so there were 2 angled sections in the center of the piece.) It worked out well, but wasn't anything functional, just a test. My next project is a tossup. I'm going to do a glue-up on the next one for sure, but not certain I'm going to attempt a segmented bowl, or do a cool candlestick. I know some people are probably thinking "a segmented bowl!?!?!?!". I have turned 5 things in my entire life. The two projects above, and 3 test pieces to try out tools/techniques. A bowl seems like quite a leap since my skill set is pretty limited and unseasoned, but for some odd reason I feel really comfortable turning. There's something very organic and natural about how it works that I seem to "get" more than other aspects of woodworking that I've had to put considerable time into becoming what could maybe be called proficient. I'm hoping to start cutting up stock and glueing up the blank for the bowl in the next week. I'll make sure to take pictures and post a small build/finish post. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duckkisser Posted June 6, 2014 Report Share Posted June 6, 2014 go for the segmented bowl. if you cant turn big on a small lathe then turn complicated:) if you want i can walk you through the process i have only done a couple of segments but its not that difficult just looks hard. especially if you start out with simple solid rings. i bought a book by dennis keeling called segmented turning desighn, techniques, and projects its is prity helpfull at least it was for me but if you decide to do it ill give the formulas for turning solid rings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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