A new leaf..

cormie

Following on from this thread, I got a place in the Bray Furniture Design course and I'm pleased to say I think I've found my calling:) Not so much the furniture, but the carving and the wood turning seem to be what I'm looking for.

I was looking through a book on wood turning and it's just inspiring to say the least. What I'm looking at is art. The designs and the methods, I can't wait to try my own, I have ideas cropping up in my head that I just wouldn't have had the opportunity to explore had I stayed in Carpentry/Cabinet Making. Our carving teacher seems to know his **** too, he was showing me his photo book and there are pictures of him presenting pieces to David Bowie, Meatloaf, Neil Diamond and many more, so I'm guessing he's one of the good ones. I think I'm going to concentrate on turning and carving and incorporate the two together in certain pieces.

So I want to set myself up. I'm selling my car which is worth about 2.5K and I'm going to buy another for about €700 so I can get a few tools and other bits and pieces.

I don't have allot of room to work with, I'd be setting myself up in my 8x8ft garden shed. I'll have about €1300 to spend so I'm thinking of a Laid with turning tools, a (what are them things called that you use for the bowls? the metal things that cost around €150 for a good one) and also some carving tools and I'll also need a bench. I was told I should just get one of those workmate benches with the vice. Are they any use or would it be better to get a Record Vice for about €90 and build a little wooden bench? B+Q apparantly have a Laid for I think it's about €330 with a copying attachment for copying legs and the likes for a table. This hasn't got legs unfortunately. I was also recommended an axeminister Laid, the axe ones are dear because the label but they can be got cheaper under a different label for the same machine. These have legs but they don't have the copying attachment.

The building exhibition is on this week in the RDS and I've been advised to keep an eye out for tools there.

Any personal suggestions or tips?

Also, if anyone would like to upload some photos of their work to imageshack.us so I can have a look, I've seen a few nice things on here before but I forget by who and they are unclear in my memory.

Alun

Congratulations! I'm heavily into woodturning myself (as you may have gathered from other threads here) and have a small workshop in my garden that I've set up myself. It has cost a whole lot more than €1300 in total though I have to say. Mine is certainly not a state of the art lathe by any means (a Teknatool Nova 3000), but the lathe alone plus stand cost me €1250. Add to that a grinder, tools, drive and tailstock centres, chuck(s), extra jaw sets, dust extraction equipment plus consumables like abrasives and finishes and things can start to get seriously expensive.

The Axminster lathes are good, and although they may appear the same as other lathes which cost much less this isn't necessarily the case. There seem to be one or two "generic" lathe designs around that are largely manufactured in the far east, although the manufacturers can specify different levels of quality for certain components like the headstock bearings. Sometimes they apparently import fully built lathes and remove and replace some components with ones they have built themselves. The Axminster M900 appears, for example, almost identical to lathes sold under the Jet and Delta names and Axminster themselves even sell a Perform version of the same lathe for less than half the price!

Anyway, I seem to remember you're in Bray, as I am, so if you'd be interested to come round and have a look at my setup and a bit of a chat about woodturning, just drop me a PM!

kadman

Glad to see you are sorted out, and focused Cormie,

Welcome to the brotherhood,
Keep the faith,

kadman

bitbuilder

Cormie,

Sounds like you have found your niche alright! I bought a Lathe last year and got completly addicted. You should be able to get set up for €1300, one solution is to keep an eye on the buy and sell, Lathes come up for time to time on there - some complete with tools and sharpening systems, you might even be able to try before you buy if you are lucky.

I have a record lathe, which is by no means to cream of the cream, but it works grand. McQuillans have a couple of different types of Lathe displayed in the Blanchardstown shop if you wanted to have a look, they also have a selection of turning tools.

I'm headding over to the Axminster Tool show in November by car, you are welcome to tag along if you fancy - I'm hoping there will be a few of us going from the wednesday 9th Nov coming back on saturday via Roselare. PM me if you are interested - There will be plenty of Lathes on show there, and there should be demonstrations going on as well.

All the best with it
Les

Alun

I'll probably be going to the Axminster Tool Show too, but I'll probably be going via Holyhead. I know it's a long drive, but I'm a landlubber and I like to spend as little time on water as humanely possible! Last year I flew over to Exeter with flybe which was great, but a bit limiting on what I could bring back with me.

One thing re: Record lathes ... if you can get hold of a secondhand one or possibly some old stock go ahead, but I've seen the new ones that have been produced since the management buyout/takeover thing of a year or so ago and they seem a lot flimsier in their construction. The headstock casting seems a lot smaller and lighter and I thing you'd have trouble changing the speeds on the manual speed change versions if you've got big hands.

Remember though that cost-wise the lathe itself is really only the beginning. I've never paused to add up what I've spent over the last couple of years since I started, but I'd be willing to bet that I've shelled out what the lathe cost me, and more, on various bits and pieces and tools. It can get quite addictive, especially when you get into different types of turning. For example, I've recently bought Chris Stott's book on Turned Boxes, and have started amassing an array of miniature tools, some "home made" to be able to make some of the designs in there. A good tip btw for those who like to make their own tools is the Ashley Iles stand at the Axminster show. They sell loose HSS blanks in various shapes and sizes and a good selection of different sized handles with ferrules. I've made some handy little custom made box scrapers from them.

kadman

Hi Cormie,

This site is always worth a look, some bargains to be found

there.

http://www.hopkinsmachinery.ie/hopkins/Main/2004_LOT16.htm

kadman

karltimber

hi folks,

I started my woodturning 8 years ago on an Axminster M900 - very good middle of the road machine. The lower records are also nice but I found the M900 sturdier. -I have a 2hp Poolwood now -beast
I am in navan if you want to have a look. There is also a guy outside of Kilkock that imports the Jet range of tools -incl lathes.

Shed - are you talking about a wooden shed or a concrete/block shed?
Not too sure if a timber based one would like all that vibration.

Bench - make one yourself. 4*2 rough timber and make the top out of 9*2 planks and/or cover in ply - nice heavy bench that you can secure to a wall/floor.