14 best use woodworking lathe

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Your Beginner-Friendly Guide to Woodturning

Want to get started turning? Don't know where to begin? Inside this book, author and expert woodworker Barry Gross provides expert instruction, valuable tips, and common-sense advice that will guide you through a fun-filled turning experience!

Jump into this revised & expanded edition to learn all about the basics of turning tools, fundamentals of sharpening, tips for sanding and finishing, and more.

With Learn to Turn, you'll be turning bowls, pens, birdhouses, and handmade gifts in no time!

Safety

A top priority for every woodturner! From eye, hand, and foot protection to dust control and lathe setup, you'll learn how to operate safely in your workshop and avoid common accidents.

Basic Workshop Tools

Make the most of your space with tips and tricks for optimizing your shop layout. Discover how to choose and operate your lathe, then learn all about other turning tools and accessories, from gouges to faceplates.

Choosing Wood

Learn the pros and cons of bought vs. found wood, how to transform logs into suitable turning material, how to create bowl turning blanks, and much more!

Sharpening Tools

Using dull tools can be dangerous for your projects and yourself! Learn when and how to properly sharpen your tools using a bench grinder.

Sanding and Finishing

Sanding and finishing techniques are key to a well-defined, long-lasting finish for your project. Learn about power sanding, hand sanding, applying finish, spray lacquer, woodturner's finish, EEE cream, and buffing systems.

Getting Ready to Turn

Learn how to turn whether you are making a project using spindle or faceplate turning. Start by mounting the workpiece, then follow the ABCs of tool control: anchor, bevel, and cut. Barry Gross will walk you through every step.

Turning Tool Exercises

Once you have your workpiece mounted, follow step-by-step directions to learn what your turning tools can do. From a roughing gouge to a parting tool, you'll practice important techniques for each essential tool for turning wood.

Spindle Turning Projects

Solidify your skills between centers! Create honey dippers (pictured), fantasy wands, peppermills, and more using the spindle turning method.

Faceplate Turning Projects

Follow the instructions and step-by-step photos to make a natural edge bowl (pictured), end-grain hollow vessel, bangle bracelet, and more! Start with a simple bowl and work your way up in difficulty.

Combination Projects

Learn how to switch back and forth between spindle and faceplate turning techniques to create an ornamental birdhouse, wooden fruit (pictured), and a box with lid. This is a chance to be creative and inventive, take your time, and have fun!

Troubleshooting

"Things happen!" Included in this revised and expanded edition is a special troubleshooting section that offers simple solutions to common turning mistakes. Don't get frustrated; learn how to redesign your project when the unexpected happens!

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Buying and Aligning Your First Lathe

In some ways, choosing a lathe is similar to shopping for a vehicle. Know the five questions you need to ask before you buy in addition to helpful info on which lathes are available, lathe jargon, and more sage advice from the experts to get the lathe that best fits your needs.

Tools and Techniques

Find safety practices for dust collection, face shields, and the shop including a safety checklist for safe woodturning. You will also learn the numerous benefits and techniques for sharpening and using your turning tools which will make your woodturning projects much safer, easier, and more satisfying to complete.

How to Turn, Avoid Catches, and Finish Like a Pro

The detailed, practical advice in this book range across the many challenges and problems that all beginners encounter, from how to avoid a catch to how to properly finish your first project so it’s safe to use with food. There is nothing more enjoyable than learning the techniques to make something with your own two hands.

18 Useful Projects to Build Your Skills

Each of the projects is designed to introduce new skills while developing the ones you’ve already acquired. By tackling each one, you’ll learn the best methods, among others, to hold your work onto the lathe, how to master the art of center drilling and precise turning, and how to turn multiples to improve your design eye and tool control.