It’s time to step up. That is, I need or want a more powerful wood lathe!
I wish I could win the lottery …but that would mean I would have to play it and I don’t think they payout in Illiois because the state is so corrupt and broke 🙁
Laguna Revo 1836 Lathe a good step up if you are looking for a good wood lathe!
I think you could spend up to $10,000 or more on a super wood lathe. I won’t be doing that! I had no idea they could cost that much. I was originally thinking maybe $1,500 to $2,500, but then I saw some very nice machines in the $4,000 dollar range.
A New Wood Lathe for More Power
I’m only dreaming right now but my little harbor freight lathe really can’t handle very big bowls and if I try to get a little aggressive on my cuts it will slow down or stop.
A more powerful wood lathe is actually safer. You can safely turn larger bowls and other projects. You can have more control of the speed. There are more accessories available. Your woodturning tools will work better because you have more control over the speed at which the project turns.
So, I thought as I do some research I would post the information here on the wood lathe upgrades I’ve come across. The first one is a Laguna Revo 18|36 Woodturning Lathe. I have some Laguna equipment and tools, the 14″ SUV bandsaw is outstanding in quality and performance …so I was thinking about staying with Laguna.
Laguna Revo 18|36 Woodturning Lathe
A couple woodturners I know have the Revo 18|36 and they love the machine. They have so much good to say that I almost decided I would save for this Laguna model and not do anymore research. When talking wood turning tools, Laguna fits in with all the old timers. At the time the 18|36 was the largest model that Laguna produced.
Much to my surprise as I was researching the Laguna Revo 18×36 I discovered that Laguna has come out with a new wood lathe called the Laguna Revo 24-36 Wood Lathe W502131 MLAREVO 24-0180 and is 3hp as opposed to the 18-36 which is 2hp. Of course I would rather have the newer and bigger one but at $1000 to $1500 more I will probably be lucky to get the 18-36 …and I’m not complaining. One nice thing about getting the Revo 18-36 is that it’s been around for a while and all the kinks have been worked out …..making it a beautiful machine!
But I can still hope and pray that a Laguna Revo 24-36 Wood Lathe W502131 MLAREVO 24-0180 someday lands in my shop 🙂
Check out this video on the Laguna Revo 18-36 and below the video you’ll find some specs.
The newly redesigned Laguna Revo 18|36 lathe is a serious contender in the professional grade woodturning lathe market. From it’s user-friendly ergonomic design, cast iron and steel construction, and beautifully machined components to the blue hue of the illuminated control panel, it’s clear that the Laguna Revo 18|36 is a serious competitor that’s here to win over even the most discriminating woodturner.
If you’re looking for a well-built, premium quality lathe with all the features you’d expect to find on lathes costing much more, give the Laguna 18|36 a serious look today, you’ll be glad you did.
• Electronic variable speed from 50-3,500 RPM
• Easy to read digital RPM readout
• Premium quality electronic controls
• 100% accurate center alignment guaranteed
• Automatic knock out tailstock
• Cast iron & steel construction
• Dual work light mounts
• Swing away tailstock bracket (optional)
If you think you might like to get Laguna Revo 18|36 you can get a very good price and free shipping at Rockler.com
This Laguna Revo Wood Lathe wreaks of quality, gonn be my next purchase!
I think that’s the scenario that many of us go through. Maybe we don’t buy the lathe yet but we do the research and figure out which one we are ready to get ….in other words, you are ready to pull the trigger on a woodlathe.
My friend, you’re just starting out and you are going to learn that there is a lot more to woodturning. There are a lot of wood turning tools and supplies you are going to need. And, you are going to have to learn how to use these new tools.
Each new wood turning project will require different techniques, differnt tools and different wood. It will require a different plan of attack. Even if you decide to turn a couple of wood bowls, chances are you will need some different tools and each one ….and maybe even a different finish on each one. It all depends on the type of wood and style of bowl.
I’m not going to talk about all the different accessories in this article, but I do want to talke about what is probably one of the most important considerations when entering into the world of wood turning. I want to talk about your woodturning tools.
First you are going to find out that the same type of tool from one vendor is 10 times the cost with another vender or manufacturer. In this case, you usually get what you pay for, but should you buy expensive turning tools to start off with?
Expensive WoodTurning Tools
If you have the cash, go for it!
If you are like most wood turners, that is, always frugal and a good steward of your money you are going to want to purchase tools with the best value to start with.
After fighting through pages and pages, videos and videos about wood turning tools I have come to understand one of the most important things is the type of steel. A wood turning bowl gouge made with less expensive steel will not perform as good as the same woodturning tool made with the best steel. Not only that, it will not hold an edge and you will always be sharpening it.
This could be a double edge sword. It’s important to learn how to sharpen your wood turning gouges, skews and the like because ….number one, it will cost a fortune to pay someone to sharpen your tools and with a cheap tool you might have to sharpen it 2 or 3 times during the project …so you will have to learn how to use something like the Wolverine Oneway Sharpening Jig …you’ll need this regardless of the type of tool you have along with a decent 8″ grinder. So the lesson is, with a cheap tool you will learn sharpening faster and that’s a good thing because when you buy a good expensive Sorby Bowl gouge you don’t want to grind it away honing your sharpening skills with the grinder and oneway sharpening jig!
Don’t Buy A Set of Woodturning Tools
The other mistake most newbie wood turners make is that they buy a set of woodturning tools. A set might have 5 to 10 wood turning tools in it. You might find you only really use 2 or 3 of those tools and you really don’t need the rest at this point.
It’s better to purchase 2 or 3 seperate wood turning tools of better quality and learn how to use those tools and how to maintain and/or sharpen them. And then as you do more research and your scope of woodturning expands you can grab another medium to high quality tool and learn how to use it.
If we consider the last paragraph, then the question would be….. what tool should I start with? A very good question. I would suggest a spindle gouge, a bowl gouge and a scraper. I don’t hear too many woodturners talk about scrapers, but a good scraper has saved my butt on many occaision and it’s a tool that can build your confidence. Spindle gouges and Bowl Gouges come in many shapes and sizes along with different grinds on each …..unless you are a natural they require some effort to learn but with these three wood turning tools you can do just about anything. The only other one I would suggest to begin with is a parting tool.
Here’s a good video that talks about what type of woodturing tools to begin with….good stuff, excellent photography since you can actually see how the tools cut. For instance a bowl gouge with a fingernail grind can make 3 or 4 different cuts and it could do your entire project if used correctly.
I know you want to see how to make your own woodturning handles but first I need to rant!
Well, my garage roof still isn’t on, first problems with the insurance….never use State Farm, next is problems with the county for the building permit. Seems as though you need more detail and info these days and if you are in a flood plain….. you are screwed…. I’m in a flood plain ….looks like I am getting screwed!
Woodturning Handle Videos
I still work in my garage/shop but its a mess and I’m pretty embarassed the way it looks. So, I don’t shoot too many videos from my shop, although I wanted to do a video on making your own woodturning handle. Maybe I will until then, watch these videos on how to make your own woodturning handles from a piece of scrap wood, or your favorite wood on your own lathe with a little glue and ingenuity.
Metal for Making Your
Own WoodTurning Tools
Most woodturners make their own scrapers, skews and parting tools. If you don’t have the metal to do that, consider Online Metals…. I found them to be very helpful, fast and affordable.
Anyway, in my journey of learning woodturning I have stumbled upon guys making their own tools. Even if I had more money than I could spend I still would like to make my own tools!
I don’t have more money than I can spend, in fact, sickness has left me pretty destitute…. that is broke. So I pay attention when someone shows me how to build efficient and effective tools for cheap.
Cap’n Eddie Shows Us How to Turn
Our Own WoodTurning Tool Handles
Cap’n Eddie is one of the guys I have learned so much from over the last year. How to build carbide tools, how to make scrapers, how to make a handfull of different jigs that would cost hundreds if not thousands of dollars.
Help Out Captain Eddie…Buy His WoodTurning Supplies and Tools
You might already know that Cap’n Eddie had some health problems, a brain tumor I believe and it seemed as though he was coming back quickly, but recently it looks like the poor boy is having a tough time. I can emphathize with him because I’ve been sick so long myself. Good health is something you never appreciate until you become sick and can’t do what you have all your life….it’s a terrible thing. But Cap’n Eddie seems like a fighter …he keeps pluging along ….so buy his stuff if you can and more importantly pray and ask the Lord to heal him and let Eddie teach us for a few more years!
Anyway…. if you need some carbide cutters and some of the other tools he sells I would ask you to visit his site and buy stuff from him…. let’s help the guy out …he has given so much to the woodturning commnity especially on youtube.
Below you will find 2 videos on how to turn a handle for the tools you make. Both videos will give you some great tips and ideas so that you can make your own. These are 5 years or more old, the video quality is not that good but you can still get the idea and learn from Eddie how he does things.
Check how to build handles for your woodturing tools.
I found a great article on building handles, if you are going to make your own woodturning handles you would be wise to check out Learn How To Make Your Own Handles for Wood Turning Tools http://woodturninglearn.net/articles/forgottenhandle.htm
And one more quick video on how to make a handle for your woodturning tools.
I’m going to have to do another post on making handles for your woodturning tools. There are many methods to consider and you might want to take a piece from all these methods and create your own woodturning handle. Until then, you have enough information on how to make a woodturning handle!
More On Making Woodturning Handles
I watched another tutorial on how to make woodturning handles and was blown away. I had to include it today instead of another post. Watch this video all the way thru and then check out the notes below. I know you’ll pick up some awesome tips and design ideas for your tools. I really enjoy this teaching from The Sonoran Woodshop
Here are some comments and important links he mentions from the tutorial. This guy has done great camera work, great woodturning handle design and construction.
At this point I had enought info to scrap together some scrapers first, and you can bet they will have some awesome handles. Maybe I’ll do a video of my maiden attemp at turning and fittng my first handle …..should be a learning experience for us all!
Here’s some useful links from his handle turning video description:
A great way to save a few dollars on your next turning tool purchase is to buy your tools un-handled and make your own. I came up with a design that works really well. It includes set screws which allow you to remove the tool from the handle if needed.
PARTS:
Ferrule: I use 1″ copper pipe (which is the inside diameter) for all of my turning tools. The only exception is my Spindle Roughing Gouge (SRG) which uses 1-1/8″ copper pipe.
Set Screws: I use 5/16-24 set screws for all of my tool handles. The lengths vary based on the tool handle wall thickness.
TOOLS WITHOUT HANDLES:
Please keep in mind I have no affiliation with any of these companies. I posted the tool steel used by each company for reference, but the reality is that they are essentially the same.
I currently use Thompson Lathe Tools. They use CPM10V (A-11) a powder metal tool steel.
I thought it important to add some of the comments from his video on turning wood handles for your woodturning tools. Some great comments along with good ideas.
I’m a beginner turner, about a year or so. Been a carpenter/contractor/architect all my life and I can build just about anything. I know wood inside and out…. but steel is new to me. I appreciate your list of tool providers along with the type of steel they use. Is there anyway you could rate either the provider or the steel type. I want to purchase some good tools, tired of the chinese …although they got me started. I figure if you can turn something with a chinese tool you should be able to make some great progress with good tools. I was looking at D-way, not familiar with Thompson. Would really appreciate a lesson in quality suppliers and what type of steel would be the best, second best and so on. Subscribed to your channel…. looking forward to seeing what you do. Thanks Scott
I think tool steal is one of those things that if you ask 10 different turners you’ll get 11 different answers. I bought tools from each of the companies listed in the description and they all seem to perform the same. You really can’t go wrong with any of them. I have all Thompson for a couple of reasons. 1) they have a large selection compared to the other companies. 2) the length of their tools are longer so you get more steal for the same price as the other tools (check out this link and you’ll see what I’m talking about) https://www.instagram.com/p/BN5GvSthcwC/?taken-by=scottseganti&hl=en
Your approach to making videos produces a fine product. As to the content of this one, I don’t have the tapping tool or the pipe cutter or the router table, however if I was to do several handles it would be worthwhile to buy them. One advantage of your design is that the tool can be removed for sharpening which I favor. Have you taken the tool out many times? I wonder how the threading on the pipe wall or the wood holds up to frequent removal and reinsertion of the tool tang. I’m guessing you leave the handle on for your sharpening. Thanks again for a helpful video.
Thanks for you comments Mike. It’s rare for me to remove the tool from the handle, but I do like having the flexibility. Handles with set screws are popular for people who need to travel with their tools. Students taking a turning class or instructors teaching may want to bring their own tools, so removing the tool makes it easier to pack. Another benefit is that eventually we make enough trips to the grinding wheel that the tool steal will need to be replaced, so you can save a few dollars by not buying or remaking another handle. As far as the threads holding up with repeated use… I haven’t had any give out yet. I’ve only tapped soft maple so I can’t speak about how other wood species will hold up, but as long as it’s a hardwood… I’m sure it would be fine. I have been extremely impressed in how well tapping wood works.
Please keep in mind I have no affiliation with any of these companies. I posted the tool steel used by each company for reference, but the reality is that they are essentially the same. I currently use Thompson Lathe Tools. They use CPM10V (A-11) a powder metal tool steel. http://thompsonlathetools.com Peachtree Woodworking Supply sells Robert Sorby unhandled tools. They use M2 tool steel. http://www.ptreeusa.com/turning_tools_unhandled.htm Carter and Son sells unhanded tools. They use M42 tool steel. http://carterandsontoolworks.com D-Way Tools also sells unhanded tools. They use M42 tool steel. http://d-waytools.com
Perfect video, super clear and concise instructions, very well paced and shot. I’ve considered using set screws like this and you’ve confirmed that it’s a great feature. Thanks for sharing your knowledge.
Hi Scott. I just stumbled across you channel. Nice work. I enjoyed the video. How about a few constructive suggestions. Make yourself a hardwood or aluminum blank about the size of your tool tang ( the rectangular feature in your handle blank ). Lock it in a vice and slide your new handle onto it when you drill the set screw holes. It will help with the orientation of the holes and keep the spin factor out of the equation. A thicker copper collar would also give you more metal based thread. I invite you to check out my channel if you have a minute. Take care, watch those fingers and keep up the good work.
Thanks for your feedback Joe. Constructive suggestions are always welcomed and appreciated. If I’m understanding what you’re saying correctly, there really isn’t a “spin factor’ that you have to contend with here… it’s more about the drill bit sliding off your mark when you start drilling. Clamping the handle in a vise as you suggested would certainly free up a hand, which could help keep the bit on its mark. As far as using a thicker copper ferrule… there really isn’t a need. The main threads are in the wood which is the intent. I have used this method on other projects… you will be extremely surprised at how well taping wood works… at least in hardwoods.
Hey Scott. Thanks for the reply. My suggestion was not to put the handle in the vise, but a piece of aluminum or hardwood the same size as the rectangular pocket in your handle where the tool would go. Then slide your handle onto that and drill away. You would have parallel, level and rotational all at the same time. It would probably work better if you had a bunch of parts and wanted them all the same. Forgive me, I always think of fixtures first. Nice result you got. thumbs up on this one. Take care.
Thank you for the video. Your presentation was clear and the camera work was well done. I’ve always glued my tools into wooden tool handles. I’ll have to give using set screws a try.
I enjoyed the video! Very clear, nice voice over explaining the process. I am currious to know what finish you put on the handle? I look forward to seeing more videos from you!
I really enjoy your video pal, since I prefer to make my own handles for my tools and chisels, you give me couple good tips about chisel handles,so go make some more useful videos like this, cheers
Thanks Samuel for the comment. I have a few aftermarket metal handles with setscrews. I like having the setscrews and the ability to remove the tool from the handle, but I’m not a fan of how those tools feel in my hand. I’ve drilled and tapped wood in the past with great success, so brought that idea into my handles and it’s worked great. I’ve been overly surprised on how well it works. I haven’t seen anyone else do this either.
There are lots of different woods you can use which vary depending on the part of the world you live in and what you have access to. I prefer closed grain woods (just a personal preference) and use soft maple for all of my handles. Ash is probably the most popular wood used… I’m just not a fan of the open grain. You do want to use a ‘hardwood’ (maple, walnut, ash, hickory, etc.) and stay away from the ‘softwoods’ (fir, pine, cider, redwood, etc.) The most important thing look for when selecting a piece of hardwood is to have straight grain…. especially on the end where the tool enters the handle.
Wood Turning Supplies and
Products from D-Way Tools
I was listening to Cap’n Eddie talk about using and how to use bowl gouges, roughing gouges, skews, scrapers and other wood turning tools. As always the Captain is just full of knowledge and wisdom so I pay attention to suppliers he recommends and uses. In fact, I really like when he recommends a woodturning supplier.
He mentioned that he got his Elsworth Grind bowl gouge from D-waytools.com and I checked out their site.
WoodTurning Tools
for the Wood Turner
They have a solid line up of wood turning tools for the woodturner…. more high end stuff. I would love to get my hands on some of their tools. At this point I’m still using Chinese wood turning tools and I would like to find out what the difference is between cheap tools and expensive tools.
Anyway, D-Way Tools looks like a good source of wood turning related tools and supplies. I have not talked to them, nor have I purchased anything from them. They look like an American based company, which is something or someone I would like to support either with a web link or by purchasing some of their tools.
I’ve wanted an Elsworth Grid Bowl Gouge shortly after I started turning. I looked at the Elsworth site and the Sorby Site and just trying to save up the cash I need ….but have been very sick so I don’t know if I’ll ever get one. But just because I can’t have one doesn’t mean you shouldn’t.
I’ve read many Amazon testimonials regarding some of the more expensive tools and high grade steel versus some of the less expensive tools….the ones I have. They all say they are amazed at the differece, they all noticed how much easier it was to turn projects and how cleaner an expensive tool cuts.
Of course you need to learn how to use your tools, I know I do.
Hope you found this post useful, hope you visit www.D-WayTools.com to see what they have. I saw a phone number across the top and I’m sure you can communicate via email.
Let me know if you get something from these guys and let me know how the whole experience goes!
Finally, there are some videos on the website and a quick view of them makes me want to spend some time watching. I think his name is Dave, the owner of d-way tools …..he did a very good video showing tool position for a couple of different bowl gouges. Really good stuff. I can see the difference in tools from mine to looking at his in the video.
Boy oh boy, I wish I weren’t so sick and broke because I would really like to get some of the awesome cutting bowl gouges that he is using. I think if I ever can come up with the cash I will invest in D-Way Tools!
Watch this video on Bowl Gouges, its a little long but it is some of the best teaching and camera work I’ve seen for woodworkers, a woodworker tutorial extrordinaire!
Make sure you view in hi def and full screen ….you will learn much!
I thought I would share some of my best buys for wood turning tools. After all, I think most of us that venture into woodturning have budgets of a mimimalist. That is, our appetite for woodturing tools and equipment is bigget than our pocket book! Although with prudent research a smart buyer can get started for peanuts, you’ll quickly find yourself longing for some of the expensive good stuff 🙂
I’ll probably add to this post as time goes on. I didn’t do much research on the best place to buy wood turning tools, but going from memory for webpages, stores and anyplace else I can recall buying from or stumbling across in the past couple of years.
Garage Sales are a great source of cheap woodturning gouges and chisels!
Garage Sales for Woodturning Tools and Equipment
This is probably my least used, but can be the most productive. Summer is coming and its time for garage sales, estate sales etc. You’ll find a lot of people will go to these sales, pick up some great deals on woodturning equipment and then sell them on craigslist or ebay. Most areas have a public directory of garage sales, most towns have some sort of bulletin board that will tell you when the best garage sales are gonna be going on. You might even watch out for garbage days, you know, most towns, cities …counties will have a week or so when you can put anything on the side of the road for pick up. My wife and her friends have a field day with this stuff. One person’s garbage is anothers treasure. Who knows, maybe someone inherited Uncle Joe’s Sorby Woodturning tools and has no idea what they are….. you might find these in garage sales or in the trash can! What if you saw an old harbor freight wood lathe in a heap on the side of the road…. belive me, it happens.
WoodTurning Tools From Estate Sales
Look up people who set up estate sales. I met a few last year and they always do inventory and try to affix prices to the affects left over from someone who has just passed on. Often times you can come up with a bucket or two filled with wood working tools. You’ll find bandsaws, drillpresses, and even woodlathes! Just make a call, try to meet with the estate sale manager and tell them what you’re looking for. Nowadays you can have them shoot you over a pic of any items they might think is of interest to you.
Finding WoodTurning Tools and Equipment at Auctions
Type in “Local Auction”,”Local Auctions”, “tool auctions”, or even “woodworking tool auction”. Use your imagination here. One link will lead to another. I found a government site someplace on the east coast, they were doing some tool auctions for schools. Schools have wood lathes and wood turning tools. If I lived closer, I might have picked up a powermatic beast of a lathe for next to nothing!
I guess when it comes to finding woodturing tools at auctions it depends on how much time you have on your hands. But then again, most of the stuff gets posted online before the auction. Most have a good set of pictures so you can see what you’re getting.
Search Craigslist for WoodTurning Tools
Craigslist can be a literal gold mine for woodturning equipment and tools. The problem is most people are really limited to their own areas since that’s the way Craigslist is set up. In other words, if you live in Seattle, you will only see the results for Seattle. Here’s a little trick that can allow you to search all of Craigslist. Use this url http://www.searchcraigslist.org/ and you’ll get the entire United States.
Now the trick with searching is the keywords you use in your search. You can try “woodlathes” or “wood lathe” and you will get different results. You can try “woodturning chisel” or “woodturing gouge” or “Sorby Woodturing chisel” and you’ll get different results for all. If you use quotation marks (“”) around your search term you will get exact results. Sometimes that’s good and then sometimes you’ll get more results when you just type in your search term without the quotes.
Craigslist is supposed to be a local deal. However, if you find something you want and its across the country you can drop the owner of the post a quick email and ask if they would be willing to ship if you paid extra for shipping and handling. I found that most will respond positively depending on the size of the purchased object. Also you should be aware that woodturning tools go fast on Craigslist, I was really surprised, woodturing gouges and chisels that were posted a day ago are already gone, so you need to take action quickly if you found something. The nice part about Craigslist is you can ask them for a phone number and actually talk to the owner.
ONe thing about Craigslist is paying for items. Since it was originally set up for local selling and buying it is a little odd finding a method of paying that suits both buyer and seller. You can try using Paypal, I’m not an expert in this area so you might want to do some research…. nothing worse than paying for something and getting stiffed!
Finding Wood Turing Tools on Ebay
I have found some nice tools on ebay. I’ve gotten some great deals on used tools on ebay. I’ve gotten some pretty good deals on new woodturning equipment on ebay. However, you need to be smart when searching for the items you might be looking for. Nowadays, Mr. X buys a cheap set of woodturning chisels from China …maybe from Alibaba and lists them as new. You never know what you’re gonna get when it comes to buying stuff on ebay, and often you have little recourse when it comes to returns. Sure they say no problem but try to return the itme and see what happens!
Look for woodturning tools and supplies on ebay!
So, look for older wood turing equipment and tools. Once again, you might find someone who was left with a buck of Uncle Joe’s Sorby woodturning chisels and the owner has now idea how much they are worth. The problem is there are so many people who scour ebay for deals that the buck of tools will soon rise in price. You never know though, I found an old Craftsman pulley driven grinder for a good price I use as a dedicated sharpener for sharpening my woodturning chisels and gouges.
Ebay is a great place to start your search for good woodturning tools at a reasonable price. Just type in “woodturning tools” in the search box and get started!
How to Win Bids for WoodWorking Tools
If you’ve ever bid on an item on ebay, you find yourself waiting for the last couple of minutes of the auction as you see the price go up and try to get in a winning bid before the auction closes. Well, technology has taken over that part of bidding and if you are manually doing ebay bids for woodturning equipment or anything else you will be beat. There is some software called “sniper” software for ebay bidding, you tell the software what item you are bidding on, you tell the software the maximum amount you will pay and click the “go” or “snipe” button and it will automatically bid on the item until you have either won or someone has outbid you, usually another sniper with a higher limit set for the bidding. I use an online sniper service called EzSniper and you can check it out here eBay sniper it cost’s next to nothing so price is not an issue.
Here’s a video that explains the sniping concept if you aren’t familiar with it already. Remember that EzSniper will do this process automatically for you…. it almost always works for me as long as I set the maximum bid high enough …anyway, check out the video
Finally, although you can find almost anything on ebay that you can find on Amazon. You need to be knowledgeable in what you are purchasing. Watch out for brand names, pay attention to delivery times ….sometimes things are dropshipped from China so your order will take 30 days or more. Watch out for cheap imitations. All said, buyer beware. I still find great deals on ebay and if you are looking for some great deals on woodworking tools or woodturing tools ….make sure you spend some time checking out ebay, they’ve really come a long way over the years and you can find awesome deals on whatever you are looking for!
Purchasing WoodTurning Tools from Amazon
First off let me say that I would rather give my money to the local woodworking tool supplier than to Amazon or anyone else. Secondly, I would like to support some of the smaller Woodturing Websites than to buy from Amazon. I’ve owned my own businesses all my life and I know how difficult it is to survive in today’s economy, so I’d rather support the small guy and help keep him/her in business. That is as long as they acknowledge me and can be competitive. I’m not going to pay $100 for a woodturing bowl gouge to the local guy when I can pay $75 to Amazon for the same woodturing bowl gouge. With that said, I think it is going to become more and more difficult for the local guy to survive. So if you have a local store that you can hang out in, drink some coffee …get a demonstration you need to put a value on that and support that guy!
Amazon pricing for woodturing tools, wood lathes, wood turning accessories is really hard to beat.
With the advent of “Amazon Prime” (you pay $100 a year and get free 1 or 2 day shipping and special discounts on some items) Amazon is really tough to beat. I’m sick, been sick and don’t know if I’ll ever recover. I can’t drive much and my illness prevents me from visiting even the local woodturing stores….so if they don’t have an online store…..well, I check out Amazon.
I usually wait until the last minute, Amazon Prime, guarantees 2 day delivery on most items…. well, put it this way, “if I can’t buy it through my Amazon Prime membership….I won’t buy it!” Amazon has made it really easy to purchase, guarantee and return items should you need to. Amazon carries a lot of weight so if you have a problem and the vendor does not take care of it, most situations Amazon with help you deal with your purchase and problems.
That being said, Amazon’s prices on Woodturning tools and accessories is just unbelievable. Wood working tools are often marked down, and you get them in 2 days. Amazon will give you the ability to choose between vendors for a specific woodturning accessory. Do you want an Elsworth woodturing bowl gouge with the Elsworth Grind….. you have a handful of vendors to choose from. They will most times show you the cheapest and quickest delivery. After a couple of years of buying woodworking tools from Amazon, I prefer them for most of my woodturning accessories.
However, you need to beware when buying from Amazon if you are not using your Amazon Prime account. I purchased some carbide woodturning cutters, screws and other woodturing accessories that were at an awesome price…. so much cheaper than the others. Well, I was not paying attention on the delivery time and they were being shipped from China. It took over a month to get all my woodturing parts which delayed the building of my woodturing tools. I was chomping at the bit, wanted to start building my tools and had to wait. It was my fault because after I went back to the item I found that they clearly stated the shipping time would be 3 weeks or more.
Another thing Amazon is good for is finding to woodturing tools or equipment you need, use those keywords and search Google, Ebay, Youtube and Craigslist ….never know what will come up! Using different search engines will provide different results and different keywords. That’s another post, but keep in mind youtube, amazon and ebay have the next biggest search engines next to google ….you’d be surprised what they bring up. Using keyword tools that are specific to each one of those platforms will give you a variety of different keywords and search results when looking for places to purchase woodturning tools and equipment.
Buying Tools and Equipment for Woodturning from Online Stores/Websites
Which leads me to a variety of websites that I’ve dug up over the last year or so. I can’t say I have purchased from all of them but each site has its own unique flavor and will sell their own style of tools. Some websites provide very high quality and very expensive woodturning tools and you can find other sites that provide woodturning tools for those of us on a budget…. a low budget 🙂 So, check some of these out.
I’ve found Rockler to have some of the best deals and greatest selections of good and high quality woodturing tools, consider the Oneway Talon Chuck system ….check out the video. This is on the higher end buy from what I’ve seen is one of the better chucks for a woodlathe.
If you had one chuck for your wood lathe this would be it the Oneway Talon Chuck System
There are many more, google the following:
“woodturnig tools”
“wood turning tools”
“wood turning gouges”
“woodturning equipment”
“woodturning supplies”
That will be more than enough to get you started!
Many start out with Hurricane gouges and chisels, good quality at afforadable prices!
Hopefully this post will help you locate a good place to purchase tools and equipment for your woodturning hobby. I could probably add a couple of pages to this but I just wanted to share some of the things and places that I use and check out. Again, you can use one site to lead you to another and to another until you find what you want.
Woodworking or WoodTurning Websites
Another source for woodturning tools and equipment comes from regular people just putting up websites and blogging about their woodturning projects and adventure. A Google Search for “woodturning” or “wood turning” will dig up an unlimited number of websites and blogs for you to check out. Remember these blogs will ususally advertise products or services so take their advice with a grain of sale. That is, consider the fact that they are blogging to make money. You can tell immediately if a blogger has crappy articles, few pictures or no videos. You can tell if its just a site to make money if they have no passion, you can see the passion in their videos or blog posts.
Nice WoodWorking Site Explaining Woodturning tools.
Check out this site I stumbled on to:
Mikes WoodWorking Projects …. http://www.mikeswoodworkingprojects.com/6-must-basic-woodturning-tools-uses/
Cap’n Eddie is one of my favorite guys I learned a lot from him: http://eddiecastelin.com/home_base
Carl Jacobson http://thewoodshop.tv/
http://www.aswoodturns.com/
http://wyomingwoodturner.com/
There are a whole bunch of sites I enjoy checking out, these are just a few. I found most by searchine on youtube first ….some of the woodturner/youtuber’s don’t have websites …nontheless, they discuss tools and equipment, what to buy, where to buy it!
Woodturning and Youtube
I didn’t say too much about Youtube but it can really be a diamond in the rough. Do a search on any woodturning subject and you’ll end up with pages of results. Seems as though woodturners like to share their expertise, abilities and knowledge. You can learn how to sharpen a bowl gouge with just about any type of grind you want. You can find reviews on tools and equipment used by woodturners. You can find out how to use the wood lathe you purchased ….and if you didn’t purchase one yet you can find reviews on what people think about the wood lathe you are considering buying!
Youtube is a great source of info, search youtube for “woodturning” over 300,000 videos!
I’ve found woodturners to be incredibly open and honest. Youtube gives them a platform to share just about anything related to turning wood on a wood lathe, or even making a wood lathe. But some of the most interesting information is given by the youtuber explaining a product, say a cool turning chisel that you haven’t seen before and he purchased it from xyz.com. Also if he’s been posting videos for a while they usually will put links in the desription letting you know where to find the wood turning equipment and tools they were using while making the video. So, Youtube can be an excellent source of product vendors for anything you want to purchase related to woodturning if you pay attention to what is said in the video and your read through the “Description” thouroughly …..and don’t forget to check out the comments, people like to brag about the deals they got and you just might find a secret woodturners source for woodturning tools and supplies!!
I follow Stephen Ogle on Youtube, his teaching is excellent and he often times discusses what type of equipment he uses and will tell where to get it. He doesn’t list too much in the description and I don’t think he has a website…. but I found he will answer questions in the Youtube comments….anyway, check out his channel and videos.
In this video he’s making a vase from a piece of green wood…. pretty cool stuff with great ideas.
Woodworking Magazines for Finding Good WoodTurning Tools and Supplies
I knew I would forget one source of wood turning tools, that would be “Woodworking Magazines” Surpisingly there are quite a few woodworking magazines still around. It seemed as though some disappeared with the advent of the internet but then digital magazines became available and their printed cousins returned. Personally, I really like sitting down and reading a magazine made from paper, digital is OK, but nothing like collecting a box of good ole magazines!
Anyway, I’m not even going to mention any names, just Google “woodworking magazines” or “woodturning magazines” and see what comes up. Try your search both ways, using quotes and no quotes. There actually is a magazine called “Wood Turning Magazine” but you’ll find good wood turner stuff in any of the wood working magazines.
Don’t forget to check out Amazon and Ebay for woodworking magazines. You’d be surprised how many back copies are floating around, or I should say older copies that people inherit and want to get rid of…. then Amazon will have compilation books of woodworking and woodturning articles. You might be about to find unusual sources for wood turning equipment and supplies.
ently it looks like the poor boy is having a tough time. I can emphathize with him because I’ve been sick so long myself. Good health is something you never appreciate until you become sick and can’t do what you have all your life….it’s a terrible thing. But Cap’n Eddie seems like a fighter …he keeps pluging along ….so buy his stuff if you can and more importantly pray and ask the Lord to heal him and let Eddie teach us for a few more years!
Below you will find 2 videos on how to turn a handle for the tools you make. Both videos will give you some great tips and ideas so that you can make your own. These are 5 years or more old, the video quality is not that good but you can still get the idea and learn from Eddie how he does things.
They have a solid line up of wood turning tools for the woodturner…. more high end stuff. I would love to get my hands on some of their tools. At this point I’m still using Chinese wood turning tools and I would like to find out what the difference is between cheap tools and expensive tools.
