Any woodturners out there?

[dragoneggs]

I am readying to buy a wood lathe. Looking at a mid size 16x24 Possibly a Nova Saturn DVR. Not sure I need/want a full size lathe for say, table legs as I plan to do more bowl turning type of work. Question... do you think I will kick myself for not splurging for a full size? I guess the question is how many of you turn long pieces vs. short for the various projects you do?

 

[bunyip]

I do a bit and have a Record short bed with outboard turning, I find it a bit tedious after a while and cannot get into pen turning but sometimes wouldn't mind something bigger.
I tend to turn replacement parts for furniture such as finials for clocks which I collect.
Don't know how much you have turned but I use gouges for most work and have a white wheel on a grinder next to the lather for sharpening which takes a few seconds once you can sort your angles and get it right each time, a 4 jaw chuck.
The downside of Record is that it uses #1 morse taper, almost everyone else uses #2 which is cheaper and more common.
Good steel for makes life easier too as it holds its edge, cheap sets are generally next to useless.
Nova is a good brand but there are a lot of others too and look at 2nd hand as a lot of people invest and lose interest quickly.

 

[dragoneggs]

I’m pretty efficient at knife sharpening and have a nice Tormek for that. I have never owned a lathe but took a class recently and the bug bit me. Am looking 2nd hand but really like the direct variable drive feature of the newer machines.

 

[wheelbuilder]

I've got a cheap long lathe and am on the lookout for an inexpensive or used lathe that would give me 18-20 between centers. I thought I'd be doing things like table legs, but that hasn't been the case. I think if I'd started with a shorter lathe, I'd simply turn what I could and dowel and glue up into something longer.
The upside is I've got a fair idea of what I'd like. If you go for a long work, be aware that thin and long require stabilizers, and there is a point that you can't exceed.

 

[4570Man]

I’ve got a Jet 16-42 and a Powermatic 35-20. I don’t use the length very much ( other than sliding the tailstock out of the way) but I think you’d miss the weight and power of a full-size lathe.

 

[bunyip]

If you go for a long work, be aware that thin and long require stabilizers, and there is a point that you can't exceed.

Although I know one person who makes flagpoles up to 80' long, but there are a lot of stabilisers and it is slow turning compared to short beds.
Also, a short log can be character building when it jumps off the lathe, I have had that happen a couple of times.

 

[dragoneggs]

Weight is definitely nice. Being able slide the tail stock out of the way seems a plus.

I used two lathes in a class. One a full size I definitely liked better because of the weight and power and low vibration.

I don’t see me doing table legs but maybe pool cue sticks, I don’t know.

 

[Billrog]

Full size for the weight if you wish to turn anything of any size & having the tail stock out of the way is a plus.The variable speed is nice as well.

 

[Sawyer Rob]

My wood lathe is a full size Rockwell, I like having the option to turn what I want, a bowl or a leg.

SR

 

[bunyip]

Another plus is lever adjustments on everything, tightening and loosening nuts becomes very tedious and time consuming especially when you need to make minor adjustments.