# Home made lathe



## Nathan W (Apr 22, 2018)

yhis has come up for sale in my area. I have never used a lathe, but WB has my curiosity peaked. I have reached out to seller and waiting to hear back. 

This is the only pic posted and description says it was made for long railing. 

My question is: For$20 is it worth getting to decide whether turning is of any interest to me?


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## ClintW (Apr 22, 2018)

There doesn't appear to be a tailstock. Without that it's going to be no fun.

If you are interested in turning maybe look for an old tube style craftsman. They work okay and give you a good taste of turning while still working decently well. Trouble is a very cheap lathe can make the experience bad and not teuw of the joy of turning on a good lathe. 

Just my thoughts. Have only turned a bit in my life. Others with more experience will have alot more to say.

Reactions: Agree 4


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## Sprung (Apr 22, 2018)

ClintW said:


> Trouble is a very cheap lathe can make the experience bad and not teuw of the joy of turning on a good lathe.



This right here. My first lathe was an AMT lathe - dual tubes. The tubes flexed and it was a nightmare to turn on. I think I turned 2, maybe 3, things on it. I really wanted to get into turning, but from the little bit I used this lathe, it really made me rethink wanting to do any turning.

Was one like this:



 

My second lathe was a Craftsman that, while far from top of the line, worked well enough for me to turn a bunch on it and cement in my desire to turn. It was one of these, which is about the same as a Craftsman single tube lathe. (Craftsman also rebadged the AMT one pictured above at one point.) Even though I'm not on my fourth lathe, I still have this one. I wore it out, but am hoping to get it running again and use it as a dedicated buffing setup.



 

I have seen some very well done homemade lathes. Steve442's homemade lathe, posted here, appears well built. But I wouldn't necessarily classify the one you're looking at as looking like it's well built.

There's no need to go big and expensive for your first lathe, but definitely avoid anything that is junk. A crappy lathe that is hard to use and turn on will make turning unpleasant. If you're constrained by a budget, a Craftsman tube lathe could be a great starter lathe as they can be had cheaply.

However, I would also consider, if you're able to, to spend a little more. The lathe is the cheapest part of turning. As you go down the rabbit hole, you'll find lots and lots of tooling you will need or want to buy. If you start out with a lathe that is MT2 (Morse Taper 2) and has a spindle thread of 1"x8tpi, you will be able to use your tooling on so many other lathes if you upgrade. The Craftsman lathes are all MT1 and have a 3/4"-16tpi spindle thread, meaning you'll have to rebuy a lot of tooling if you ever upgrade.

Even something like this from Harbor Freight would make for a decent starter lathe - use a 20% off coupon, which they have often. Or, I think they have a 25% off coupon coming up for Memorial Day. Or buy what is pretty much exactly the same lathe, but in a different color, from Rockler.

Reactions: Agree 2 | Great Post 1


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## woodman6415 (Apr 22, 2018)

In my opinion not worth $20 .. I have a bunch of boat anchors... 
if your really interested in turning find a club in your area and got to a meeting .. if it still interests you join the club .. I think almost every club had mentors that will invite you to thier shop and give you some hands on instructions... you'll need more than a lathe ... some basic turning tools .. a way to sharpen the tools ..

Reactions: Agree 1


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## Nathan W (Apr 22, 2018)

Sprung said:


> This right here. My first lathe was an AMT lathe - dual tubes. The tubes flexed and it was a nightmare to turn on. I think I turned 2, maybe 3, things on it. I really wanted to get into turning, but from the little bit I used this lathe, it really made me rethink wanting to do any turning.
> 
> Was one like this:
> 
> ...





woodman6415 said:


> In my opinion not worth $20 .. I have a bunch of boat anchors...
> if your really interested in turning find a club in your area and got to a meeting .. if it still interests you join the club .. I think almost every club had mentors that will invite you to thier shop and give you some hands on instructions... you'll need more than a lathe ... some basic turning tools .. a way to sharpen the tools ..


Points taken. I was not shopping for a lathe today, and I have never seen one this cheap in my area. I’m glad that I asked here first. I have a bad habit of impulse purchases with tools.

Reactions: Like 1


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## rocky1 (Apr 22, 2018)

Nathan, I'd agree wholeheartedly with what both the guys above suggested. That $20 lathe is a headache looking for a place to happen. You don't really want a $20 lathe experience starting out; save your money and invest it in something that will serve you well once you get up and going. Keep an eye on Craigslist and something worthy will pop up sooner or later. Look for deals that include tools, tooling, stock, kits, etc. to sweeten the deal.

As Wendell suggested, find someone locally to hook up with through one of the local wood turners clubs and decide where you want to go with it after falling off into the Vortex... Google lists these 4 for you to look into.

South Kansas Wood Turners - http://southkansaswoodturners.com/
https://www.facebook.com/SouthKansasWoodturners/

Paradise Valley - Half hour south of Wichita - http://www.paradisevalleywoodturning.com/About-Us.html

Sunflower Woodworkers Guild - http://www.sunflowerwoodworkers.org/

Kansas Chapter of the AAW - http://www.woodturner.org/members/?id=23094077



Turning is not simply turning, there are several different aspects you might pursue, as you've probably gathered around here, (_Pens and Assorted Trinkets, Calls, Pepper Mills, Bowls and Platters, Hollow Forms_). Get a little hands on, try to find your comfort zone, and then buy your lathe to fit your needs. Until then, you can pick up a few kits, supplies, turning tools, turning stock, finishes, etc., etc.

Reactions: Like 2 | Agree 2


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## Nathan W (Apr 22, 2018)

Much appreciated links. I have heard of the Sunflower Guild and almost made it to one of their meetings a couple months back. I will look into this soon. 

Thanks!


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## woodtickgreg (Apr 22, 2018)

I agree with what the guys above have said, but I'll add don't waste your money on this one, lol.


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## brianpoundingnails (May 26, 2018)

I build log furniture. With not much on the market(besides expensive machine tools) for putting parallel tenons on a six to eight foot log, I decided to build my own lathe. It will spin a 10" dia. x 108" log, cutting accurate, repeatable square or round tenons. It also functions as a large capacity mortise machine(24" x 96" bed, 14" vertical stroke), a large capacity drill press(24'x96" bed, 14" vertical stroke), and a sawmill to boot. I already had all the tools, so I only have about $1400 in it. I designed it on 3-D solid modeling software. The picture you show represents yankee ingenuity at it's finest. Necessity has always been the [email protected]#&er of invention.

Hand, Head and Heart(mostly hands)

Reactions: Like 1 | Way Cool 8 | Creative 2


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## woodtickgreg (May 29, 2018)

Brian, that is very impressive indeed!!!

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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## NeilYeag (May 29, 2018)

Yep quite a set up indeed!

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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