Getting Started in Turning

By Derek Richmond March 8, 2024

What you need now and what you’ll need next

Setting up a full woodshop can be an expensive proposition, but setting up a woodturning studio doesn’t require nearly so large an investment. Still, like most new ventures, you’re asking yourself, “what do I really need? How do I get started without breaking the bank?” A lathe is an obvious necessity (see “Choosing your lathe” below). After that, gear up with proper protective equipment, then round out your lathe station (see Ken’s Lathe Stand) with some chisels, and appropriate ways to hold your workpiece while shaping and finishing it.

Gear up

Uvex Bionic Face Shield

If a bowl blank spinning between centers gets loose, eyeglasses simply don’t provide enough protection. A full face shield protects your noggin without sacrificing visibility. This polycarbonate visor flips up and down like a welding helmet and can be worn over goggles and glasses, respirators and masks. It’s also scratch-resistant and anti-fog.
$49.99, woodcraft.com, #147814

Easy Wood Tools Professional Turners

Cool Smock

With a high collar and more coverage than an apron, a turning smock keeps chips off and out of clothes. This model is lightweight and breathable, while its full zip front makes for easy on and off.
$73.49, easywoodtools.com

Lathe tools and accessories

Rikon 4-Piece Turning System with Carbide Inserts
Yes, high-speed steel chisels are traditional. But for beginners, carbide scrapers mean fewer catches and less time sharpening. This 4-piece system features a single handle with interchangeable shafts bearing round, square, and detail cutters. A flat-bottomed shaft means easy registration against the tool rest.
$249.99, woodcraft.com, #870031

High Quality Tools and Sharpening

This 6-piece HSS turning set from British maker Robert Sorby includes 3 gouges, a scraper, skew, and parting tool. But with steel tools comes the need to sharpen them, so the pairing of Rikon’s slow-speed grinder and Wolverine sharpening kit makes perfect sense.

Sorby 6-Piece Intermediate HSS Turning Tools Set,
$389.99, woodcraft.com, #146162

Rikon Slow-Speed Grinder and Wolverine Sharpening Kit,
$329.99, woodcraft.com, #158820

Work holders

WoodRiver #2 MT Professional
Pen Turning Mandrel
Your new lathe likely included a faceplate and spur drive—fine for holding some turnings. A mandrel expands those capabilities, letting you turn pens, along with rings, ornaments, keychains, kitchen utensils, and a host of other unique kits.
$29.99, woodcraft.com, #145997

Scroll Chuck

A chuck gives you a lot of options for how to mount a blank on your lathe. The four included jaws can hold in contraction, squeezing a tenon turned while the piece is between centers, or in expansion, fitting into a mortise turned or drilled into the workpiece. Just make sure your chuck is compatible with the outer threads on your lathe’s spindle—typically 1” × 8 tpi on all but the largest or smallest machines. This WoodRiver chuck’s jaws can also be replaced with task-specific jaw sets. Pen jaws let you drill right on the lathe while flat jaws let you hold large bowls or platters for light cuts or finishing their undersides.

WoodRiver 4-Jaw Chuck
$149.99, woodcraft.com, #183464

WoodRiver #1 Profiled Step Jaws
$34.99, woodcraft.com, #183465

WoodRiver Pen Jaws
$27.99, woodcraft.com, #183466

WoodRiver Dovetailed Step Jaws
$40.99, woodcraft.com, #183467

WoodRiver 10” Flat Jaws
$57.99, woodcraft.com, #183468

WoodRiver #2 MT Keyed Lathe Drill Chuck
A drill chuck, sometimes called a Jacob’s chuck, lets you bore centered holes into or even through a workpiece as it spins on the lathe. The chuck mounts in the tailstock while the workpiece is secured to the headstock. So unlike a drill press, the bit stays stationary while the wood spins. A keyed chuck provides a bit more control and security than a keyless drill chuck. Just make sure the chuck’s Morse taper (either #1 or #2) matches that of your lathe.
$59.99, woodcraft.com, #154750

WoodRiver #2 MT Collet Chuck Set
The drill chuck’s headstock-mounted cousin, the collet chuck holds a round tenon in interchangeable collets ranging in size from 1/8 to 5/8”. It’s perfect for holding small workpieces and even some mandrels, balancing a tight grip with no marring.
$139.99, woodcraft.com, #146110

OneWay #2 MT Safe Driver
Unlike the spur drive that comes with your lathe, this one drives by friction. And a less tenacious grip means less chance a catch becoming catastrophic.
$48.50, packardwoodworks.com, #112616

WoodRiver #2 MT Multi-Tooth Drive Center
A multi-tooth drive center provides plenty of grip without deeply penetrating your stock, ideal for working those beautiful, but hard and dense exotic species of wood.
$34.99, woodcraft.com, #149173

Choosing your lathe

Lathes come in various sizes (with commensurate price tags): full-size, mid-size, mini, and pen. When picking out your starting lathe, it’s important to balance what you want to turn now with what you will want to turn eventually. A pen lathe is great for pens and similar small projects, but doesn’t have the power or capacity for much bowl turning. A mini lathe adds the capacity for bowl turning, as long as you’re serving side salads instead of displaying a cornucopia’s worth of fruit. A mid-size (often marketed as a “midi”) adds capacity and, for not much more money, gets you a lathe you’re less likely to outgrow quickly. But ultimately, the lathe that’s right for you is the one that best balances your space, budget, and interest.