Best video ever !!

[Glenn Lefley]

Of all the woodturning videos you have ever watched , which one do you wish you saw first or at the beginning of your turning journey?

 

[Bill Boehme]

When I was first learning to turn there were hardly any videos, none on the Internet which was still in it's early years. I think that most were still on VHS tape and usually not of professional quality. Although there were several that I would rank as being excellent because of the instructors (Ellsworth, Lacer, and Raffan), the one that really connected with me was was one done by Bill Grumbine. Years later, the first video by Jimmy Clewes redefined the standard for professionally made woodturning videos. Today there is a proliferation of woodturning videos and the quality continues to advance. It would be hard for me to say that there is a best ever, because it depends on what you are wanting to learn and there are so many now that there are many (most) that I haven't seen. Of those that I have watched, I would rank the series done by Jimmy Clewes at the top of the list. There are also several special interest videos that I have watched multiple times.

 

[hockenbery]

Similar to Bill videos were unknown to me when I started.
After several years of adult education shop classes I had finished all the furniture on the list and I got the teacher to show me some basics in the lathe. He taught me how to use scrapers.
I had Creative woodturning by Dale Nish and following that I learned to ride the bevel and slice wood with the gouge. I got pretty good. And was doing well for about 8 years.

Then I took two five day classes about a year apart that elevated my turning beyond any expectation.

Liam O’Neil taught me how to use and sharpen the side ground gouge and turn bowls more quickly, with more refined curves, and smoother surfaces than I thought possible.
About 12 months later David Ellsworth taught me the advantages of the parabolic flute, how to hollow, and fine tuned my methods to enable me to turn bowls more quickly, with better curves, and smoother surfaces.

My advice to any new turner is get hands on schooling/mentoring to master the basics. Turn every chance you can and then get a week long class with an instructor who can take you to the next level,in whatever it is you like to turn.

In my opinion videos are much better at teaching how to make objects than they are at teaching you how to make cuts. The best video in the world can’t tell if you are riding the bevel, holding the tool too tight, or are pushing too hard on the wood.

 

[Fadi Zeidan]

Lyle Jamieson’s Bowl Basics and Ellsworth’s bowl gouge DVD. Jamieson has short clips from his video on YouTube, he goes in much more details in his DVD.

 

[Fadi Zeidan]

I would echo what Al said. I watched way too many Youtube and DVDs, but it never resonated until I took a class with Ellsworth. In a way, he ruined Youtube for me.

 

[Emiliano Achaval]

I'm glad I'm not the only to say there was no computers when I started turning lol. My very first video was a VHS made by Del Stubbs. I watched that video so many times that after 20 plus years I can still see in my mind parts of it. I sill use a joke he said: when he's roughing a bowl, he goes both ways, and he says, why not go both ways, you pay for the whole gouge, not just one side... Then, my turning point in my career, I bought a gouge that came with an instructions manual! The Ellsworth gouge and the VHS movie about it. Years later I repurchased from david the same movie in a cd or dvd, I burn it to my computer and I still have it, it's one of my recommended videos to watch for beginners.

 

[Bill Boehme]

I had f

I'm glad I'm not the only to say there was no computers when I started turning lol. My very first video was a VHS made by Del Stubbs. I watched that video so many times that after 20 plus years I can still see in my mind parts of it. I sill use a joke he said: when he's roughing a bowl, he goes both ways, and he says, why not go both ways, you pay for the whole gouge, not just one side... Then, my turning point in my career, I bought a gouge that came with an instructions manual! The Ellsworth gouge and the VHS movie about it. Years later I repurchased from david the same movie in a cd or dvd, I burn it to my computer and I still have it, it's one of my recommended videos to watch for beginners.

I had forgotten about that one published by Fine Woodworking magazine before the AAW existed. It is one of my favorites also and I remember that comment about using both sides of the gouge. I also remember a gouge that he made out of a piece of galvanized water pipe. I can't play it because I don't have a VHS player.

 

[Emiliano Achaval]

I had f


I had forgotten about that one published by Fine Woodworking magazine before the AAW existed. It is one of my favorites also and I remember that comment about using both sides of the gouge. I also remember a gouge that he made out of a piece of galvanized water pipe. I can't play it because I don't have a VHS player.

I don't have a VHS player anymore either.. I also remember saying that turning is a "dance" all your cuts are done moving your body, to this day I continue to dance, lol. That video was my first taste of a serious turner in action. I used to watch it in the house and run to the shop to practice something... I also had Richard Raffan making boxes VHS, I made and sold a lot of boxes, I had a store on the north shore of Maui for 10 years, I sold everything there, dog bowls with scratches and all, lol I remember thinking this guy is not human (Raffan) the way he used the skew for everything on his box making...

 

[Gerald Lawrence]

I started later than y'all so videos were rampant but the starter and the only one I bought was Bill Grumbine. It was a good introduction to turning bowls. I got a great deal from watching Tim Yoder even with the antics which kept me interested. Have never had a turning class but have done embellishment class with Dixie and demos at symposiums and at the club. I can look back and say I wish I had a few classes to speed my learning.

 

[John Torchick]

I have Lyle Jamieson's DVD, Bowl Basics. I highly recommend it. It is four hours long and I watch one hour at a time to "digest" the information.

 

[Curt Fuller]

Bill Grumbines Turning a Wood Bowl.

 

[robo hippy]

The first book and video I ever saw was Richard Raffen. We didn't have a club at the time so I was mostly self taught. After that, most of the demos at the club were my learning events. Now days I watch other videos to see what the particular teaching approach is. I still pick up the occasional trick. The Del Stubbs video is a classic and one I added early on.

robo hippy

 

[john lucas]

I learned from reading and watching demos at clubs. When I started turning there weren't home computers. DVD's and Videos were simply too expensive when they started coming out. I subscribed to every woodworking magazine out there. So when people ask me who I studied under I can give them a huge list of names, as long as they wrote an article. I still don't have any videos or DVD's. The few i have seen I check out from the club library. Did I mention how important a club is. As far as videos go the ones I learned the most from were John Jordan's. Online I like Lyle Jamieson's.

 

[Dennis Weiner]

I bought as many early woodturning vhs that were available. It was fun watching, stopping and rewinding. It kept me interested in pursuing turning at a time in my life that there was little free time.
One of the best things about watching was I didn’t have to clean up afterwords.
Of all the demonstrators, Richard Raffan was my favorite VHS turning star. Not only did you learn than paper towels were kitchen paper, but you felt his passion and connection. You couldn’t help being motivated. I wore out the first tape “Woodturning” and had to rebuy it. It took about hundred trys for me to learn to make a light pull using the skew at Raffan Production Speed. I think his Turning Boxes tape I leaning the most from. The opening of the tape Raffan demonstrates the use of a chainsaw and band saw in preparing wood for boxes. It may sound strange but until I saw the process, I thought I would have to buy my lumber. The tape accelerated my woodturning education.
Jordan, Stubs and Ellsworth VHSs also were my strong early influences that contributed to my self taught apprenticeship, followed later by Jamison and Lacer.

Like many others, the hands on weekend with Ellsworth was the most valuable.

 

[Raul McCai]

so many videos It's the Gestalt for me.