What to buy next? (Nova Midi, perhaps?)

[flooshee]

I'm trying to pick back up my woodturning hobby, and I'm at a loss of what I need. Several years ago I turned a few spindles and even managed a wooden ring (what a pain!). I'd like to hone my skills between centers and venture into faceplate work, such as bowls, etc.

My gracious wife has given me $100 for Christmas to spend on whatever I want, so I am trying to make the most prudent choice possible.

Here is what I have:

• Jet Mini-Lathe
• Parting Tool
• 2 Gouges
• 2 Skew Chisels (one oval, one flat)
• Drive Center
• 3" Faceplate

The parting tool, 1 gouge, and oval skew came with the lathe, and are a "pen turning set" - thus they are miniature. I purchased the larger gouge (don't have the measurements handy) and flat skew separately.

I noticed that Woodcraft has the Nova Midi Chuck on sale, and was curious if anyone would advise for/against it. I think a chuck is pretty necessary for doing bowl work, right?

If anyone has any suggestions or advice, I would love to hear them.

Thanks in advance,
Andrew

 

[JimQ]

I've got the Nova Midi for my Delta Midi, and find it to be a very good chuck, well worth the money. Just make sure you get the right thread for your lathe. Should be 1"x8.

JimQ

 

[Griesbach]

Andrew,

I'd go with the chuck. I'm sure you will find it invaluable for face plate work, although, you may find situations where you will want to use the face plate...such as an initial hold on end grain. I've not use the nova midi but have not heard anyone complain about them. And, yes, I believe they are on sale at Woodcraft.

 

[hockenbery]

Treat yourself to some turning lessons.
You live within a an hours drive of David Fry and others too.

I reccomend David because he is both and excellent teacher and a superb turner. He has the softest touch with the tools of anyone. He is also a pretty darn decent human being.

You can find him in the AAW directory or on the the AAW web site.
http://www.woodturner.org/community/members/members_pro.pl?submit=Edit+Teacher+Search

or e-mail me for contact info.

happy turning,
Al

 

[Ziffy]

Love my Nova Midi... You'll need it for bowl work. A good bowl gouge and scraper should be on your short list too.

Woodcraft is pretty good. If you get on your local (a relative term) Woodcraft stores e-mail list, you will get e-mail specials and every now and then a great bargain on something you really want pops up. That's how I got my drill chuck at about 40% off the retail price.

ziffy

 

[dkulze]

I second the lessons suggestion. It will do more to increase the fun and decrease the "what a pain". The good news is that you can probably give a call to your nearest turning club (look in the chapter's listings on the main page) and get some pretty good basic lessons and mentoring for free. Once you've got the basics down, a turning class with a professional will be worth it's weight in gold.

As to the midi chuck, it's an excellent investment for the money. I have one and have yet to find the piece of wood that is too heavy or off balance for it to hold on my Jet Mini. As I've progressed in turning, I've ended up using the chuck exclusively and the faceplate as a sanding disc.

Good luck,
dietrich

 

[Rick Prevett]

Didn't see this on your list, maybe you already have one, but: grinder. Can't cut wood with dull tools 🙂

 

[underdog]

Notice how $100 just doesn't go very far? 😀

I've had the same dilemma...

"Should I buy the HSS tools for $99, or should I buy the Midi chuck for $90?"

I already have a grinder so that didn't muddle the situation, but I finally just bought the tools and bought the chuck later, when I had another $100.

I don't regret buying the chuck one little bit.... :cool2:

 

[flooshee]

I appreciate everyone's suggestions. I would LOVE to do some lessons, but I think that might have to wait. I am going to join my local turning club, and they have already volunteered to help me out with some basic techniques.

As for the grinder, I have been pondering that for a while. When I first got my lathe, I turned quite a few projects without sharpening or honing the tools at all. I also beat my chisels to heck when doing other woodworking projects. Last night I taught myself to sharpen the chisels using varying grits of sandpaper and elbow grease. I am confident this will work for the turning tools as well (that's tomorrow's project). Thus, I'm putting off the grinder.

Yeah, I've been looking at a bowl gouge and scrapers, but those are smaller purchases that I can probably weasel my way into later.

I think I'll go for the chuck right now. I was worried that I would soon outgrow it, but you guys seem to say that it is a good tool that can handle a wide variety of work. Now I just have to wait until it gets here. 🙁

 

[dkulze]

I'd reconsider that grinder even before the chuck. With turning, you gotta figure that one session exposes the edge of your tools to litterally MILES of cutting. I rarely use a tool for more than one session without sharpening and frequently touch up several times an hour for hard woods. It's easy to get in the habit of using what amounts to a dull tool when that's what you're used to. The first few times you use freshly sharpened tools it gets more clear what you're missing.

And the edges most tools come with from the factory are actually not that sharp compared to what you get with a careful grind.

One other thing that is a must is maintaining a flat or concave bevel and this is difficult to do with sandpaper without serious time and effort.

Sharpening is one thing that will come up quick if you are getting help from a club. I didn't think that much of it till I hooked up but, boy, what a difference.

Dietrich