Sometimes, unique is exactly what you want to avoid when turning. If you turn, sooner or later you are going to find yourself facing some project that requires several (or many) duplicate [...]
Taking the time to learn a few basic cuts and moves will help you succeed. Bowl turning was my first love in woodturning. There is something special about a bowl: The wonderful way the shape [...]
Get clean cuts and a nice finish from a challenging piece of material. A live edge (or natural-edge) bowl is one of the iconic forms of modern woodturning, and it is still a great way to show off [...]
I can’t stand throwing away good wood. When I’m turning a goblet or any other object, I don’t leave the waste areas blank. I pick up a gouge or a skew and use the waste to perfect my turning [...]
For turning spindles, there’s nothing like having a really long tool rest. You never have to move it! I made my own with parts from the hardware store. This rest is just a length of square steel [...]
Create a Soda-Shop Classic In simpler days, soda jerks quickly and efficiently dished perfect servings of ice cream with sturdy wooden-handled scoops. Once you’ve collected the metal parts [...]
The price of good turning tools can be pretty steep. Since most of the better lathe tools can be purchased without a handle, put your money where it counts—in the steel, not the handle. After [...]
An Exercise in Mastering the Skew Do you like a challenge? Want to develop your woodturning skills? Can you learn from mistakes? If your answer is “yes”, you’re ready to tackle the rolling cut [...]
Master this most basic turning tool. When I introduce someone to woodturning, I choose the spindle roughing gouge. When I work with kids, it’s the first tool I place in their hands. Why? [...]
Develop a delicate touch by creating graceful shapes. As an alternative to mass-produced items, Christmas ornaments rank high on the list. They easily become treasured keepsakes and the delicate [...]
Customize their fit for comfort and performance. Decades ago, woodturning tools came without handles, and turners would simply fashion their own. This makes perfect sense, because a handle that [...]
This jig helps you easily reverse your work for base turning. Properly finished bowls never reveal how the turner mounted them. However, traditional methods for reversing a bowl to turn the base [...]