I'm thinking of starting bowl turning...

[Razorburne]

...and I need some very basic help for being completely new at bowls. I know I can purchase bowl blanks at many of the places I would buy my ps making supplies but what I don't know is what sizes I should be looking for.

I do have a mini lathe with 10" swing so I obviou need to make something smaller than 10" but I suppose as a complete newbie how small do u suggest I start with? 5x5x2? 6x6x3? And as far as depth - 2 "'or 3"?

I have a Nova G3 chuck and although it may not be necessary I am considering getting a set of mini Cole jaws to reverse it and finish off the bottom of the bowl.

Is one method for chucking the bowl (recess vs a tenon) better or easier?

I know its a mixed bag of questions. I apologize in advance

 

[lorbay]

Bigger the better, but you will find that the larger you go with a small lathe is the ballancing, so it takes a while to get it ballanced. By far just starting out the tennon will be you best choice.

Lin.

 

[MTViper]

I'd recommend you start with a 2x6, cut it into squares and turn away. Another option is whatever you have on the fire place pile that will fit on your lathe. Don't invest in any expensive bowl blanks until you decide whether or not you like turning bowls. I started with a cedar 2x6 cause it's very forgiving.

If you like turning bowls, you'll love a set of cole jaws. They do make reversing a bowl for finishing the bottom easier.

Most of the time, I prefer to mount my blank in a recess rather than a tenon. That's just me, though. Make your recess shorter than the jaws on your chuck, though, so the blank rests on the face of the jaws and not the body of the chuck. Also, check your chuck manual and see what the max RPM is without the tailstock. Most chucks say to limit speed to around 600 RPM without tailstock support. If you've got the tailstock up - like you might for rounding the outside - you can go faster.

I use a forstner bit to drill my recess. I shoot for something just larger than the chuck jaws when they are fully closed.

Hope this helps.

Steve

 

[Charlie_W]

Spend time watching YouTube videos on bowl turning, There are plenty of excellent bowl turners out there.

Also, if there is a wood turning club near you or a Woodcraft store. You can take classes or hook up with another turner for some mentoring.
Spend a day with another bowl turner...it will advance your bowl turning knowledge big time.
Also, you need to learn what not to do......do not ever use a spindle roughing gouge on a bowl(cross grain). You can snap off the gouge when you get a catch.

If you lived close, I would say....come on over!

Good luck!

 

[Charlie_W]

Try this:

Long Island Woodturners | Fostering the Art of Woodturning on Long Island

 

[Razorburne]

Thanks everyone for the helpful info - and thanks for the invite Charlie - it would be quite a hike for me

 

[JimB]

What tools will you be using? Using the wrong tools can be very dangerous. Also the technique for using them can be very different then turning pens.

For blank size 5x5x2 is a good size to start. 6x6x2 would be ok. Don't try to make anything too deep for your first bowl. As mentioned, you can use something off the firewood pile. Buying bowl blanks can get very expensive. 95% of my bowls are turned from free wood.

I use a recess for most bowls but some I use a tenon. It really depends on what I am trying to accomplish. The most important thing is to mount it correctly into the chuck.

A couple other things. When you turn on the lathe have it at the slowest speed your lathe has. The bigger the blank the slower you need to start at. Also, dust collection is very important especially with dry wood. Just turning a bowl blank can create a lot of dust. When you sand it you will have even more dust!

 

[low_48]

Forget the suppliers and find a firewood pile. Screw it up, and it's just firewood again. Turning a bunch of firewood takes the stress off of doing a great job because it's an expensive blank. Wet wood turns incredibly easy compared to a dried blank. Just don't turn wood with cracks in it and get hurt from them flying apart. BEST ADVICE, find a mentor. You'll cut the learning time by 2/3 if you watch someone that knows what they are doing.