Just some questions

[Bighead]

Hello, I'm new here and haven't had much exposure to the pen making/woodworking world and just would like some questions answered. Should I just get a brand new Jet mini VS lathe, or save my pennies for a ShopSmith Mark V (used,of course)? Opinions? Also, does anybody make boxes here and have any tips or pointers? Thanks for the help!

 

[Buzz]

Welcome. The Jet mini is a great lathe and variable speed is even better. There was a poll recently on the brand of lathes in use amongst members, and 57% are using Jet. The majority of these would be the mini (myself included). Don't do box making - too busy enjoying the pen making. The sites below have a lot of great information for woodturners and should be useful to you. The first link is Russ Fairfield's page which provides great tutorials on pen making.

http://www.woodturnerruss.com/Pen10.html

http://www.laymar-crafts.co.uk/

http://www.turnwood.net/projectplans.html

http://www.woodturns.com/articles/projects/

 

[ctEaglesc]

The shopsmith might be nice, but if you want to turn pens I would get a dedicated lathe.
It doesn't have to be a JET it doesn't have to be new.
The one from HF around $179.00 on sale gets good reviews.
If you are making pens you won't be turning anything much about 1"x6" and usually a lot smaller.
I have never used one but the pencrafter lathes from PSI look decent.
I wouldn't want to stop the lathe because I need the power unit for the bandsaw, tablesaw, or DP

 

[Bighead]

Cool, thanks for the help. I especially like the links and the help with the lathe situation. So I think I'll just get a Jet and go from there. Thanks for the help!

 

[RogerGarrett]

You can't really go wrong with a variable speed Jet mini-lathe. I would spend the extra for the VS - as you will eventually want to try CA finishing and buffing - and the VS on the front really makes a difference.

For about $100 more, you can get the Jet 1236 - and it has a longer bed with a larger capability should you ever want to turn something larger - like a bowl.

If you have the space, I'm a big believer in purchasing dedicated pieces of equipment and adding work stations (eg. buy a table saw, a planer, a jointer, a good chop saw, and a lathe - all as you get a few extra $ here and there - certainly not all at once!) and you will be able to make just about anything you want out of wood. If you don't have the space, the Shopsmith is a good solution - but the dedicated Jet Mini is still something you should have beyond that. You should look for used equipment if you can. That's how I got my Delta Cabinet Saw - for less than 1/3 of new with lots of extra goodies on it. Even today, there is a Grizzly 5 hp table saw in our classifieds - almost brand new barely used - and I'll be the guy is selling it for about half what he paid for it. If I had the room, I would purchase it! But - I digress.

If you do purchase a mini-lathe, you'll still need a drill press and perhaps a belt sander or bench top belt sander to prepare the blanks.

Just my 2 cents. Good luck!

Best wishes,
Roger Garrett

 

[thewishman]

Originally posted by RogerGarrett
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If you do purchase a mini-lathe, you'll still need a drill press and perhaps a belt sander or bench top belt sander to prepare the blanks.

Best wishes,
Roger Garrett

Get a jacobs chuck and drill on the lathe - big space savings and accurate drilling.

Chris

 

[wood-of-1kind]

Originally posted by Bighead
<br />? Also, does anybody make boxes here and have any tips or pointers?

Welcome. I make my own pen cases but it's debatable as to whether or not it's economically feasible. Follow the link below and it may answer some of your questions.
-Peter-
http://www.penturners.org/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=15925&SearchTerms=making,boxes

 

[ctEaglesc]

I have never seen the need for a VS turning pens.
I have used the Jet VS mini but since there is still a need to change the ranges (pulleys and belt)it seems like the extra $100.00 could be put to better use in other tools and materials
Also another thought.
The Rikon 12-20 is not VS but the belts are located in a much more accessable location and includes an indexing head.
With either of these two lathes I can change the speeds with one hand in a few seconds.JUst food for thought.

 

[chigdon]

Personally using a VS sames me a lot of time and with my limits of time in my shop that is important. If you want to use CA finish at some point, as Roger mentioned, having VS will make life easier. My vote would definately be for VS, but for each his own.