Getting Started in Woodturning: 18 Practical Projects & Expert Advice on Safety, Tools & Techniques book was written by woodturners for woodturners, and edited by John Kelsey. The book features, on 224 pages, beneficial information and shop-tested insights to help learners expand their journey into the art and craft of woodturning.
The book covers every aspect of woodturning, including shopping for the first lathe, safety practices, tools and sharpening techniques. The book also contains step-by-step instructions for 18 skill-building projects such as bowl, pepper mill, goblet, pen, doorknobs and much more. Getting Started in Woodturning presents ,neatly packaged into one comprehensive volume, choice content from the AAW’s American Woodturner journal and previous workbooks like Safety for Woodturners, Lathes and Turning Tools, Practical Woodturning Projects and Learning at the Lathe.
About the authors of Getting started in woodworking book:
The American Association of Woodturners (AAW) is a nonprofit organization headquartered in Saint Paul, Minnesota. They are dedicated to advancing the art and craft of woodturning worldwide. The association provides opportunities for education, information and organization to those interested in woodturning. It is focused on establishing lathe-turned work as a major element in the art and craft world. The association is established in 1986 and it has thousands of members and a network of local chapters globally, representing professionals, amateurs, gallery owners, collectors, and wood/tool suppliers. The official journal of the AAW is American Woodturner, the leading publication on the art and craft of woodturning in the world.
Whether you’re just getting started at the lathe or you’re a seasoned woodturner looking for nuggets of insight, you’ll find it all in this book. Written for beginning woodturners by some of today’s finest woodturners – Richard Raffan, Jim Rodgers, Richard Kleinhenz, and Alan Lacer among them, Getting Started in Woodturning teaches shop-tested, best-practice fundamentals that make woodturning a safe, enjoyable, and enriching hobby that will last a lifetime. Getting Started in Woodturning is the only book a beginner needs to safely and confidently get started in the craft of woodturning.
The book is divided into four sections:
Section one includes: Getting started, Advice for beginning turners, Shopping for your first lathe, Turning and aligning your lathe, Learn to sharpen all your turning tools , Sharpening jigs, Are you wearing the right faceshield, Collect dust at the lathe and Safety checklist.
Section two includes: The tools, Choosing the right driving centers, Faceplates, Sweet and simple chucking strategies, Mastering the four-jaw scroll chuck , What speed is the best, Get a good start with lathe and turning tools, Your first bowl gouge, A guide to gouges, Spindle roughing gouge, Getting the most from scrapers, Using the point tool, Carbide cutters, Humanizing the skew chisel, Parting tool, Bandsaw: safe setup and operations, Bandsaw: safe practices with green wood and Grinder wheels.
Section three includes: The techniques & tips, Wood: kiln-dried, green, or air dried, Twenty ways NOT to turn a bowl, The complete spindle turner, Twenty ways to master spindle turning, Quick guide for avoiding catches, How to avoid a catch, Good grip: feel the wood through the tool, Sandpaper: the nitty gritty, Guide to finishing, Food safe finishing, Nice turner’s finish last.
Section four includes: The projects, The honey dipper is a classic first project, Egg cup introduces end-grain hollowing, Letter opener: a skill builder that makes a great gift, Basic wooden bowl, Out of a limb: natural edged bowls, Ring holders make great gifts, Classy clocks, Turning offset handles simplified, Pepper mill: it’s a new grind, Scoop for ice cream, Napkins rings, Salt and pepper shakers, Turning the finger-snap top, Pen with a wooden grip, Holiday tree topper: turn something special, Colorful Christmas lights, Two-part goblet: tenon connects bowl to stern and Door knob upgrade.
If you want to know more about tools for woodturning don’t miss a chance to check our article, Woodturning tools.
Woodturning is a fun, engaging, and tremendously rewarding hobby that will last a lifetime. But to enjoy it, you have to take the first steps and get started. With this collection of articles from American Woodturner magazine, you’ll quickly get out of the blocks with the best practices on safety, tools, and fundamental techniques.
I purchased this book last year when I began turning. It is an invaluable insight into the art of woodturning. Clear precise instructions with great illustrations. The projects start with the basics and as you go through each one your basic skills increase. A great book forthose who are about to start turning.