Could I turn pots, and strikers on this harbor freight lathe.?? What type of chuck would I need.?? I'm new at this, so any help would be greatly appreciated..
(http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/03/31/7azasa4u.jpg)
Thanks.!!
BRO
Did you guys just use the chuck that the lathe came with, or have to buy another.??
BRO
That lathe will work, but for about $60.00 more you can get there 5 speed model and it uses the #mt2 aceseries. plus if it needs parts you can use jet parts
http://www.harborfreight.com/5-speed-bench-top-wood-lathe-65345.html
Callmaking does not require the use of a chuck. I use a faceplate to turn my calls and have turned over 2,000 pots and more strikers. I would take a look at the chucks from Penn State Industries. They also sell some small lathes.
IMO, You will do fine with that lathe. You lose a bit of torque that you'd have with a lathe that has more HP, but the HF lathe will spin the wood in a circle well enough.
You'll probably want to buy a 4 jaw chuck, and upgrade the drive center and live center. For that, I would stay away from the HF offerings. Penn State Industries would be a good place to go for those.
You could turn calls on the faceplate that comes with the lathe, depending on how you go about it. Here's one way: http://www.customcalls.com/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1211135908. I just find that the chuck gives me more options, especially if you want to turn other things or drill out call blanks.
Same with the centers- the ones that come with the lathe will work, but upgrades will make turning easier and probably improve the quality of your work. I like the 60 degree tailstock center from PSI because it gives me more room to work around the piece- http://www.pennstateind.com/store/LCENTLT1.html
I really like this drive center- http://www.pennstateind.com/store/LCENTSS11.html. It grabs the wood real well but doesn't mark it up much. When/if you replace the variable speed HF lathe, you'll need to re-buy the centers in #2 MT since the lathe you'll be getting will probably have that size arbor rather that the #1, but imo having the variable speed luxury is worth the $40 in centers. The chuck will fit any lathe as long as you have the right spindle adapter.
While you're at it, pick up a pen mandrel. You'll have fun making those too. Good luck!
I have no experience on that lathe but if you are looking to penn state for chucks, collets, drives and lives you should look on amazon.com. They sell many of penn states items for less w/ free shipping. I got my penn state barracuda chuck, 5/8" & 1" steb drives, 60* live and my dust hood all from amazon for less than penn state sells them. Did I mention the free shipping?