A couple of days ago I read where someone was using a Grizzly Hobby Lathe to turn reel seats. It sounded feasible and I went and purchased one. In another thread I asked about what tools I should use and someone replied that I shouldn't be turning wood with this lathe.

My question is...
Does anyone turn wood on this lathe?
I would like to know before I invest more money into tools.

Bill,
I'm not a great fan of drill powered lathes, as the average drill lacks the rpm's and power to do a first class job. I do, however, own the Grizzly variable speed mini wood lathe, model G9247, and have use it to turn small bowls, and fishing plugs for the last couple of years. As long as you don't need to turn anything over 12" long, or more than 5 15/16" in diameter, it does a pretty nice job. I don't see where you'd have a problem turning reel seats or handles with it. One word to the wise, don't skimp on the quality of gouges you purchase, as they are the key to good results and require sharpening less frequently.

Rich

Bill,

I use a Grizzly to turn some wood inserts and cork grips. If you are planning to use the Grizzly, go ahead and buy the 1/2" drill they offer. It will be noisey but will have plenty of power. The down side is that the drill chuck isn't as consistant as a true lathe chuck and you may get a little wobble. This can cause a slightly off center seat insert. Everything works ok if you keep it short. I predrill all my inserts and use Pen mandrels and bushings to hold the insert. I now have a better lathe and honestly, if I had it to do over, I would go straight to the Penn State lathe.
Good luck,

Dan Craft
Dan Craft Enterprises

I have the Grizzley and the Penn State Turncrafter Pro and like them both although I haven't done any wood on the Grizzley it might work. The problem that I see is in drilling the handle/grip. I turn the wood round then chuck it into a 3-jaw chuck, drill it and put it on one of Andy Dear's new nandrels. On a Grizzly, you would have to drill it first, then put it on a mandrel and put it in the drill chuck. to turn. Like Dan said, the Penn State is a great little lathe and priced right ($159 - $175 with the bed extension).

Mike

It looks a though it is possible. I am going to have to give it a try. I have a couple of calls into Andy, I think he must be swamped. Any comments and what the best mandrel from him would be? Like what would be the most used size?

Where is the penn state lathe for $159-$175 with the bed extension?
I see the jet mini for $250 and the ext. for another $55...or are you talking a different model?

Here is the link to the Penn State Turn Crafter Pro.


[www.pennstateind.com]