One of the strange things about woodturning compared to most other forms of woodworking is buying equipment to get started. If you were buying a table saw, it would come with at least one blade. Most drills come with a sampler of bits these days. Lathes almost always come alone. Oh, there will probably be a tail center and a spur center and a face plate to hold the work on the machine, but there won’t be any tools for the most basic cuts. In other words, there is still a lot to be done besides the lathe to get the most basic jobs done.

One of the best ways to get basic wood tuning tools is to buy a starter kit. Some turners will advise buying tools one at a time to get only what he needs, but that only works if you know which tools he likes best or needs most and that comes with time and practice. A starter kit is likely to have everything you need for basic cutting.

Woodturning is roughly divided into spindle turning and faceplate turning. Some think of it as spindles and bowls, but the diversity of objects far exceeds these categories. For spindle turning, a roughing gouge is needed; a pair of spindle gouges, one larger than the other; a sharing tool; a bias chisel and maybe two of different sizes; and possibly a scraper. Faceplate work requires a bowl gouge. It will be longer than spindle gouges and stronger in construction. High speed steel tools are the norm these days and are what the beginner should buy for both beginners and long term crafters.

Each type of these tools has a different profile and different sharpening requirements. Fortunately, there are many sharpening jigs on the market for lathe workers. In the past, circumstances in basic woodturning required newcomers to the trade to learn the art of sharpening tools as well as making the basic cuts and some would argue that sharpening was the most difficult to learn. Good jigs coupled with high speed tools that hold a much longer edge than the old high carbon steel tools make life much easier for the beginner and the advanced practitioner as well.

By the way, the basic sharpening tool for a woodturner is a grinder with an extra-fine aluminum oxide wheel and you may need to purchase that as well.

Perhaps as intrinsic as the tools is the need for safety on the wood lathe. While it is one of the safest tools in the shop, it still throws material in a person’s face at twenty-five or more miles per hour. A full face mask is needed. Lung protection during sanding can be taken care of with a good sanding mask. Hearing protection for those times when the lathe is turning, a power drill is being used for sanding, and the dust collector is running should be on every turner’s must-wear list.

Basic woodturning requires more than the woodturn itself, but the enjoyment is more than worth it for most stand-up crafters. A beginner’s high-speed steel tool set, a grinder and sharpening jig, and the lathe itself will last for years of amazing, creative woodturning fun.