I started my woodworking hobby on a scrollsaw, making mainly intarsia pieces and was pretty dismissive of woodturning. I always berated the process as “only being able to make round stuff” and being very wasteful as most of the wood ends up as shavings on the floor!
Then, I was loaned a lathe to have a play with.
After only a few projects I was hooked.
It was a basic lathe with just five speeds selected by changing pulleys and required a spanner to adjust the position of the tool rest. That said, I made many pieces with it and turning became my new main hobby.
As with all hobbies though as one gains experience and starts doing more complex work then ones demands grow. Well that’s my excuse anyway!
So, a new lathe with better features was called for –
I opted for an Axminster AW355WL, the largest of their hobby range of lathes. I also added the bed extension. The usual reason for adding the bed extension is to allow the turning of longer pieces (spindle work) my reason was to provide more room to slide that tailstock out of the way when turning the inside of bowls.
This lathe has a variable-speed DC drive making it easy to change the speed at just the turn of a knob. Also, the banjo and therefore the tool rest is easily moved with a quick-release lever.
I must say this lathe is a joy to use.
Of course, my journey into woodturning continues with more things to learn (and to buy!) all the time but I am most definitely addicted now!
