A small version of the wood lathe is the mini wood lathe. This small table top version is used to create woodworking, art and hobby crafts. The small wood lathe is semi-portable as long as there is a flat surface large enough to place the base. The mini lathe stores easily and the maintenance is low. The speed is extremely good and the tool uses minimal electricity.The mini wood lathe is a reasonably priced tool that costs between $100 and $400. This makes it affordable for hobbyist, artists and small businesses.
The mini wood lathe uses a variable speed engine, adjustable chucks and slide carriages. There are also small lathes that use a brace rather than slide carriages to rest the wood. The brace or slide carriages help to make precise cuts so make sure one of these features is part of the mini wood lathe product that is purchased.
The size of most mini wood lathes is approximately 27 inches long, 10 inches high and 5 inches wide. Normal length between the center is 12 inches. All mini wood lathes will either have a ¾ inch or 1 inch spindle. The swing over tool rests will either be 3 or 4 inches long.
A ball turning attachment is available to create ball handles, rounding bolt heads and making Lucite magnifiers. A 9″ wheel may be adapted to help with tapping and single point threading. Many homemade attachments may be made to customize the mini wood lathe’s versatility. Gadget Building provides excellent ideas and instructions for these pieces.
Straight-grained wood is the optimal choice for use on mini wood lathe projects. The wood should be free of knots, cracks and other imperfections. The density should be consistent throughout the piece of wood. When learning the techniques for turning wood projects, Pine, Balsam or Popular are the woods of choice.
Numerous tips for completing turnings are available for different projects. A scraping tip removes the wood layers very slowly. Whereas the shearing tip removes the wood layers quickly. This helps with leaving the surface very smooth requiring little sanding. A round-nose or gouge tip will be used when cutting flat or convex surfaces. These are just a few of the many tips available for purchase.
Sanding may be done on the mini wood lathe. The tool rest should be removed to provide maximum sanding function. Using new sandpaper should be avoided. The sharp grit will gouge the wood. To remove the sharp grit, simply rub the sandpaper together to eliminate any rough points. Remember to always and with the grain of the wood. The final sanding should always be done with the mini late stopped and using fine grit sandpaper.
A mini wood lathe is an excellent affordable tool for those individuals desiring small wood turnings. The portability, ease of storage and price makes this a desirable tool to own.
