Keeping the lathe separate from the shop?

[atgcpaul]

I have a brand new Rikon mini lathe still in the box sitting in my shop--a
detached garage. I got it this past summer on sale but we also had a
daughter born last summer so shop time has been nill.

I've been thinking that if I move the lathe into the basement, I won't be so
far away from the family and if my wife needs me, I'm just a floor away rather
than in another building.

I have never turned before but I've been itching to try my hand at bowls. Is
it ill advised to separate the lathe from my shop tools? I still need to buy a
grinder and make some kind of sharpening jig. I figure I could do all the
roughing to round in the shop and then bring the blanks to the basement.

I was going to build a bench where the lathe and grinder sit. I plan on turning
mostly green wood. Chip control will be the biggest challenge. I also need a
small space for finishing. Any other essentials shop tools I'd need for the lathe?

Thanks,
Paul

[dbhost]

Not just chip control, but fine dust collection. And because it would be in the living space, you will want to pay particular attention to this little issue... WELL worth spending a little time and money researching...

FWIW, just like your wife needs you to step in to take the heat off of her and give her some time to do what she does to relax, likewise, you need to find a way to cut out time for you. I am not saying ignore your family, but work out a balance so that the family gets the best of you, instead of a lot of rottenness...

[leehljp]

In terms of what you asked, yes, the turning area does not have to be in the same area as the other basic tools to be functional. You may occasionally need to go to the bandsaw to rough cut some blanks, but otherwise, the lathe can exist by itself and with sharpening tools and dust collection. These last two are necessities, especially in conjunction of the basement.

There is one drawback to this whole operation though: You WILL need a dust collector as mentioned, BUT dust collectors are very noisy in a house context.

That said, there are two ways that I know that will reduce that noise:
1. Google shop vac mufflers, or shop vac silencers. Click Here and Here.

I made a similar box in Japan for a small DC collector. On my small DC collector box, I covered the entire outside with some stick on carpet tiles and it worked great.

If you want to be able to hear your wife call, and if you don't want to wake the family up, you will need something to kill the noise.

2. Fein Vacs, and also Festool vacs are not nearly as noisy as most shop vacs, but they are very pricey. I have the Fein Turbo III and its noise is low enough that with only slightly raised voices, LOML and I can have a conversation, and I can hear the phone ring. The suction on the turbo 3 with 2 1/2 in hose "may" be enough for what you want to do on a 14 in lathe. However, YMMV.

Never the less, A DC system would be better but the noise would disturb the family, without some detailed thought and experimenting in cutting the noise.

[RMCWoodWorks]

Here's some thoughts ... somewhat in order,

Dust collection: When you turn green wood, depending on the species, after you get past the bark, you get a lot more water than dust, however you will need good dust control, later in any event. After you rough turn green wood, and you let it dry and distort inside multiple paper sacks or something similar, it wil be dry and dusty during the finsh turning. My understanding is that the finest dust is the worst for you.

Face mask: one of the flip up / down types. Things fly, especially as you learn.

Sandpaper: Proceed from, say, 80 - 100 to 220 - 300, in order, without skipping steps.

Friction finishes: Fast and easy to use, a mix of wax and lacquer and a good place to start.

Chuck: At some point you're going to want / need a multi-jaw chuck, especially for bowls and closed vessels. See ... http://www.oneway.ca/chucks/index.htm

Bowls: Start with spindle turning, where the axis of rotation is parallel to the grain, to learn the different tools. You can get the hang of spindle turning pretty well from books. Then, if possible take a class in bowl turning. In bowl tyrning, the asis of rotation is, generally, perpendicular to the grain. The gouges are both different and ground differently because every 90 degrees you go from end grain to cross grain. Harder to learn, hence the class.

Turning tools: High speed steel, often abbreviated HSS.

Have fun!

[wardprobst]

I'd stay away from putting the finishing area under your living area. I've had attached finishing areas and the fumes are a problem, IMO. If your detached garage is on the same line transformer as your house, you can get a wireless (uses the AC line actually) intercom from Radio Shack for about $60. I think the noise, dust and fumes would be a problem with a new little one personally.
DP