Woodturning is an incredibly fun and rewarding hobby. Proper lathe maintenance is probably one of the most overlooked aspects of woodturning. Regular maintenance will not only increase the lifespan of your lathe, but will make it safer and more enjoyable to use, while likely improving the quality of your finished pieces. It can be easy to overlook, but is vital to a successful woodturning experience. Thanks for watching! I hope you have a great day! Scott Product links (Affiliate links are used when possible and I may receive a small commission.) Rubber sanding block for cast iron surfaces-3 pack amzn.to/3ZyQvf0 Maroon scotch bright pads amzn.to/4iFS6bK Paste wax amzn.to/49HeWLZ Garage door spray lube amzn.to/3DsEiB2 Wire brushes amzn.to/49InaTV Belt sander for tool rest amzn.to/3DfhHYC Adjustable length linked V-belt (Make sure you check size and length needed) amzn.to/49Dg8A3
Thanks for the tips and advice. It never hurts to take care of your your tools. Don't worry about the "outtakes". They add to the fun! 😁😁👍👍👏👏🏴🏴
I attended a show recently and asked an expert why my banjo was sticking and he advised me to do exactly what you have done using WD40 and a scotch brite pad. Liberal use of an air hose also helped. Thank you for sharing 🌞
Excellent video. I've done most of these maintenance items but now I know about some of them that I had missed. They will be addressed very soon. The tips on the belt sander for smoothing out the tool rest is great, and it is a lot faster than a file (I know from experience). I will be picking up several of the supplies you recommended to tune up my lathe.
I have 2 tool rests, a cast iron that came with the lathe (real beat up, I use it for bringing big pieces to round) and a robust tool rest with a hardened steel top. Robust one got a few nicks too, I think I may need to get it flat too now, there is a spot on it that catches the gouge when I shear scrape.
Thanks so much for sharing your knowledge, and for the really useful tips. It's surprising the number of people who DON'T maintain their machines (and hand tools!) and then they wonder why things go wrong. That's a lovely lathe you have there; it looks like a really stable and enjoyable machine to use. I enjoyed this video very much. Greetings from France.
January 1, I promise! I didn't say which year. :P I do appreciate a smooth machine. Usually mineral oil & beeswax are my lubes. The Laguna hardened rest is a nice upgrade from my Rikon, but not perfect. I had done maintenance a month ago, but some Fir and nasty Hickory left that grit on my bed, even a bit after dusting it off. Scratching all night long when that banjo slides across it. Thanks for the taper reminder, I often forget it. Good outtakes, too.
I would love to get into woodturning, but i just don't have the space. I'm considering buying a mini metal lathe and just doing some small stuff like pens or wooden rings on there.
Extremely helpful! How often do you do a full cleaning, as opposed to wiping down the bed after turning green wood or just basic vacuuming of chips and dust after each turning. Thanks again!
Full cleaning every six months unless I feel it needs it sooner. I wax the bed, banjo, and clean up rest after every piece I make. I can usually only make 1 piece a month. It really just depends how much the machine gets used. Thanks for watching, hope you have a great day!
Hmmm. That seems like an adjustment issue of the lock plate to me but I’m glad you got it figured out and found what works best for you. I wax the rod in the banjo regularly and have never had an issue with it not locking. Regardless, thanks you for watching andI hope you have a great day Scott
Thanks for the video. I picked up a General 160(Canadian built) this summer without an owner’s manual and I was not looking forward to removing the headstock to remove the old stiff belts. The link belts seem to be the answer! Did your manual give any length for the reeves drive belts?
Lower belt is 41” upper belt is 44”. I know you can buy the linked belts in pretty long sections. It may be cheaper to just buy one really long one than two smaller ones. Worth looking into. Side note about those belts. I would not say it’s easy to get them to fit together initially. Definitely requires a little patience and possible swearing to convince them into position. Thanks for watching. Hope you have a great day! Scott
Well done. On an older lathe one might also want to give the motor a visual inspection. Oil/grease fittings? Cracked insulation on wires? Ground wire intact? Loose connections? Thanks!
Great tips! I actually had something similar in the notes, but I decided against advising anyone to poke around electric components. Didn’t seem like a smart move on my part even tho I think you are right. Thanks for watching. I hope you have a great day! Scott
I'm not sure if it's a good idea to use abrasives on the machine-bed and the contacting surfaces. Especially with such smooth grinding blocks you would easily round over all faces and sharp edges. If you have nicks in your bed, possibly some new flat and square whetstone would be a better choice ? For cleaning and rust removing I would use some mild steel steelwool.
Woodturning is an incredibly fun and rewarding hobby. Proper lathe maintenance is probably one of the most overlooked aspects of woodturning. Regular maintenance will not only increase the lifespan of your lathe, but will make it safer and more enjoyable to use, while likely improving the quality of your finished pieces. It can be easy to overlook, but is vital to a successful woodturning experience. Thanks for watching! I hope you have a great day!
Scott
Product links
(Affiliate links are used when possible and I may receive a small commission.)
Rubber sanding block for cast iron surfaces-3 pack
amzn.to/3ZyQvf0
Maroon scotch bright pads
amzn.to/4iFS6bK
Paste wax
amzn.to/49HeWLZ
Garage door spray lube
amzn.to/3DsEiB2
Wire brushes
amzn.to/49InaTV
Belt sander for tool rest
amzn.to/3DfhHYC
Adjustable length linked V-belt
(Make sure you check size and length needed)
amzn.to/49Dg8A3
Absolutely!! You need to post this video yearly, my friend. Such an important and often overlooked topic. Well done, you!
Well done Scott, we all need to pay more attention! Love the bloopers! Stay safe.
Love the flubs- shows you’re human. Funny too. Thanks
Excellent advice. I have to address the bed more often because of humidity in my shop. Floor wax works great.
Thanks Tim. I imagine the humidity would be a pain to deal with. As always, thanks for watching and I hope you have a great day!
Thanks for the tips and advice. It never hurts to take care of your your tools. Don't worry about the "outtakes". They add to the fun! 😁😁👍👍👏👏🏴🏴
I attended a show recently and asked an expert why my banjo was sticking and he advised me to do exactly what you have done using WD40 and a scotch brite pad. Liberal use of an air hose also helped. Thank you for sharing 🌞
Great tips! Loved the outakes at the end.
Excellent video. I've done most of these maintenance items but now I know about some of them that I had missed. They will be addressed very soon. The tips on the belt sander for smoothing out the tool rest is great, and it is a lot faster than a file (I know from experience). I will be picking up several of the supplies you recommended to tune up my lathe.
Awesome! I'm glad I could share some tips! Hope you have a great day!
Scott
yessss the beard is back!!!
Thanks! From another General 160-2 owner. Got to keep the beast in good shape.
That is a great video with some excellent tool Maintenace tips and how too. Thanks you for sharing .
I appreciate it. Glad you found it helpful. Hope you have a great day!
Scott
I really like it. Very good addition to your channel.
I don’t even own a wood turning tool and I still loved this video! Well done mate 😊
Great job. Thank you 😊
I have this same machine. This is great information. Thanks for posting.
Glad you found it helpful!
I have 2 tool rests, a cast iron that came with the lathe (real beat up, I use it for bringing big pieces to round) and a robust tool rest with a hardened steel top. Robust one got a few nicks too, I think I may need to get it flat too now, there is a spot on it that catches the gouge when I shear scrape.
Thanks so much for sharing your knowledge, and for the really useful tips. It's surprising the number of people who DON'T maintain their machines (and hand tools!) and then they wonder why things go wrong. That's a lovely lathe you have there; it looks like a really stable and enjoyable machine to use. I enjoyed this video very much.
Greetings from France.
Thanks for watching! I hope you have a great day!
Thanks so much for this informative video. I’m fairly new at turning and I appreciate this info.
Glad to be of help, thanks for watching!
January 1, I promise! I didn't say which year. :P
I do appreciate a smooth machine. Usually mineral oil & beeswax are my lubes. The Laguna hardened rest is a nice upgrade from my Rikon, but not perfect.
I had done maintenance a month ago, but some Fir and nasty Hickory left that grit on my bed, even a bit after dusting it off. Scratching all night long when that banjo slides across it. Thanks for the taper reminder, I often forget it. Good outtakes, too.
Glad you found it useful. I appreciate the feedback! Hope you have a great day!
Scott
Great tips! Thanks.
I would love to get into woodturning, but i just don't have the space. I'm considering buying a mini metal lathe and just doing some small stuff like pens or wooden rings on there.
Good video, thanks
Extremely helpful! How often do you do a full cleaning, as opposed to wiping down the bed after turning green wood or just basic vacuuming of chips and dust after each turning. Thanks again!
Full cleaning every six months unless I feel it needs it sooner. I wax the bed, banjo, and clean up rest after every piece I make. I can usually only make 1 piece a month. It really just depends how much the machine gets used. Thanks for watching, hope you have a great day!
I would not oil the rod in the banjo. I did this years ago and could not get the banjo to lock until I cleaned the wax off with Denatured alchohol
Hmmm. That seems like an adjustment issue of the lock plate to me but I’m glad you got it figured out and found what works best for you. I wax the rod in the banjo regularly and have never had an issue with it not locking. Regardless, thanks you for watching andI hope you have a great day
Scott
Thanks for the video. I picked up a General 160(Canadian built) this summer without an owner’s manual and I was not looking forward to removing the headstock to remove the old stiff belts. The link belts seem to be the answer! Did your manual give any length for the reeves drive belts?
Lower belt is 41” upper belt is 44”. I know you can buy the linked belts in pretty long sections. It may be cheaper to just buy one really long one than two smaller ones. Worth looking into. Side note about those belts. I would not say it’s easy to get them to fit together initially. Definitely requires a little patience and possible swearing to convince them into position. Thanks for watching. Hope you have a great day!
Scott
Thanks
Well done. On an older lathe one might also want to give the motor a visual inspection. Oil/grease fittings? Cracked insulation on wires? Ground wire intact? Loose connections? Thanks!
Great tips! I actually had something similar in the notes, but I decided against advising anyone to poke around electric components. Didn’t seem like a smart move on my part even tho I think you are right. Thanks for watching. I hope you have a great day!
Scott
I'm not sure if it's a good idea to use abrasives on the machine-bed and the contacting surfaces. Especially with such smooth grinding blocks you would easily round over all faces and sharp edges. If you have nicks in your bed, possibly some new flat and square whetstone would be a better choice ? For cleaning and rust removing I would use some mild steel steelwool.
Move the banjo while the lathe is on? Me?? Never! Great video!
Fine job and a good joke!
Ich verstehe nicht, wieso immer wieder Beiträge in englischer Sprache mit einem deutschen Titel eingestellt werden... 👎
Great information and demonstration…….