I Tried the Cheapest Lathe on the Internet
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- Опубліковано 3 чер 2024
- I wanted to pick up a mini lathe for turning small things like drawer pulls and box handles. After seeing some incredibly cheap wood lathes pop up when researching online, I took on the challenge of finding the cheapest one and testing it! Ultimately, I found this wood lathe from China. A ton of sellers offer it on lots of websites so I have no clue who actually manufacturers it. While the lathe says it’s for beads, many listings and pictures show it used to turn other small projects.
I have no turning experience, which is obvious in the video. The video isn’t about my turning ability; I know there are online resources and videos I can watch. I wanted this video to be about the lathe itself. I figured that if I could figure out a way to use it to make something nice then anyone can.
--⏱️Timestamps⏱️--
0:00 Intro
0:33 Unboxing the Lathe
1:59 How to use the Mini Lathe
3:53 Adjustable Box Joint Jig
3:54 Testing the Mini Wood Lathe
8:09 Disaster!
8:59 Turning with a Mini Lathe
•• About NewtonMakes••
I’m Billy and I make fun things. Sometimes, it’s something I need like tool storage ideas. Other times it’s silly or nerdy stuff that I want to build. If you want to get ideas for making stuff, or just want to watch something entertaining then make sure you subscribe.
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Here’s a list of tools and materials that I used to make this project. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
•• Tools & Materials ••
My Amazon Store: www.amazon.com/shop/newtonmakes
Mini Wood Lathe: amzn.to/40P4LQa
Super Cheap Lathe: www.aliexpress.us/item/325680...
Turning Tools: amzn.to/3KHX74y - Навчання та стиль
If it turns square things into round things, it's doing what it's designed for. 👍
🤣🤣🤣
I bought one very similar to this on eBay about 5 years ago for $99. I bought a pen mandrel separately and have made hundreds of pens with the lathe. It is a workhorse! It is one of the best purchases I've ever made. It didn't come with any instructions, but like you, I figured it out. Thanks for the video!
Hi, what make of pen mandrel did you use?
@@crawfordrobertson4995 I think I bought it on eBay, I don't recall if it had a brand name.
Something that seems counter-intutive when it comes to wood turning: The softer the wood (like the poplar), the more difficult it is to turn. You will tend to get catches and tear-out a lot.
Thanks for the tip! I tried using one of these with bass wood and it kept catching !
that device is doing more than what its supposed to do for the price of it . Amazing
Mate, you are a legend. Your first try, you make an egg cup, and your 3rd go, you make the best-looking toothpick in the world.
So the Mrs. got me one of these as a joke a few months ago. The square shield bit with the slot in the top is for the saw blade attachment I think. I actually had a few of those small blades and they kind of work ok if you're brave enough to risk losing a finger. The weird noise is coming from the tail stock (the cone that you slide to hold the piece in place). Most tail stocks have a live center with bearings so the cone, point, whatever spins with the piece. As you can see, this does not have any bearings. Mine came with the same tool kit. I might hang on to one of them and use as a marking tool. The others are not useful in turning applications. Starting with carbide tools is a good way to learn the basics. This is fun to play with but it is scary at higher speeds. Thanks for sharing.
Working on a proper lathe with proper tools is a lot of fun👍👍
That’s amazing for $30. And for someone who never turned before, I’m shocked. Wondering if you extended the track and lifted it higher if it would turn larger stock. Maybe a follow up on a modified version??? 🤔💭
The excitement you showed for the thing, top notch! Hopefully one day I can make a thing...
#bucketlistproject
That was fun to watch. I bought a bench top mini lathe a couple of months ago to make pens and pencils with. IT cost about $500. So far it's be good. I've been enjoying making pen for friends and family. Once I got it setup correctly, It has been easy to use and an easy skill to pick up. Keep turning and stay awesome.
I got one for Christmas 2 years ago but have never had the guts to give it a go because of the quality of the tools. But I think I'll give it a go now. 😂
I've got one of these, and all I can say is that your experience was a lot better than mine.
Kind of shows how primitive a lathe really is. A motor, chuck & tail spike?
Idk if anyone's seen a pole lathe, It's quite impressive to be honest.
Great video !!!!! I have been looking for a lathe to make fishing lures with. This looks perfect thanks
Wow, congratulations; you did a great job, specially being your first time! Based on the results I would say the machine is good enough. The wood coming off the lathe may be because of: big hole (I noticed you drilled a big one), incorrect speed, or lack of pressure (with the vibration the stop tends to moves away).
These cheap machines usually have "their things", meaning parts that may break or fail. But in general nothing that cannot be worked around / fixed.
As N experienced turner I would recommend PennState turning tools for specific tools for pen turners. When I turn something very small I use their 3 piece carbide kit. You did very well for a first timer.
I have the same tool. I have only used it a couple of times and it hasn't blown up on me yet and I paid like $25 bucks for it several years ago, so I'm calling it a win. I actually just clamped the machine itself down to my bench, your jig looks like it would be easier to use. I feel like I got what I paid for. I had low expectations and was delivered a low quality, but functional, product.
Fantastic work, Billy! 😃
Yeah, those little things can be scary at times... But they can definitely be useful!
Anyway, stay safe there with your family! 🖖😊
I'm not giving up on it yet because I can absolutely see value in having it!
Use the lower speed setting for larger diameters, use the higher speed setting for smaller diameters. That weird noise was the motor bogging down because you were making to aggressive of a cut. Another weird noise can be the interrupted cuts happening when going from a non-circular shape to a circular shape. Fantastic job for a $30 Chinese lathe though lol.
This is so crazy! I have wanted to mess around with trying a lathe to make small drawer pulls or rings. But don't have the space to have a full size lathe or even a desktop size lathe currently, especially since I don't have any particular uses yet, just wanting to learn and get feet wet
Very interesting tool. You are a brave professional. Wondering idea to hold it steady. Thank you for sharing. Everyone stay safe, warm, happy ☺️ and healthy. From Henrico County Virginia
Ohhhhhhh now I also want to get involved in revolving haha thanks, nice video
Thanks...love em
For the price thats pretty cool im getting extruded aluminum to build a roof rack and i was thinking about using any excess to make myself a mini lathe for yet another random hobby ill try for a few days and never touch again so this is a cool video to show it can be done
I picked one of these up a couple years ago on sale for $25. I use a tac hammer to tap the point into the end. The tools it came with broke after 2 uses, so I spent $13 at harbour freight for a set of gouges. Oh, and when I got the lathe, I could t even plug it in. It came with a European plug.
Just a heads up, the one linked on AliExpress isn't actually $10, thats the price of the blades that are sold separately. 😊 I think ill give that one on Amazon a good looking at tho! Tysm for doing this video for us!! 🥰
Oh and sry! I meant to say that the lathes at the link in AliExpress were about $60 but they do look a bit more heavy duty than the one in the video, so maybe 🤷😁
THANK you. I'm a little bit drunk and was about to order it, and I'm glad you said that.
@@ridercoachdanielle3220 happy to help! Been there myself! 😅
Hilarious! 😂 Really fun to watch! I had no idea such products existed, but I’m thinking about getting one too even though I’ve never used a lathe either. Thanks!
Don’t buy one of those. If you want a cheap lathe go to Harbor Freight, they have a couple that would work. You would quickly love to hate that thing. Put your money into a proper one.
@@brianboot8623
Are you kidding me? I’ve spent way more money than that going to bad movies. I thoroughly enjoyed this video and laughed all the way through it. I think that thing would be big fun!
Good Stuff , you did great. I'm sure you're a natural.
I've been a person for a long time so I must qualify as a professional person 🤣 Legit one of the funniest things I've heard in a while LMAO
It looks like it's an excellent piece of kit for scale-model work and the like, easy to store and won't break the bank. I've skipped on buying one before but this vid turned me around. i would hesitate to use the supplied tools though, i have a identical set bought loose for clay modelling and those metal bits are not very securely fastened.. Also. use protective glasses ;)
Not real sure about that thing, Billy. That screw wood holder looks like it came from a Dremel. I have a piece like that to hold buffing pads.
Bill
That's what I'm thinking too. I should upgrade it.
Plane the corners off the square wood first, Use the "Hex" rod as a driver in the chuck (6 into 3 goes!!) Cut off a Bigger piece of Allen Key for a more Positive Driver!! That small Hex rod will just make a round hole when "Tool" pressure is applied!!
Hysterical love it. 😂
Totally makes me think of an Easy Bake Oven for reckless teens who might not mind loosing an eye. 😉
Actually it’s pretty cool for $10. Great video bud. 👍🏻
Bahahaha, this was hilarious. Way too many other commenters taking this too seriously. Thanks for making the purchase and sharing as I'm sure many of us have seen these on Amazon/Aliexpress and had a "...but maybe this could be awesome" moment.
I'm getting one! I'll spend a little more but no matter , it looks fun!
I like your style!
funny test, great idea
A Wen lathe would seem like a Rolls Royce after a month or so with that. Fun video. Great channel
I'm impressed with your courage -- not wearing any kind of face/eye protection.
I have one as well as my full scale lathe lol I use the mini just do a small test run design or to practise on before I go full size or try on me full scale
Thanks for the idea; I could use a Dremel tool for the motor...
From your camera angle, it seems like your carbide scrapers are cutting slightly below center. This lathe is so small it probably wont hurt you. But on a bigger lathe, cutting below center could be dangerous.
This little lathe with some mods could be a good tool to make drawer pull knobs to chess piece size things. The biggest down side I can see is the lack of work holding options, e.g. proper chuck, spur drive, or screw drive, and adjustable tool rest without reaching your hand below the spinning work piece. Probably a good practice to turn it off before adjusting tool rest.
This microlathe, despite its features, or rather, the lack thereof, can definitely be used for small wood turning projects. Just needs to be modified to be more solid, more stable and have better workholding.
That being said, ‘small’ is literally limited by motor horsepower and what the lathe head spindle
bearings can handle in terms of lateral force. One issue here with this particular style is that the motor bearings are also the lathe spindle bearings. Separating the two with a decent belt n pulley setup and using a proper spindle head assembly is the way to go.
I actually have a different variety of micro lathe, and it’s the modular kit that can be rearranged to make a miniature of various woodworking power tools for small scale work. It does have accommodations for soft metal turning, but the construction of the pseudo saddle and carriage leave a lot to be desired (plastic lead screws ewww) which I plan to do when I have ‘actually free’ free time.
I also acquired a tabletop metal lathe and milling machine (think woodworking router but much more heavy, solid, torque-y and definitely more expensive) and make useful metal parts with them. Can definitely turn wood, but I really don’t want to because oiled ways and the cleanup is more trouble than it’s worth. There’s also the issue of RPM being rather low for wood.
Though with these, a dedicated wood lathe can be made, or at the very least, vast improvements on a micro lathe like this. Solid spindle block, angular contact bearings on both ends, and proper wood workholding lathe chucks. As well as a better -harder faster stronger- wider tool saddle, and a variety of quality of life modifications.
I turn pens etc and see a real use for this. I think it might work well for finishing after something is turned. When finishing you have water, CA glue and waxes etc. So you have to cover the lathe bed and try to clean and protect your lathe. I suspect that the variable run time limits were changed every time someone complained that the motor burned out after 120, 90, 60, 30 minutes.
Just a suggestion, sharpen some old flathead screwdrivers for a more substantial mini lathe tool. Of course, actual lathe tools will probably work the best. I do primitive lathe work on a spring pole lathe. In the old Appalachian Foxfire books, I have seen where Oldtimers used screwdrivers and made their own lathe chisels, for spring pole lathes. I may get one of these. I've been wanting to make chess pieces. What he made looks like a chess piece.
All in all, it's addictive isn't it!!!
Can the chuck hold 1/2" if not can it be swapped?
stay on a slower speed for "rounding" will come into balance then you can up the speed-Tyler
Fun video but there is not a $10 option. The link you share is for just the blade accessories. When you click on one of the lathes, you see the $36 - 47 price. It is still a fun video and thanks!
You can make bespoke toothpicks or doll house table legs with that bad boy!
Very cool scary but cool for such a tiny lathe
You could totally make a pen with that! And so much cheaper than a PenPal lathe..
Sketchy tools but very nice work, good on ya Mate
Safety Glasses? Hilarious review but effective.
If you need more of those little screw things, you can get them for/with Dremels, not sure what they are used for there either
They're used for polishing. You attach the buffing pads to them.
@@KoolAidMick thanks, TIL
Been wanting to make a set of chess pieces, this may be a fun way to try and do that. Thanks!
Using ebony for the dark pieces would be perfect, but it’s doubtful that this machine and its tools could handle that species of wood.
@@stevebabiak6997 ah, good thought.
The extra housing is a table for a saw blade. Very scary.
At that price, I'm surprised it has a motor. I was mostly expecting it to be needed to attached to a hand drill.
this is amusing - hehe
Billy m8 that's wicked. Honest thoughts what u think of it?? Ave been thinking getting a lathe granted bit bigger than that but that's confirmed a want one. How easy was it to pick up though? Skills not the lathe!😅👍🏴
I feel like I did pretty good since I literally have no experience and didn't read or watch anything to teach me. I grabbed a sharp object and jumped right into it. You literally saw my first, second, and third time turning anything in my life. I know that if I can pick this up that quickly then anyone can.
@@NewtonMakes may have to give this a go then just need find a cheap lathe now think a would end up breaking that really little one but think I may have to give this a shot. 🏴👍🤔
For 30 bucks you have to buy the hamster to power it separately.
Hahahahaha!!!
I too have been a person for a bit, so am I too a 'professional person'?
Neat!
Do you think this would work well for making chess pieces, or is it too small?
and this video is sponsored by a life insurance company, that asked to stay anonymios
Stop telling people!
@@NewtonMakes LOL, I CANT TELL, allready got injuried
thanks
This looks like it would be good for chess pieces.
price shows $44-$60. the $10 is just some tools.
Howdy Mr. Newton.
As I read through some of the "haters", as it were"...
I'd like to point out something they are failing to understand.
What is the purpose of ANY tool. I mean, name it. Each one has a purpose.
Do I need a $200 drill from a name brand company in order to drive a screw? No. I don't.
So, if my purpose for the mini lathe is to make some simple drawer pulls or maybe some chess pieces, will that tool accomplish that job?
Yes, I think it would. Do I need a $500+ benchtop lathe for "that" purpose? No I do not.
So, get and use a tool of your desire to create the project you are wanting.
For $30 bucks, I'd say that tool did above and beyond what I thought it would do and I'd consider buying one.
Looks like potential chess pieces could be made.
Always check and turn off the power before you plug in the motor. You won’t have to change your pants later.
🤔🤔🤔
Well if nothing else; it’s a good (decent) place to practice your skills.
The 1st part almost looked like a chess piece. Future video, Chess board build!
Yes Billy need get on that.
I'll add it to the video project list.
I have a clamp I use on the front end of that thing. I have same one
Looks like something made to create Darwin Award Winners.
Hey not bad for 10 bucks!
You could use it to make a tiny Greek Urn. What's a tiny Greek Urn? About 4 Euros an hour.
PS I got one just to refine a few plane knobs, chisel handles etc Works fine for what it is but mine's screams like a Banshee.
Where can I buy this for 10 bucks?
Turning is an addiction for me, and it has you in its clutches hahahahahahahahaha (evil laugh)
My evil laugh goes something like, "Muhahaha!"
For 10 bucks, yeah, i guess if you want to sit and churn out chess pieces, yeah why not.
I would try to us a countersink instead of the of the little screw
Nice chess piece!
If it can make chess pieces for just 10$ (+ the home made safty clamp + the real knive + wood) is a real deal!
I know it's small, but you should still wear some eye protection...
I did.
That's what he said..... 😅
Looks like you can make a chess set with it.
!! £94 on Amazon UK today 27th April 2024!! that's a whopping $117.5 US an 1100% increase on your ten dollar purchase!!!
That might actually be 100% ideal for making chess peices.🤔
Looks kinda like a chess piece.
They make clamps.
They use them to hold things down that spin.
They are professional people.
Not bad for $10.
“I’m going to start off small.” Well, you ain’t going to turn a twenty inch bowl on that thing, that’s for sure. You have to start small, and finish small.
Objectively, the results of this tool when viewed in a vacuum are somewhat mediocre.
When you consider that it cost $10 this is absolutely a steal.
You don't want to see that, I don't want to see that. If you do that you'll probably not see it but feel it.
Interesting tool tho.
it's a doll house pillar
I've been thinking about getting one of these to make rings (currently using my drill press for this). This video has me sold.
Looks almost like a chest piece.
You could make chess pieces. 🐊
The experience of buying a seven thousand dollar lathe isn’t much different. More lifting and struggling but yeah… it’s a lathe.
They look like chess pieces
In hindsight it does!
Wny does the thumbnail say $10?
It's a Chess piece!!!!
i been looking at this
not $10 its $30