Some Simple But Beautiful Woodworking Projects
A lathe is a great piece of machinery for the woodworker who wants beautiful results but has limited space to work in. With a little practice, you can make showpiece furniture with your lathe.
Wood bar stools are a perfect starter project. You can start by turning simple tapered legs and stretchers and gradually work your way up to more complicated turnings. You can even turn the bar stool seat on your lathe.
You can easily make tapered legs just by offsetting the bottom of the leg. It may be a little disturbing at first, because it will wobble, but if you approach it with care, it won't be a problem. You do, however, have to be careful about how you set your chisel rest and how deeply you make your first cuts. Approach the wood slowly and just nibble rather than gouge.
By the time you have finished your first set of four wooden bar stools, you will have made sixteen legs and will already be proficient at turning them. If you like, you can put them back on the lathe and add some custom touches.
Before you take your legs off the lathe, you will need to turn the top of the legs to an exact diameter for installing into the seat. You will need to set your calipers to the diameter you want and check regularly as you turn. As soon as the calipers can slip over the wood, stop turning. If you need to trim a little off later, after you have bored the holes in the seat, you can easily do so. It's not so easy, however, to add wood to your turning!
Now turn your stretchers. You can make them cylindrical, but they look much nicer if they are tapered at the ends. Put your calipers to good use here and check the diameters of the ends against each other. Then the stretchers will all look uniform.
The hardest part of making these bar stools is putting them together. The legs are not going to be straight, so you will have to drill the holes for the legs and the stretchers at an angle. You can determine the angle best if you make a drawing first. Then, make a jig for your drill press. Make a few practice holes first, so you don't ruin your stool seats.
As with anything, the secret to woodworking is practice. Set yourself modest goals at first and then tackle the more advanced projects. Before you know it, you will be making modern bar stools to rival the best!



