5. Chuck for Iron, viz., face-plate with centre-point, and two dogs to take iron from 1 inch diameter down to quarter-inch. These should have pear-shaped openings, not round; any blacksmith can make them, but somehow they do such work generally in a clumsy fashion; and they cost but 35 to 75 cents, according to size, beautifully made with turned screws.
Now as to tools. Their name is legion—tools for iron, brass, ivory, hard and soft wood; and many an odd shilling will be well laid out from time to time in adding to the stock. Happily those most needed are not costly—about $3 a dozen without handles, which latter may be had at 10 cents each and upwards, according to the material and finish, all with iron or brass ferules, so necessary to prevent splitting. You may buy your first few simple tools handled, but after you have these you can turn as many handles as you like, and you can buy ferules of all sizes at any regular tool-shop.
I may as well tell you that in a great many country towns you will be unable to obtain turning tools except gouges and chisels, so that when you buy your lathe in London, as you will find the best plan (or in Manchester, Birmingham, or other manufacturing town, if nearer to you), you must lay in a little stock of tools at the same time, and take future opportunities of getting more. In regular tool-shops you will have them laid before you by dozens of every conceivable shape and size, so that your great difficulty would be what to pick out if it were not for some such directions as I am now about to give you.
First, you will want gouges and chisels. Begin with two sizes of each—one of half an inch, the other of 1 inch in width. These are to be mounted in long handles.
Now, with these alone you can do all the plain work in soft wood which does not require to be hollowed out, tool-handles, chair-legs, legs of towel-horses, round rulers, and all sorts of things, and to a certain extent you can turn out the insides of wooden chucks, bowls, and boxes, but not very easily with these alone. Hence you must add some of those shown in Fig. 42. These I shall endeavour to assort as follows:—
A to F are for hollowing out hard woods; G and H are hook-tools (very difficult to use) for hollowing out soft wood boxes and bowls.
Fig. 42.