Thread: Lathes

One thing to keep in mind is not just the "allergen" nature of wood dust but also its "particulate" aspect. Any particles breathed in must then be expelled through coughing; some particles are much harder to expel than others. My grandfather hand-cut leather for work gloves, welding aprons, and other protective clothing for decades. He also smoked like a maniac since he was 13 - up to 4 packs a day before he quit when he was 70. A couple years later he died of lung cancer, but it did not appear to be caused by smoking. He had a form of cancer very similar to the type caused by asbestos - the tiny leather fibers kicked up from cutting "hooked" into his lung tissue and could not be expelled, apperantly causing cancer in a manner similar to asbestos fibers. I do not know enough about different species of wood to comment on specific toxicities, but I would imagine that if it is a species with silica in it, it would be of concern.

If you search this site for "toxicity of wood", you will find a post about it. There are also several good results if you do a search on the net for "toxicity of wood". The more I read, the more careful I resolve to be in my work. Personally, I know I'm alergic to Western Red Cedar - I just checked, and it is listed as causing Asthma-type reactions, which is exactly what I get.

I found some years back that I now have allergy problems with most of the pine and cedar woods. I am no longer able to help friends do remodeling or construction. I loved\ to lathe turn items but can no longer use the woods that I would wish to. I have traded off my wood lathe and duplicator.
~Richard

At the risk of further derailing this thread, I decided to treat this as a learning opportunity and invested in a North 7700 respirator. I'm glad I did. It's dramatically more comfortable than those disposable paper masks so I'm less likely to rationalize my way out of using it.

Originally Posted by Ecl

At the risk of further derailing this thread, I decided to treat this as a learning opportunity and invested in a North 7700 respirator. I'm glad I did. It's dramatically more comfortable than those disposable paper masks so I'm less likely to rationalize my way out of using it.

Good for you,use it,have been a turner for 50 yrs.Have never worn a mask,wish I would have.

Craigslist! There are usually nice lathes for cheap near you. If you are mostly doing small turning like brushes and whatnot, I'd recommend a smaller "midi" or mini lathe, they are more compact and cheaper. Most can be mounted on a benchtop. Good luck! Make sure you check and make sure everything works, you never know what you might run into on CL.

-Alex