Wood Turning Lathe

[Yorkie]

I guess you mean this type of thing Robin. They’re very limited in what you can do with them, and using a power drill as a motor makes it very noisy:


http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Drill-Powered-Woodturning-Lathe-605mm-5-faceplate-75mm-3-swing-christmas-gift-/271104438261?pt=UK_Home_Garden_PowerTools_SM&hash=item3f1f156ff5

You couldn't turn stair spindles on it as it's ony 23" between centres, and the 'swing over the bed' is just 3", so the maximum diameter you could turn would be 6 inches.

For not a great deal more you could get a half decent entry level budget lathe such as this one:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/SIP-01488-40-Inch-Wood-Lathe-Starter-Kit-240v-/200852240606?pt=UK_Home_Garden_PowerTools_SM&hash=item2ec3b9f8de

It has a common headstock mandrel thread - 3/4" x 16 TPI, which is fairly standard in the UK, so later on you could buy a chuck that would fit.

It had 4 speeds: 850, 1400, 2000 & 2510rpm, so would be good for turning larger diameter objects (larger the object, the slower the speed needs to be), or for turning spindle work, which needs higher speeds to get a good finish ‘off the tool’.
The distance between centres is 40 inches, so could accommodate stair spindles, which are typically 27 inches or so, or for smaller things such as pens.
For faceplate turning (bowls etc) it has a capacity of 14” (350mm), more than enough for most needs.
It has a 0.5HP motor, and twin bed bars.

I’m not recommending this lathe or supplier – it's just one of many similar entry level lathes, which - despite its limitations - would suffice for most things an occasional hobbyist would want to turn.