Personal Protective Equipment
Before doing any turning, it is extremely important to ensure proper protective equipment to minimize potential injuries. You will need something to protect your face and eyes from shavings, a mask to protect your lungs from small dust particles, possibly earmuffs to protect your ears from potentially loud noises when drilling, and gloves(this is highly debatable).
No matter what you are turning, a face shield or goggles are very important. This protects your eyes from wood shavings, and a face shield protects your face from shavings in your eyes, as well as a loose piece of wood. Many woodturners advise against wearing just glasses, as they do not protect your face from flying wood. However, in the face shield category, you can either purchase a full-frame face shield or a regular one. A full-frame face shield is necessary because it holds its shape when being struck by a piece of wood, and is overall much more sturdy.
A proper dust mask is of paramount importance because the inhalation of fine dust particles can cause disease and cancer in the long run. While disposable masks are an option, a washable mask or respirator is a better alternative because it is more sustainable. Reusable dust masks can be washed under water to remove dust particles, and respirators require you to simply change their filters once they become too clogged with dust. Do note that a mask is not necessary to wear during the entire turning process. Especially when turning green/wet wood, dust is not created, therefore, a mask is not necessary. It is most important when sanding, but I recommend you wear your mask when turning any dry wood as well, or even if your shop is just really dusty, it is a good idea to wear your mask.
I often find ear protection overlooked when discussing personal protective equipment. While I acknowledge that your auditory senses are important in turning because it can allow you to estimate wall thickness and bottom thickness when making bowls, some turning procedures generate loud noises, and over time, your hearing will worsen. I have found that when drilling deep holes with a Jacob’s chuck on the lathe, a high-frequency noise is emitted; this is what first prompted me to invest in ear muffs. Personally, I wear ear muffs most of the time I am turning, as I find it makes turning more peaceful.
Lastly, a highly debated topic in all of woodworking is the wearing of gloves for protection. Many woodworkers and power tool enthusiasts argue that wearing gloves is a danger, as a spinning mechanism, whether that be a lathe, router, drill, etc., can get caught on the thick fabric of a glove. The danger of this is that it could pull your hand and arm into the machine, or simply disslocate joints in your hands and fingers. For me, I wear gloves when doing only certain procedures in woodworking. A few years ago, I was making a large batch of twig vases and I was drilling the holes by hand as to save time, when the drill slipped, cutting my hand. In a situation like that, wearing a thick glove would have most definitely prevented the damage done. Another instance I find gloves useful is when turning the rough shape of a bowl from logs, as the roughing cuts produce thick and heavy shavings that hit the side of your hand, and gloves prevent the pain it causes. Some turners use fingerless gloves when doing roughing passes on large bowls for this reason; the purpose of the gloves being fingerless is to increase dexterity with the gouge as well as to prevent the finger fabric from being snagged on by the rough wood.
