Poppers are a good place to start. You can actually do them by using dowels for the wood and a pocket knife if you need. Definitely easier with tools though
Have not used the grizzly drill lathe that you mentioned. I really don't think it will do the job well, at least not for a bunch of plugs. If you are serious about starting, you might see if someone lives close to you would show you a few things and let you try a few plugs using their tools. Alternatively, you can get kits from njtackle.com. Seal, prime, paint, clear coat, assemble and fish. Cheap way to get started and see if you are into it before you sink some $$ into tools and stuff. Next time you are on the grizzly page, take a look at the 8690 mini-lathe. A number of us started with that one, or one similar to that.
Jigman
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