Popular Woodworking 2004-10 № 143, страница 46

At the Lathe

(such as ebony) or plasticized wood you may need to go to a finer grit to eliminate sanding marks. I use a hard wax, applied and buffed on the lathe, to finish my bottle stoppers.

Remove the stopper from the chuck, glue the cork (available at Craft Supplies 800-5518876 or woodturnerscatalog.com) onto the dowel using yellow woodworkers glue, and trim and sand the end of the dowel and cork.

Now make more - 50 is a good start. Then you'll be warming up and you'll start seeing design differences you can't see when you've made 20. After 100, you'll see things that weren't apparent yet at 50 ... have fun. PW

Burn the details.

Sand and finish.

Now glue on the cork and trim the cork.

44 Popular Woodworking October 2004

THE 9 RULES OF SAFE TURNING

Begin by familiarizing yourself with your equipment. Read and understand the instructions that came with any machine you use. In addition, the following procedures and habits will increase your safety. These rules and procedures are very important. Be sure you understand them and refer to them often. Accidents happen not only when we don't know the safe way to do something, but when we forget or neglect to actually do it that way. This list is not necessarily all-inclusive; I have seen people do dangerous things I had never even imagined. But if you will learn and follow these rules and procedures, it will go a long way toward keeping you safe.

Material, Equipment and Tools

RULE #1: Choose appropriate material. Any wood you're going to put on a lathe should be, as best you can determine, free of defects that will affect its physical integrity. At high rotation speeds any cracks, inclusions, rotted areas or other defects can cause the wood to break apart. This happens most often when the wood near the defect encounters the tool, but failure can also result just from the centrifugal force of the rotation itself. You can't always see such defects in the wood (hence rule #6), but if you know they are there, it's best not to put the piece on the lathe in the first place.

RULE #2: The workpiece must be held securely on the lathe. Even if the workpiece loosens only a bit, but doesn't actually come off the machine, it will become increasingly difficult to cut cleanly.

RULE #3: The lathe's speed (and the lathe itself) must be appropriate for the size, weight and orientation of the workpiece. If the wood is too heavy or too large for the lathe the machine may shake and even move

You should no more be willing to turn without a face shield than to drive down the highway without a windshield. Find a face shield (or a dust helmet with a face shield) that is comfortable.

across the floor or bench; the piece could even come off the machine. Even short of such obvious disasters, if the lathe is not large or sturdy enough for the intended work, excessive vibration will make it hard to cut cleanly.

RULE #4: Always use sharp tools. Dull tools will not cut well, and you'll use too much force trying to make them cut. If the dull tool slips, this excessive force may push the tool or your hands into the rotating workpiece, creating a dangerous situation.

Procedures and Habits

RULE #5: Before you turn on the lathe, always make sure that the toolrest is in position and firmly locked. If it's loose, it can move during use, which may result in injury. Rotate the workpiece by hand through a full rotation to ensure that no part of the rotating piece will hit any part of the lathe. Keep the toolrest close to the workpiece, and always stop the lathe before moving the toolrest. Too much distance between the toolrest and the wood puts greatly increased forces on the tool; you may lose control. Initially, as you round the piece, you may need to move the toolrest often. If you do this while the lathe is running, the tool, the toolrest or your hand may be pushed into the rotating workpiece.

RULE #6: Always wear a full face shield. The workpiece can come off the lathe (this is rare if reasonable caution is used in mounting it); the tool itself can break (very rare, but it can happen. Please don't ask me how I know this...). Most importantly, because it will surely happen sooner or later, a piece of wood may break off of the workpiece and come at you. Safety glasses alone don't adequately protect your face. You can find face shields from major turning suppliers. Shown is the Trend Airshield (859-485-2080 or trend-usa.com or airwareamerica.com).

RULE #7: Use respiratory protection. A good dust mask, respirator or dust helmet will protect you from the significant damage that repeated exposure to wood dust can do to your lungs.

RULE #8: Don't work at the lathe if you are impaired in any way (tired, distracted or medicated). Your judgment is the first thing to go, and judgment generates the little voice that tells you you are about to do something unsafe.

RULE #9: Think: first, last and always.