Before I used a lathe for woodturning, I always looked at the machine and process with a sense of wonder. Watching a woodturner at a craft fair, with a part spinning at full speed and chips flying, filled me with a sense of romance.

When I finally used one, I was not disappointed. My first pieces weren’t works of art. But they were perfectly round, and this little tase of lathe work whetted my appetite for more. What is a Lathe?

Similar to a potter’s wheel in ceramics, the lathe spins a wooden part on a central axis, creating cylindrical objects. And like a potter’s wheel, it’s an ancient tool; turned wooden parts trace back to the sixth century B.C.

Sharp chisels supported by the lathe tool rest are integral to the operation of a lathe. No machine can create bowls or spindles like a lathe.