1. WOOD
MATERIALS TECHNOLOGY
4th Edition

2. Chapter 25
Woodturning

3. Woodturning lathe

4. Drive mechanism
 Pulleys inside the lathe
 Drive speed
For safety, only your teacher should adjust the speed
For safety, only your teacher should adjust the speed
of the lathe – if in doubt, ask
of the lathe – if in doubt, ask

5. There are 2 types of turning:
 Turning between centres:
 Face plate turning
 These use the centres
shown above. This is also
known as spindle turning.
 Used for turning wide
hollowed out objects like
bowls etc.

6. Centres
Drive centre
Live centre
Hollow centre
 Centres support the work
while turning
 The drive centre grips the
end of the piece and it turns
the wood with the speed of
the motor.
 The hollow centre is used
when boring a hole through
the middle of the piece.

7. Tool rest
 Banjo & tool rest
 The tool rest is adjusted
when bowl turning

8. Chuck and faceplates
 Chuck
 Faceplates

9. Woodturning tools

10. Gouges
 There are different gouges
− Roughing out gouge
− For roughing down in
the early stages
− Spindle gouges
− Smaller and more
precise than rough
gouge
− For finer work and
concave pieces.

11. Gouges
 Gouges are used to make
coves
 They are also used when
turning bowls and dishes

12. Skew chisel
 Skew chisel with edge
swept back
 Used forBeads and
‘V’grooves

13. Parting tool
 Used to cut beads and make
incisive straight cuts into a piece.

14. Taking measurements
 Callipers are used to
– measure the round sections
of turned wood
– transfer measurements from
a drawing

15. Safety
 Wear full face protection
 Tie up long hair and secure
loose clothing
 Remove jewellery
 Always get permission
 Secure work on the lathe and
get it checked
 Rotate the piece by hand
before turning on the lathe
 Switch off the lathe before
making adjustments

16. Preparing to turn – spindle turning
 Join the diagonals to find the centres
at each end of the piece
 Draw a circle in the square
 Plane down the corners
 Small saw kerfs can be cut into the
ends for added grip
 Insert the drive centre
 Insert the piece into the lathe at both
centres, lining the centres up
carefully

17. Lock the tailstock in position
Turn the handwheel to push the tailstock
centre into the work
Position tool rest as close to the work as
possible, setting in at centre height
Spin the work by hand to make sure it
does not catch on the tool rest

18. Profiles
 Profiles show the
outline of a turned
piece
 Profile templates
assist in making
copies of the same
profile

19. Boring holes on the lathe
Hollow centre put in tail stock

20. Drilling a hole
 Long hole boring kit
− The piece is secured with a
hollow centre in the
tailstock
− Hole bored through the
hollow centre half way
− Remove auger often to
clear shavings
− Reverse piece and repeat
the process

21. Boring holes on the lathe

22. Drilling a hole – alternative
 Groove two pieces in the centre using a router
 Glue the two pieces together to form the blank

23. Preparing to turn – Bowl/faceplate turning
 Join the diagonals to find the
centre of the piece
 Draw a circle in the square
 Remove the corners using a
saw
 Locate the faceplate onto
the centre of the blank and
secure
 Faceplate is screwed onto
the spindle of the lathe
 Adjust tool rest and check
the piece rotates freely

24. Joints
 Spigot and socket joints
are used to join two
turned pieces
 A hole is drilled into one
piece
 The spigot is turned on
the other piece to match
the hole
 Outside callipers used to
measure this

25. TIMBER SUITABLE FOR
TURNING
BEECH: Fine texture, pinkish buff
CHESTNUT: High quality work resembling oak
ELM: Light brown in heartwood, yellowish white
in softwood. Suitable for bowl turning, not to be
used with carbon steel blades
SYCAMORE: Whitish with a close-fleck grain.
Used for dairy and kitchen implements such as
churns, rolling pins and bowls

26. TIMBER SUITABLE FOR
TURNING
WALNUT: Pale buff to dark brown
SCOTS PINE: Matures to rich honey.
Ideal for practice
ASH: Pale grey tinged with pink;
heartwood light brown. Coarse texture but
turns very well for handles of tools, farm,
gardening and sporting equipment

27. Wood turning speeds
Diameter of piece
Turning speeds at RPM
(General cutting speeds)
0-50mm
3000 rpm
50-100 mm
1500 rpm
100-150 mm
1000 rpm

28. Quiz

29. 2007 hl

30. 2011 hl

31. 2008 hl

32.  Name the parts of the lathe
Headstock
Tailstock

33.  Name the parts of the lathe
Drive centre
Tool rest
Bed
On/off buttons

34.  State some safety precautions to be followed when using
the lathe
–
–
–
–
–
–
Wear full face protection
Tie up long hair and secure loose clothing
Remove jewellery
Always get permission
Secure work on the lathe and get it checked
Rotate the piece by hand before turning on
the lathe
– Switch off the lathe before making
adjustments

35.  Name two woodturning tools
− Woodturning gouge
− Skew chisel

36.  Name two woods suitable for turning. Why are they
suitable?
 Beech
− An attractive hardwood
− Close grained wood
− Free from defects
− Finishes well
 Scots pine
– It is easy to work
– Finishes well
– Has an attractive grain
pattern

37.  With the aid of notes and neat freehand sketches describe a
method that could be used to make another leg identical to
the one shown.
− Profile templates are used to make
identical copies of turned pieces