Using The Lathe

^^Marking out the material to be turned on the lathe. The corners had to be marked out and planed off, making it easier to turn the part.

^^The part ready to be turned on the lathe.

^^My first ever attempt at turning on the lathe. It took me a while to get the hang of the process.

^^My second attempt at turning, much easier the second time.

^^The two disks cut from the cylinder that I turned which will act as the ends of my handle.

This week I had been using the lathe for the first time and it wasn't easy to get a hang of. I need to use the lathe to make two disks that are to be used on the end of the hollow cylinder that I have been making.

The first time I used the lathe I was stupid enough to use the tools the wrong way round, which made sense why the material wasn't cutting. After I had worked this out I started cutting away at the material which took a little bit of time to tidy up all the chips in it which I made from using the tool upside down. This is when I decided this would be my practice piece.

When I had eventually got the hang of using the lathe it became a lot easier to use and I then had a cylinder which was of good quality. I then took to speed of the lathe down and put into reverse so that I could use sandpaper on the part to give a smoother finish.

After this practice piece I then went on to the final piece which my two disks were cut from.

An overall positive experience where I have learnt yet another process from making the model myself.