I have dabbled with wood turning over the years, although not so much lately.. The Hebrides Spinning wheel I worked up a few years ago..
I've never tried wood turning so it seems like dark arts to me. Wessa's work above I find gobsmacking. I think I'd have some transferrable skills if I had the chance to get a go. My screenprint background meant I used to do a lot of sheet metal stuff (printed instrument panels etc) so used to have a fair bit of useful, sometimes vintage, tools. The lathe was an indulgence as I had the space. On my Z1000 I replaced every nut and bolt with a stainless equiv, usually socket head. They were all hand finished on the lathe. Every. One
I reckon the skill you have in creating the nuts and bolts will be more than useful in turning wood. The key thing with wood is to start with the basic turning cuts, with the different tools. And then build up to turning more complex pieces. I started watching videos back in the day and then talking to other turners at craft fairs. Like many old crafts it is a shame that it is actually a dying art. Automatic computer contolled machines can be programmed to create exact bits
What wood is that spinning wheel turned out of @Wessa is it oak? Nice grain and colour. I agree totally with what you say about it being a dying art. Even most of the bagpipes being made nowadays are made on CNC lathes with, perhaps, a little hand finishing and they cost just as much as hand made pipes. My main sets of pipes were made to designs of my request by a master pipe maker in Ireland called Charles McGoldrick and cost me less than an average machine made set from one of the big makers would cost. This is a set he made for me from African blackwood in an antique 'Chalice' topped style with mounts made from an American acrylic called 'Green Goblin' and solid brass.
They look fantastic. That African Blackwood is very hard and difficult to turn, but does finish up really well. The spinny is yes English Oak .
Watched it last night and is well worth an hour of anyones time, especially if you're a biker. Enjoyed it Interested to see how his 70's chopper restoration turns out. When was last time Ogri got any TV air time??
I gather that blackwood is pretty good to work with once you get practiced at it and it's very predictable and very rarely tears out @Wessa I've never tried it myself but I have watched pipemakers turning it and it seems almost like metal or hard resin the way it handles. Biggest problem is the cost of the stuff now. Enough good wood blanks to make a set of pipes costs quite a few hundred pounds. Pipe makers tend to turn to dyed mopane as a much cheaper alternative when they make more budget friendly pipes. Last year I asked the pipemaker to try 'Bog Oak' as legend has it that it was one of the woods that was used back in the mists of time plus I liked the idea of having a set of pipes made out of wood that was several thousand years old. He bought in a sample blank and gave up in disgust saying it was like trying to turn coal. He sent me over a cylinder of it about six inches long and three in diameter that I might one day try to make something of or just try to hand carve something out of it.
Liked the way he had to kickstart it on his work bench cos the Viper engined bike wasn't man enough to jump it.
