[TheForge] metal spinning

[Jerry Frost]

Left hand, yeah?

I knew a lot of digitally challenged spinners.

When you're doing production work you don't shut the 
lathe down between parts. When you finish the or 
current step you open the tailstock and let the part 
drop onto a chute that leads to a box behind the lathe 
if the part is small enough, sometimes you have to 
remove it by hand. Still, because the part is no longer 
a flat disk it behaves in a predictable and reasonably 
controllable manner.

Then the comes scary part, putting the fresh blank in 
the lathe. If the part allows a center hole it's zero 
sweat as your die will have a center pin sticking out 
and the live center of the tail stock will have a 
receiver hole so there is no chance of the blank 
getting away from you.

If the part doesn't allow a center hole, say a cooking 
pan or gold pan you have to hold the blank between the 
thumb and pointer or whatever finger you have left on 
your left hand, eyeballing center of the blank on the 
center of the spinning die. You have a wooden stick 
tucked under your right arm and resting on the tool 
rest with the working end almost touching the edge of 
the blank. Next using your right hand you close the 
tailstock on the blank.

This is the moment of truth, if you're too far off 
center centrifugal force will rip the blank out of the 
lathe and because you're holding it between thumb and 
remaining finger that's where it'll hit first and 
proceed up your arm like a jagged meat slicer.

If you've eyed it well enough friction between the 
tailstock and die will hold the blank in place long 
enough for you to center it with the centering stick. 
You apply gentle pressure with the stick on the edge of 
the spinning blank while simultaneously allowing a 
LITTLE slippage from the tailstock. Sometimes a 
beginner will lose control of the blank during this 
process but hands or the remains there of shouldn't be 
in the way so blood is rarely shed at this stage.

I was really good at stopping bleeding by time I was 9, 
major bleeding at that.

Frosty
-------------------------------
If it ain't forged
it ain't real.
Wrought iron is.
The FrostWorks

Meadow Lakes, AK.


From: "Peter Fels And Phoebe Palmer" 
<artgawk at thegrid.net>


> My father once, any years ago, introduced me to "the 
> best spinner I know". The guy had a thumb and 2 
> fingers....total.
>