[Regia-NA] Easily Made Primitive Lathe

[rmhowe]

An relatively easily made primitive lathe from the Steppes:

Happened to be reading a book called _Nomads of Eurasia_
this week (one I bought from the late Master Finnr's estate).
There is an interesting lathe in it that is extremely
simple to make and use to turn bowls and cups with.
Knowing how some people love primitive projects out
there I may as well describe it. People loved the
home-made forge article. It's not every day you can lie
or sit down at your work either. Pick a dry day. ;)

This takes two people to operate. One manipulates
the tool. The other pulls a cord/strap wrapped around
the round mandrel to turn the workplace to be cut.
The puller sits straight up on the ground.
The turner lies partially over the left side of the
lathe beam and holds the tool he is using on the inside
of the bowl slightly lower than center. The tool would
have to have a more acute angle than the curve of the
bowl or vessel it is cutting to do this. There is no
discussion and the end of the tool bit is obscured
by the wooden core piece. I have no idea if it is hooked.
Many tools used by pole lathers in Europe certainly are.

The main body is a log with a cross-section cut out
of it in order to put a wooden cross-piece into with
I assume a conical arbor in the end. This is then
held in place with a simple wedge. In fact this is
how the lathe tightens to clamp the workplace and
the mandrel stuck into the back of it to turn it
with. Looking at it, the mandrel itself has the other
turning point in the end of it as when it hits the
end post there are various v shaped holes in it at
different heights.

I am going to make the log square for ease of drawing
the item. {No? Okay, you do it. ;)  )

    __  <==back up _ stakes==>     __
  _|__|___________| |___ _________|__|_____
|         wedge- |w|   |-turning center   |
|                |_| O |  on the end      |
|   FRONT        |_|___|  of mandrel      |
|                   ^                     |
|   main beam       crosswise slot        |
|_________________________________________|

  __                   ____ Bowl blank split from tree.
|  |________         |__  \                     ___
|  |________|_____    _ \  \  _______________  |>  |
|  |wedge   ||    \_ | \_| |=| | round     | | |>  |
|  |________||    |_|>> _  |=| | mandrel   | |>|>  |
|  |_________|____/  |_/ | |=|_|___________|_| | p |
|  |         |        __/  /^                  | o |
|  |solid beam       |____/ |Teeth driven into | s |
|__|_________|__________________ bowl blank____|_t_|_
|  |         Ground Level                      |   |
|  |                                           |   |
|  |                                           |   |
|__|                                           |___|

The round mandrel has a cord wrapped about it, or
you could use a belt. This is pulled back and forth
alternately on either end to turn the round mandrel
with a reciprocating motion. The main beam acts
as the lathe tool rest. In the picture I saw the
lathe tool looks like it is on a broom handle.

There are iron bands on either end of the round
mandrel and there is one on the end of the fixed
mandrel in the crossbeam. These are there to hold
the conical ended spike tips in to act as lathe
centers or for the several sharp flat teeth in the
bowl end of the round mandrel that the bowl blank
is normally driven onto in line with the grain.
You don't want your mandrels splitting do you?
Similar round mandrels are known to be used on medieval
lathes from York. Bow and spring pole lathes for
example use them for turning bowls. I have books from
Russia, Germany, and England showing turning waste
and objects and lathe parts.

What I am referring to as the beam is actually
a large chunk of tree trunk with a flat bottom
backed by two stakes. All adjustment is done
by knocking the end of the main mandrel in the
beam and tightening or loosening it with the wedge.

For metal lathes a 60 degree point is generally
used. That would not be a bad point in the case
of this little lathe. If you have a half inch drill
and a grinder you could put a half inch piece of
steel rod into the drill chuck and rotate it against
the grinder to make the conical ends. Use eye
protection and be patient. The other ends could then
be driven into a half inch holes several inches deep.
If it were me I would use a mallet or a board and
not hammer the mandrel points with a hardened hammer
and dull them. You would need to pre hole the turning
blank and the upright post at the end of the round
mandrel. Given the primitive circumstances the holes
wouldn't have to be perfect, just centered. There
are drill bits made for drilling these holes for
mounting on lathes. Ask at a machinery supply house
like Enco or MSC - Manhattan Supply company. In fact
you can buy some lathe centers for less than $10 each
from Enco. Usually these fit Morse Tapered Holes.
#1 is the smallest size, #2 is generally used.
#3 and up are for larger metal lathes.
They both sell tool steel if you care to grind or
forge your own tool bits.  If I were starting out I'd
simply buy some Sears turning chisels and re-handle
them for this application in a longer handle. In
the case of the nomad it was held under his arm
and shoulder.

The medieval turner would have axed the corners off
his blanks wherever possible.

All you need to cut anything is something harder with
a sharp edge. Turning chisels and gouges are available
from Sears quite cheaply although for this application
you would want to put them in a longer handle with a
steel ferrule or ring at the end to keep them from
splitting.

Rings could be made of steel pipe couplings or if
you have access to a pipe cutter pieces of steel
pipe cut to length. For the turning mandrel I would use
3" diameter steel. The larger the diameter the easier
it is going to be to twist it back and forth.

If you hook the turning mandrel up to a motor and
it cold cocks you or someone else don't come crying
to me. These things aren't meant to operate at motorized
revolutions per minute. Wear eye protection and gloves.

Master Magnus Malleus, OL, GDH, Atlantia © 2003 R.M. Howe
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