Safety notes

Although care was taken in the design of this machine, no two shop-built machines will be strictly identical.

It is assumed that you are skilled in woodworking. This should not be your first woodworking project.
It is also assumed that you are already familiar with the safe operation of lathes.

Woodgears.ca cannot be held liable for injuries that you may incur with your homemade lathe.

Some safety tips

• Fast spinning objects without guards can be dangerous. All lathe operations involve fast spinning objects without guards. So be aware of the danger.
• If you don't have previous wood turning experience, it's advisable to position the motor for relatively low belt tension, so that if something gets caught, the belt will slip, stalling the workpiece without having to stop the motor.
• The use of proper turning chisel is advisable. Using ordinary chisels, though effective, is more dangerous because they are shorter and easier to lose control of if they get caught on the workpiece.
• If the nuts or threaded rods of the 4-jaw chuck come loose, they can get thrown at you. The use of lock-nuts with built in nylon washers on the 4-jaw chuck is advisable. After mounting an object in the chuck and turning for a few seconds, check the four nuts of the chuck to make sure they are still tight.
• Use the 4-jaw chuck with relatively low speeds (under 1000 RPM), use a good pair of safety glasses, and to stay out of the plane of the chuk itself.
• Be very cautious when turning the dovetails onto the 4-jaw chucks jaws. It's all too easy to have the chisel kicked up at you and to get your fingers caught between the chuck and tool rest.
• Don't forget to oil the bearings. Stop the lathe and carefully touch the shaft from time to time to ensure it has not become too hot. The bearings should not be so tight as to make it hard to turn the main shaft.
• Don't forget to tighten the locking wing nut on the tailstock before using the lathe. Also, from time to time, check that the stock is still tight. It may require slight re-tightening before you are done.