Building A Treadle Powered Lathe

[Chris] found inspiration in an antique flywheel he found. He decided he was going to construct something with it and began rounding up parts. The flywheel, along with some old sewing machine parts becomes a treadle powered lathe.

There’s something so very cathartic about seeing all the wood chiseled and sawed away. That pile of sawdust just means you’re getting things done!

6 thoughts on “Building A Treadle Powered Lathe

  1. This project reaches deep into my soul!
    Congratulations to a kindred neander* spirit!

    Excellent video, although the video ended with the “actor” wearing a different Notre Dame T-shirt than when the video started. “Continuity!” as my high school film teacher drilled into us. B^)

    For those interested in learning more about using/building/restoring old hand tools, contact:
    oldtools@ruckus.law.cornell.edu

    It is a text only mail list that generates up to several digests a day.

    *neander: short for Neanderthal, a term of endearment used among *galoots* to describe themselves and their culture, people who work to preserve and promote woodworking without power tools, as opposed to Normites*.
    *galoot: see “neander” (above)
    *Normites: derived from the name of Norm Abram of The New Yankee Workshop, a television show which builds furniture using copious amounts of power tools and modern finishes, used to describe non-neander woodworkers.

  2. This video and the process of making the wood lathe reminded me of my beloved father struggling to construct furniture at 50’s and 60’s using only hand tools..

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