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The Lathe.

(By J. R. Hambleton, Turner, N.Z.R., Hillside Workshops.)

When we come to closely observe the new machinery which is now being installed in our Railway Workshops, we must, naturally, fall into a reflective turn of mind.

Of course each individual observer may differ somewhat in his opinion of such a drastic change, but there are some viewpoints upon which we must be unanimous.

In the first place we must now realise how obsolete the old machinery has become, and I am afraid that we ourselves have got a little behind the times also. We cannot help admiring these wonderful products of the world's best engineering brains and skill, and perhaps feel that in view of such rapid progress we may soon, like Othello, find our occupation gone. We also must realise the growing importance of the machine-man, because, to a large extent, the efficiency of a machine depends upon the ability of its operator.

We observe also what an enormous task it must have been, and what a wide and varied technical knowledge was necessary in choosing the most suitable machines and power units for the work required of them and further, we are exceedingly pleased to note that “British make” predominates.

We owe a great deal to our advancement in the manufacture of machinery and its consequent products, and this same industry will still continue to be not the least important factor in our future national progress.

But my chief purpose is to deal with what seems to me to be, in its crudest form, the fore-lunner of the majority of the machines which we see in our workshops to-day—The Lathe. Now, it would no doubt be very interesting if we could trace, step by step, the evolution of this highly important tool right back from its origin up to its present form, or rather forms. This is hardly possible with the meagre data which we have at our disposal, nor can we be certain of the exact date of the construction of the first lathe. We do know that the art of turning dates from a very early period; but, unfortunately, the time of the actual beginning is very obscure. Pliny, the Roman historian, names Theodorus of Samos, about 560 B.C., as the inventor, but one might agree with those who are of the opinion that the Potter's Wheel was the earliest form of such a machine. It certainly is not very difficult to discern the similarity of the latter to a modern vertical lathe, the wheel representing the chuck, or face plate, the clay the work to be operated upon, and the potter's hands—assisted by his crude wooden instruments—the tools. From very old relics which have been found in the Holy Land and in Egypt, we know that the art of making pottery by means of a wheel must have been practised in very ancient times. The Good Book makes reference to Tubal Cain as a worker in brass and iron, and we can feel safe in assuming that a lathe of some sort would have been of material assistance to this ancient and clever craftsman.

Long, long ago, a very crude from known as a tree lathe was used in the woods in some of the Asiatic countries. It consisted of two suitably chosen forked trees with an adjacent sapling. The work was revolved between the forks, which acted as bearings, and a rope was fastened to the top of the sapling and wound round the wood to be turned. One man pulled the rope down, thus revolving the log, while another did the turning. The spring of the sapling would pull the rope back, and so on. This operation would certainly be very irregular and jerky, but with plenty of time and material at their disposal these “Old Timers” turned out some remarkable work.

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The next step appears to have been in the form of a trunk of a tree as a bed, with blocks fastened to it to act as the bearings. The motion was obtained from a spring-pole and rope similar to the method adopted in the tree lathe. This idea had the advantage of being suitable for use under cover.

The next step was the “fiddle-bow” lathe as used by some watchmakers and jewellers up to the present day, but a great advance was made with the introduction of treadle, when a continuous revolving motion was obtained by means of a cranked-shaft and foot-treadle.

Then came other brainy ideas, such as the ratchet and free-wheel, used in conjunction with the foot treadle, to obtain the desired continuous revolving motion. Hand tools were used to turn wood, bone, ivory, and the various metals. The writer had the privilege of seeing some of the “old school” using their heel-tools with a T rest and was astounded at their skill and the amount and variety of metal-turning they could do; more so, indeed, when he attempted to operate them.

Then came the slide-rest—simple and compound—sliding saddle, leading screw and change wheels for screw cutting, feed shaft, cone pulleys for varying speeds, double and triple gearing, power drive, special lathes for special classes of work, and so on step by step, until we arrive at what seem to be the almost perfect forms which we now can see in our workshops.

And while the lathe itself was undergoing this process of evolution so were the cutting tools and the material to be operated upon.

It is not my purpose and it would be attempting too much in one brief article to endeavour to trace the progress of cutting tools right down through the ages. It is a wide gap between the piece of sharpened flint of primitive man to the splendid high-speed steel which we use to-day, but that gap has been bridged over by men of thought and skill. Just a little idea here, a little improvement there, and a lot of deep thought just how to meet the requirements as they came along. There is also a wide gap between the potter's wheel and the primitive tree lathe of the ancients, the modern high-speed, hollow-spindle combination lathe, Bullard mill or a Loudon wheel lathe, but just by that evolutionary process their connection can be recognised and traced.

I have presumed that the lathe is the parent form of the majority of machine shop machinery. I do not think that it is necessary to enlarge upon this aspect. One can readily understand after the lathe had arrived at some degree of perfection some bright brain conceived the idea to cut a key-way or ollgrove—hence slotting, shaping and planing. Others thought of adapting it for drilling, milling, gear cutting, and so on, thus forming the embryos of our present day machines specially constructed for their special class of work.

Now, one has only to look about him and he will readily and clearly observe what an important bearing the lathe and its family has upon our great manufactures. Its output seems to be pre-eminent and to pervade the construction of all machinery, for there is not a machine or power unit made without some parts of it having to be turned or machined. Let me ask my reader to mentally come with me and notice some of the results. Supposing that we start locally and examine a locomotive. Here we have evidences of our workmanship right from the whistle to the wheel base, and there is quite a lot not visible but nevertheless very important. Come on board and inspect one of our modern battleships. Surely we must thrill with pride at the sight of this mass of intricate machinery. No longer can we call them the wooden walls of England, but the steel bulwarks of our great Empire. Propelling machinery, pumps, electric power units, turbines, torpedoes, guns—lathe work is dominant in every page 44 part of them. It does not matter which workshop or factory we visit we will find that the output from the lathe forms an essential part in the construction of the machinery. We will also notice, if we very closely observe, what an “infinite variety” of work a turner may be called upon to do, and (I do not wish to enlarge upon it, but I believe that I can say advisedly) in no other branch of the craft is such accurate workmanship necessary.

Of course the quality and quantity of the output of any machine depends largely upon the skill and intelligence of its operator. This applies very pronouncedly to the turner. To be thoroughly competent he should endeavour to make himself acquainted with all the different classes of work which he may be called upon to do. This is in the interest of both his employer and himself, because a good workman requires less control, and his output is greater. Knowledge of this sort is also in his own interest, because he will find his work much easier and more pleasant.

Further, every individual can assist to make the business a success, and he can obtain better conditions from a paying rather than from a non-paying concern. Our slogan might well be: “Assist the Department to assist ourselves.” We can assist in many ways, particularly by economy—economy in material, in stores, in tools, in proper care and use of machinery, and in Time. There seems to be no doubt that our present administrators are quite alive to the value of the machine and the machine-man in the service, and our progress depends largely upon the efficiency of the machine tools and their operators.

Perhaps a little verse from Longfellow will assist me to an apt conclusion.

Standing upon what too long we bore
With shoulders bent and downcast eyes,
We may discern—unseen before,
A path to higher destinics.

The great thing about life is the going out of friendliness from being to being.—John Galsworthy.