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By far the most important piece of workshop equipment as without
it very little can be achieved, the choice of type is therefore extremely
important.
From study of both extant instruments and contemporary woodcuts and
illustrations it is obvious that many of the makers of woodwind instruments used
some of the most sophisticated versions that were available at the time one
example being that from Diderot & Alembert's Encyclopédie (Paris 1767, 1776
) where that depicted in the instrument makers workshop is of the most complex
type for the period being capable of cutting threads of several different
pitches via a traversing mandrel and uses both captive and freehand tools even
though it is in essence a pole driven lathe.
Robert Reid of North Shields best
known for his Northumbrian Small Pipes certainly used at some point, what is
known as an "Ornamental Lathe" where ingenuity has triumphed over the
straightforward tuning normally carried out. The final choice as to what fulfils the ideal
type rests with the maker as each type has advantages and disadvantages. The
main considerations will be be the accommodation available and the budget. The
ideal is of course one of each type !
When purchasing a lathe or indeed any other piece of workshop machinery
especially if second hand a check should be made as to whether spare parts and
accessories are still available and if not how well equipped is it. Certain
parts are essential for work holding and ideally should come with the lathe
these being a three jaw self centering chuck, a four jaw independent chuck and
faceplate. It should also have standard internal tapers to the headstock mandrel
and tailstock such as No 3 and No 2 Morse although it is possible to buy
conversion sockets for other types. (The Morse taper tends to be standard on
modern machines). Another point to check is the type of bearing that the mandrel
runs in - are they plain phosphor bronze bushes, ball races or tapered roller
bearings and is there the facility for adjustment. Most important is to have
some form of thrust bearing to counteract lateral forces when boring and reaming
as without this the lathe can slow or stall. Of these three it is the tapered
roller kind that fulfils the requirements making it the ideal choice. The basic
lathe consists of the Bed which should be as sturdy as possible with the ways
ground perfectly and if purchasing second hand care should be exercised as it
can be worn in some areas, notably near the headstock where the majority of work
is carried out.
The most difficult task facing the woodwind instrument maker is that of long
hole boring requiring a perfectly set up machine and this aspect of a machine
should be checked thoroughly.
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