During his box-making demonstration at the April meeting, Eliot Feldman quoted an important and easy-to-remember safety mantra, “SAFER”, that can be used each time before starting the lathe. This acronym is a valuable tool and bears repeating.
The source for this has been reported to be the original Keith Rowley book “Woodturning: A Foundation Course”. The “New Edition”, that I have, has similar material, but not the acronym, per se. The associated safety rules are as follow:
Before starting the lathe, - Speed - make sure the lathe Speed is compatible with the size of the blank;
- Aside - stand Aside, out of the “firing line” of the blank;
- Fasten - Fasten blank securely and confirm all locking handles are tight;
- Eye - confirm that Eye and breathing protection are in place;
- Rotate - Rotate the wood freehand, one full turn, to be certain that it is
unobstructed.
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