Ornamental Turning Craft

How are ornamental turnings made?

A definitive article called Ornamental Turning Lathes and their Accessories written by John Edwards, president of the Society of Ornamental Turners is available from the SOT web page devoted to the craft. Ornamental turning machines are succinctly described in the following excerpt:

An ornamental turning lathe may be described as a combination of a light engineering lathe with a milling or engraving machine and having additional complexities to position the work and/or the cutting tool to move on a path other than circular.

The ten-part article, available in PDF format, is a brilliant introduction to how ornamental turnings are made, complete with photos and examples of work produced by the various tools and techniques.

• Download the Ornamental Turning Lathes and their Accessories articles from the SOT web page.

The primary maker of ornamental lathes was the Holtzapffel firm of London. Additional makers include Evans, Birch, Plant, Hulot, Goyen, Hines, Munro, Lukin, Fenn, Gill, Hines, Buck, Milnes, Overton, Pittler, as well as lesser known makers such as Adams, Blanchard, Bramah, Bryant Symons, Cantello, Clement, Drane, Fieldhouse, Fox, Massey, Maudslay, Mercklein, Monarch, Paterson, Perkins, Roberts, Rogers, Smith, Spencer, Vaucanson, Verschoyle, Wilkinson, Wilson, and others. The last ornamental lathes were made in the late 1920s (until modern-era OT lathes began being made in the late 1980's).

Engine turning machines were manufactured for the jewelry trade in England, Germany, Switzerland, France and later in the United States, until the mid-20th century. Some common makers include Bower, Mills, Lienhard, Plant, Hall, Field, Kenloc, Brohen, B&B and others.

Pledge & Aldworth Engine Turners have created a definitive reference on engine turning. The Illustrated Engine Turning Reference is a resource for students, designers and practitioners, complete with photos and detailed instructions. Free and available online, this site also includes a very useful glossary – perhaps the first ever A to Z index of engine turning.

• View The Illustrated Engine Turning Reference website by Pledge & Aldworth.

Other articles and websites that offer further insights into the how ornamental turnings are made:

• Techniques of Ornamental Turning
• The Ornamental Turning Lathe
• Outfits for Ornamental Turning
• Specialty Lathes and Related Attachments
• Damaskeening Machines
• Geometric Chucks & Epicycloidal Patterns
• How an Eccentric Lathe Works
• Nova OT Visualizer Software
• Fenn Ornamental Turning Lathe and Accessories
• Britannia Lathes - Ornamental Turning Attachments
• How to Make a Chinese Ball (text in Swedish)

Places where ornamental turning machines, related parts and tools are on public display:

• Science Museum (South Kensington, London, UK) – Hayes Annex machine tool collection houses various items including a Holtzapffel rosette forming machine.
• Science Museum reserve collection at Blythe House (West Kensington, London, UK) – Numerous rose engine and ornamental turning lathes. Tours on Wednesday afternoons only.
• Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery (Birmingham, UK) – Various items related to the city's manufacturing history, such as early wooden treadle lathes.
• Birmingham Museum Collections Centre (Birmingham, UK) – Collection of rose engine, straightline engine, engraving machines, medallion and ornamental lathes. Viewing by appointment only.
• Lynn Historical Woodworking Trust (Ashburton, New Zealand) – Eleven lathes dating from 1804, including six Holtzapffel, two Gill, one Evans, one Davies, and a Bower rose engine.
• The Hermitage (Amsterdam, Netherlands) – Eleven lathes of Peter the Great (1682-1725).