How Does A Lathe Machine Cut Its Workpiece

The workpiece is held in position by a drill chuck and tightened with a chuck key with three fastening points on the chuck. The cutter is chosen according to the type of cut that is needed. The cutters are interchangeable. In this instance, it is the cutter that is moving towards the workpiece instead of the workpiece moving towards the cutter.

The headstock also has many switches and buttons to adjust the speed that the workpiece of rotating. Due to the nature of some materials, cutting at a fast speed will cause the cutter to break.

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When turning, a piece of material (wood, metal, plastic even stone) is rotated and a cutting tool is traversed along 2 axes of motion to produce precise diameters and depths. Turning can be either on the outside of the cylinder or on the inside (also known as boring) to produce tubular components to various geometries.