I haven't done anything similar but I can say a decent rotary table is a useful tool. I use mine mostly on the milling machine when I want to mill to certain angles.rotary index head
These type of things work best with dense timbers which aren’t always easy to source at a good price.
It is available in the UK but not that common as it is slow growing and expensive as a result. France seems to be the place where it is most abundent so contacts in that country would be useful.I had the impression that Boxwood was common in the UK.
Or is it available but expensive in usable sizes?
Some years ago some turner friends joined forces to source and import a quantity of boxwood to the US, I got a few pieces from that deal, sections of branches (trunks?) 4" or less in diameter. Very tight piths, no cracking. Nice white color. That stuff sure is dense. Haven't turned any yet.
JKJ
Boxwood is very nice and ideal for ornamental turning. As Colin says though it’s not cheap and not often available much over 3” diameter.
I bought some 4” diameter pieces a while ago but by the time I’d turned off the bark and trued it up it was obviously quite a bit smaller.