Wooden Treadle Lathe

[Tom Albrecht]

I am volunteering in a woodshop class at a local Waldorf School and I would like to build a simple Treadle Lathe with the eighth graders before we start using the electric lathe.

Does anybody have access to plans we could use?

 

[Bill Boehme]

Maybe @Andy Chen has some information that would be useful. He built a pedal powered lathe a couple years ago.

 

[Gerald Lawrence]

Not a plan but article on them American Woodturner AAW archives issue 14-3 page 14.
Ok found it at the top in Google search and he also has a newer pole lathe plan.
https://www.popularwoodworking.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/TreadleLathe.pdf

Actually looked further and there are many plans on that same search "treadle lathe plans".

 

[Tom Albrecht]

Thanks, I got it!

 

[Dean Center]

Tom,
Sounds like a terrific project. My experience with our local high school students is that they have attention spans like hummingbirds in heat. A treadle lathe will take some time, so one of your many tasks will be helping them see progress and stay interested. Good luck and Post Pictures!

 

[Tom Albrecht]

Tom,
Sounds like a terrific project. My experience with our local high school students is that they have attention spans like hummingbirds in heat. A treadle lathe will take some time, so one of your many tasks will be helping them see progress and stay interested. Good luck and Post Pictures!

Thanks Dean. My volunteering is actually a re-entry to schools. I taught Junior High and HS for forty years and just missed working with kids for the past three years since retirement. And you are right, it's all about hormones at that age.

 

[Guy Scronce]

I didn’t use plans for mine but I do have a couple of suggestions. I used a spindle I got from grizzly. This gives you threads and a Morse taper. I can look up the part number if you want it. I also found a good source for the belt, and I can look that up as well.
Sounds like a really fun project. I will warn you that a treadle lathe has a few challenges that I didn’t think about before hand. Perhaps the one I should have anticipated was how difficult it can be to turn standing on one leg. You may want to consider a design that can be pedaled from either side. Look up an apprentice treadle lathe. That design let’s a second person pedal while the first one focuses on the turning.

 

[Tom Albrecht]

Thank you Guy.