At the August Meeting Colm Hyland demonstrated his Ornamental Lathe.

When I saw a rather complicated affair fastened around a small white JET lathe, I just knew I was going to be dragged out of my comfort zone as a reporter of monthly demos! The complicated affair’ turned out to be a rose engine which Colm had ordered – in bits – from the USA. So my first applause is for his prowess in being able to assemble it! I was greatly  

relieved during the break, when he handed me a short resumé of what rose-engine turning is, and how, basically, the engine does its work. So, at this point let me withdraw, and allow the Maestro himself to take up the story... 

Rose Engine Turning: 

Rose engine turning is nothing more than another of the many methods of decorating your workpiece. The difference from conventional lathe-work is that the headstock is hinged, allowing it to pivot back and forth as determined by a cam-like disc, called a rosette, as it rotates. By controlling this rocking motion with a rosette you can cut 

countless patterns on your workpiece. A rubber is placed against the edge of the 

rosette that serves to push the headstock away, while the opposing spring action 

pulls the headstock back, keeping the rubber in contact as the rosette turns through its patterns of highs and lows. Because the rosette is mounted on the spindle, each revolution of the spindle will result in cutting one full version of the rosette pattern being cut into the workpiece. Rose engine turning is usually done with a motor driven fly-cutter. The workpiece is rotated slowly by hand-cranking the lathe so that whatever the rosette 

pattern is, the cutter will follow that pattern onto the surface of your workpiece. 

Colm possesses 96 rosette wheels, and intends to fashion some more from a sheet of plastic. He also uses a dremel-tool as a cutting agent. It is fitted with a special bracket, part of which extends into the banjo enabling it to be locked into position. The only drawback is that the dremel tool can only cut on one axis. Colm had a number of different coloured plastic pieces glued together, upon which he began to work. As the multicoloured pattern began to ‘grow’ on the workpiece, the result was simply stunning. He most often deploys the rose engine to execute decoration on small boxes and vessels. For this to be a success, the 

wood needs to be very close grained. I noticed Richard V. very busy with his trusty camera 

during the break, so hopefully these few words will be supplemented with some eloquent 

photographic images! One of the things which struck me forcibly was that mastery of this complex piece of kit requires someone who is utterly methodical and has the patience of Job. Colm gets an A+ for both qualities. As, for example, when he attempted to do some side-cutting, he had to think on his feet and re-orientate the motor and cutter-wheel support-arm assembly. Even then, a complex mathematical formula needs to be worked through to ensure compatibility between the length of the cutter and the diameter of the workpiece. 

Towards the end of the demonstration Colm introduced various jigs and modifications to 

achieve a face-cutting action on the side of the piece. I put my hands up and admit it; I’m a total koala bear when it comes to abstruse formulae of measurement and the kind of mental 

concentration and hand-eye coordination required to operate 2 distinct axes of movement, via a pair of hand-wheels. However, I know when my eyes are looking at breathtakingly beautiful designs and carvings, and that’s what Colm brought to our gaze during this demonstration. And for that he well deserves the appreciation that greeted his presentation. 

Pacelli O’Rourke 

Photos by Hugh Flynn, Tom Delaney and Rich Varney