Mildred’s Lane Fellow, Tyler McPhee, stands by the completed pole lathe ‘motor’
Mildred’s Lane Fellows David Brooks and Tyler McPhee have made impressive progress with the Deep Craft: Bioregional Innovation Project I initiated earlier in the week. Using material culled from the land surrounding Mildred’s Lane, they have constructed the ‘motor’ for a human-powered lathe, consisting of a sprung pole supported by a simple trestle base, lashed together and held in tension with an elegant Spanish windlass.
laying out the pieces
 David and Tyler getting on the same page
A Spanish Windlass holds the base in tension; note the incorporation of a woodpecker’s marks
The main joint, where a peeled, hickory sapling pole joins a crotch of white oak
Note: All photos on this post by David Brooks