"Bill Noble" wrote in message
...
point down is misleading- it's a way of getting the angle of the blade so
that it will cause a downward force against the tool rest - point up and
you get an upward force which lifts the skew up and then you get surprises

That would be true if you were to turn from the front of the lathe point
down and the back of the lathe for point up (or reverse the spindle).