On Tue, 26 Jan 2010 13:35:09 -0800, mac davis

It's actually a scrap that I decided to practice on, Dave..
I really didn't think that this cracked, irregular shaped piece would hold
together on the lathe..

Can I assume then, that you might do much of lathe work behind some
kind of shield?

I've been hit in the chest once by a kickback from a tablesaw. I can
only imagine what it would be like to be hit by some projectile flying
off a reasonably fast spinning block of wood.