"Arch" wrote: (clip) What are your favorite dodges for
making multiple turnings, (clip)
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Your idea of using open-end wrenches as calipers is a good one. I don't
think I will bother to soften the metal, though, since the gap between the
hardness of wood and steel is so great that I don't think anything is
accomplished. As a matter of fact, I can see how a wrench, at full hardness
might be pressed on the piece while it is spinning to burnish it to final
dimension.

My recommended time-saving method is to do each operation on all the pieces
before proceeding to the next step. And, as part of that procedure, I use a
laser to set the position and depth of the cuts, so I can place each feature
how I want it without stopping for lots of measurements.

What I normally would do is turn one piece to completion, using my artistic
judgment to get it the way I like. I then set my laser to a significant
point on the piece, and then turn that feature on each of the other pieces.
Then I return the first (finished) piece to the lathe, and position my laser
to another spot and go through the procedure again--and so on.

What do you think, Arch? Would that speed up the process for you?