MO,
I copied a section of my response to another member in the hope that this brings some clarity. The question was about finishing the surface of the pole:

I used a (8 amps) sander polisher. If the tool rotates, you just give the beam a first spin and then make contact with the rotating sanding pad. The finishing is a piece of cake and takes no time at all. The sculpting takes time. At times, I not only attached the beam at one end, but while it was tied up, I wedged a piece of wood to add tension to the rope. You can find a more efficient way to keep the beam from moving when you want to glide the chainsaw from top to bottom. But, since I only make one of those every five years, and did not record the 3 previous times, I can only remember all the tricks that I used if people ask specific questions like the one you asked.

I added a 1-minute video clip entitled "Setup for chainsaw Lathe" 3 weeks ago. This last video clip should have been at the beginning of the long one.

Thanks PRPaul