Ever wondered exactly how an English wheel works? This great little video by metalworking guru Lazze demonstrates several key principles of the venerable panel-forming tool—and an important secret. Watch this. 

Lars Jansson, known to the automotive world simply as Lazze, first started working with metal in his native Sweden when he was only eight years old. As a teenager, he scratch-built his first English wheel, and soon he was constructing complete auto bodies with the seemingly magical tool. Today, from his shop in Pleasanton, California in the San Francisco Bay Area, Lazze, Inc., he operates a world-class fabrication facility, conducts metalworking classes, and markets a full line of tools, books, videos, and related merchandise.

In the simplest terms, an English wheel uses a pair of rollers, one flat and one crowned, to work and shape metal sheet to form complex contours. It does so by stretching the metal in a controlled pattern—and how controlled is determined by the skill and knowledge of the operator. Here, using only a felt marker, Lazze demonstrates a critical technique in wheeling: How to maintain a crown or contour in a metal panel as it is formed. As Lazze notes, many metalworkers toil on the wheel for years without uncovering this key principle.

Naturally, there’s a whole lot more to learn about the English wheel—a lifetime’s worth, really. You can explore more of Lazze’s videos at his YouTube channel or sign up for his three-day and five-day metalworking classes. Meanwhile, enjoy this short, sweet, and insightful video introduction.