Increased emphasis on productivity and machining quality is the cause of constantly looking for progressive chip machining technologies to meet this requirement. One of this option is the use of specific turning with an actively driven tool. This unconventional turning method makes it possible to select higher feed values while keep the required tool life. However, it is important to identify the properties and all possible applications of such an actively driven tool during the machining process. The paper focuses on the resulting state of the machined surface of the workpiece in terms of surface roughness parameters due to the feed values. For the sake of clarity, the knowledge and findings of active rotation machining are compared to self-propelled rotary turning.