Wood Rings...

[jeff_1064]

http://www.simplywoodrings.com/

Check out the link...He says they are hand made. He also says they are not made on the lathe...

I am going to try and atempt one...I have started by cutting an inch off the end then boring a hole in a piece of mahogany. I have glued the end back on...then I will mount it on the lathe and turn it. Remove and then sand...

Anyone have any sugestions?

[Russianwolf]

the way those look I would think you would need to have a piece of wood with the pith. You would drill out the pith, so that the ring is in reality the rings of the tree. That would be the only way I can think to avoid breaking.

interesting pieces. Good luck.

[LinuxRandal]

If it was all one material, I would think a hole saw. Then slowly drill the center out and final sand the interior to size, then slice off that piece (so your drill through has backing).

[Russianwolf]

If it was all one material, I would think a hole saw. Then slowly drill the center out and final sand the interior to size, then slice off that piece (so your drill through has backing).

I was thinking the same. A small hole saw on the outside and, without moving the blank, a forstner about 1/8th inch smaller on the inside. Again the forstner would likely be removing the pith so your ring has no endgrain to break on.

[Lance]

I'm thinking they have to be bent wood. If they were based on a "pith removal" method, the grain would run top to bottom with the ring on its side, instead of running around the circumference of the ring. I'd guess he steams/soaks/cooks the wood to get it pliable enough to roll into tubes, maybe even as a veneer lamination, glues the tubes, cuts cross-sections to get rough rings, which he then sands & finishes. The rings in the gallery appear seamless, and if this is how he does it, THAT is an impressive feat! Or I could be entirely wrong. :-)

-Lance

[Russianwolf]

didn't think about that.

He notes that they are made of a single piece, so maybe he take long strips of veneer and as you say, rolls them kind of like an adding machine tape.

[drumpriest]

That veneer would have be uber thin to make that radius. I can't imaging it without snapping. And there would be a seam.

[gerti]

Looking closely at the photos, especially the grain direction, I think it has to be bent-wood lamination.

My guess is the photos are taken in such a way that the seam is not visible (on the back side). The ones with metal woven around them got to have a seam in the metal too...

[jeff_1064]

Well...I tried taking a 2"x2"x5" piece of mahogany and atempting a ring. I started by cutting an inch off of one end on the table saw. I then took the long piece to the drill pres and drilled a 3/4" hole down the length of the block. After doing that I glued the end I cut off back on. After 4 hours of dry time I mounted it on the lathe and then turned it to the desired ring size. I then took the tube to the band saw and cut off about a 1/4". A little sanding...and I had a ring.

The grain does not match the pictures...and it is very fragile. I am going to try the steam bending method next week. I'll let you guys know how it turns out.

[Russianwolf]

That veneer would have be uber thin to make that radius. I can't imaging it without snapping. And there would be a seam.

soaking in warm/hot water would probably fix that problem.

[momo44]

This one is definitely done w/ veneer. You can see the spiral pattern on the side. I will say that instead of cutting it on a bandsaw, he is probably hand splitting with a froe, and then with a knife, to avoid any endgrain. If he is doing it with a bandsaw, he is using very straight-grained wood.
The splitting method is what basket weavers do with white oak, bamboo and other woods.

[crokett]

How about this... Wrap a layer of veneer around a form. Then wrap another layer with the seam on the opposite side. Rinse and repeat until the ring has reached desired thickess. That way the seams are opposite each other. I suppose if you could get a single thickness flexible enough you could glue it with a scarf joint or something.

[drumpriest]

Crokett, it's similar in construction then to a drum shell. The seams are varied from layer to layer, but you can still see the seam.

[Russianwolf]

My rings are made from a single piece of wood in such a way that structural integrity of the wood is maintained. It can only be made by hand.

To me, this indicates it's one long strip.