Bowl Turning Is An Artform

[Jim Frye]

Done just in time for Easter family dinner!

[Jim Frye]

Now that you have made one, the second one will come a bit easier. But it is going to be hard to beat the beauty of the first one! Excellent design. Design is where I fail the most.

Thanks. I drew the design twenty some years ago using Richard Raffin's "Turned Bowl Design" book. it's been sitting in my project design notebook since.

[leehljp]

Now that you have made one, the second one will come a bit easier. But it is going to be hard to beat the beauty of the first one! Excellent design. Design is where I fail the most.

[Jim Frye]

The paper bag glue mount for the faceplate mount worked just like the books stated. And all it took was a sharp rap on the backside of the bowl to separate the joint. Now to scrape/sand the recess in the bottom of the bowl clean and give it an oiling.

[Jim Frye]

Finished sanding the bowl inside and out to 220 grit and gave it a rubout with a 0 non woven abrasive pad. Have applied four applications of Watco natural Danish oil and am waiting for it to cure before giving it a final rubout with a 0000 non woven abrasive pad and Howard's Butcher Block Conditioner. Then, I will attempt removing the bowl from the faceplate mount and finish the recess in the base. The Danish oil has highlighted all of the grain flaws in the wood I used. That's why the wood was scraps, I guess.

[Jim Frye]

Got the support column parted off and the residual remains on the bottom turned down to a flat area. I had a catch when the center support let go and have it mostly sanded out. Next up is final sanding, applying the Danish oil finish to the bowl, and removing the paper glued faceplate mount on the bowl base exterior (my next area of trepidation).

[Jim Frye]

Parting off the center support has been challenging (as expected) and I have been creating mistakes by trying to do too much at one time, and have dinged the interior of the bowl with my haste. Fortunately, I left the wall thickness of the bowl a bit thicker than the planned 3/8", so I have some wiggle room once I get the center post removed and the bottom flattened. I should be able to sand the mistakes out and still keep the designed shape.

[Jim Frye]

Finished sanding the bowl to 220 grit and have started to remove the center support and this will be a real challenge. I made a huge mistake when I reversed the blank to hollow out the inside. Since my only mount is a faceplate with screws, it left four holes on the inside face of the blank and in my lack of experience, I copped out of turning the center support as small a diameter as possible and turned it outside of the screw holes until I got beyond them. Now I have to part off a 2"+ diameter center support down inside the bowl instead of a 1" diameter one. Another lesson learned.

[capncarl]

Warping wood is not just isolated to Lowe’s or Home Depot lumber! I’ve had similar to you described in my Tiny Tables after I attach the legs to the aprons using dominos and glue and clamp up everything. I leave everything sitting flat and square only to come back the next day and find the table base so warped that it must have walked all over the shop during the night.

[Jim Frye]

Well, I got the interior hollowed out to the designed profile and will start smoothing it out with scrapers. Almost down to my desired 3/8" wall thickness. Will sand the interior to finish grits and then part off the center support pillar and finsh the bottom. Never done that before and feeling a bit of trepidation. Hopefully, I can pare it down enough to just snap it off.

On another subject, I've discovered the work piece warps a bit between turning sessions. I don't unmount anything, but what was running smoothly when I stopped for the day, has a wee bit of run out the next day. I assume it's from exposing a large area of fresh wood on one side of the blank. I suppose it also could be due to releasing stresses in the pieces that make up the blank. I know the hard maple I used was improperly dried as the full boards warped while acclimating in my shop prior to use. Still learning after all these years.

[Jim Frye]

By the time I'm done, I'll probably have enough to pack the leg lamp from "A Christmas Story" for shipment.

[leehljp]

I had to laugh at the full Vac. A lathe sure makes more shavings and a TS or BS.

[Jim Frye]

Had two long sessions today and really got things hollowed out. Decided to take a peek inside the ShopVac and had to do a double take. The 16 gallon tank was FULL!. Nor just full, but it looked like someone had sheared a wooden sheep or two. Remember the old packaging material called "excelsior"? The ShopVac was full to the brim with a finer version of it. Sorta like 0 steel wool and just as matted and tangled. This stuff will be a challenge to till into the garden this fall.

[Jim Frye]

Not looking to do "thin" walls at this juncture of my skills. I'm shooting for something like 3/8" thick as I hope this will be used for entertaining at family gatherings. I do have some large calipers to check my work.

[leehljp]

It has been a while but I used an old timer's trick for wall thickness - I use a light bulb or bright flashlight inside and rotate by hand to see when I am getting "thin" walled. I have only done three (I think) thin walls that light revealed its thinness. You better believe I took my ever-loving time on those walls. I enjoyed the process and knowing that I could do it, but it certainly would not pay off financially for the amount of time I put in. I think I might could have sanded the thickness out of it faster! But it is enjoyable, and thin walled bowls are generally sell for much higher prices.