Off-Center Bowl

[Bob Hovde]

This summer I went to the AAW Symposium in Albuquerque, where I picked up a Woodturning Design magazine. An article by Paul Stafford described how to turn a closed form bowl with an offset opening. I basically followed his turning method, with a few minor changes to accomodate my equipment. I was happy with the results and have had yet another vessel "confiscated" by LOML. Comments?

Bob

[Bernie Weishapl]

Bob that is a beauty. Yep the wives seem to have a knack for snapping stuff up don't they.:D

[Harvey Crouch]

Fantastic piece. Well done!

[Paul Engle]

Indeed , I thought it was a leather bag, very well done !!!:D

[Larry Marley]

Bob,
I love it! This is not just a turning, it's art, and it's fun.

[Steve Schlumpf]

Bob - that is absolutely amazing! Great job on all the carving and especially your finish! I think what I like the most of this piece is your imagination! Very well done! Thank you for sharing!

[Ron Lynch]

Wow, Bob! That's great.

[alex carey]

wow that is an impressive job, well done.

[Stephen Saar]

That looks fantastic, how did you do it?

[Sean Hughto]

That's really cool. How much is excavated?

[Bill Bolen]

Superb piece Bob. I especially like the marbles included in the "bag". I read the same article but have not had the nerve to try it....yet....Bill...

[Robert McGowen]

Very nicely executed. How long did it take to do with the carving included?

[Jeff Nicol]

I was looking at that same magazine the other day and I have been eying up the same thing! The only problem is my collection of marbles is well over 4000 so I will need a "BIG" one!!

Jeff

[Curt Fuller]

Wow, that is really cool!

[Richard Madison]

Way cool indeed. Very organic looking.

[Bob Hovde]

That looks fantastic, how did you do it?

Thanks for the kind words.

The bottom and a "cone" around the top are turned on the main axis, just like any HF.

For a 6-7 in. vessel, you then move the drive center about 1/2 in. one direction and the live center the other direction to about the middle of the "cone" surface. (If you look at a flat drawing of the vessel, this is a 20 deg off-center axis. You can draw this out and make exact measurements for the centers.) I also cut the tendon off at a 20 deg. angle to make the drive center work better. (You now cut a new tendon to match the new angle.) While on the centers, shape the top (which is skewed at 20 deg.) to blend in with the original bottom.

The hollowing is done on the secondary axis, using the second tendon you cut. Since I planned to do significant carving, I left it about 1/2 in. thick on the short side. The side that sticks out is mostly wood, since it is only hollowed out to match the short side. I thought about going in through the bottom to hollow out the entire vessel to the same thickness, but decided it wouldn't add to the finished piece.

If you can find the original article, it's explained the process in detail so that even an old pilot can understand it.

Bob

[Gary Conklin]

http://www.electricpulp.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2006/10/seal-1.gif