3rd bowl

[MIKE E BEE]

Hey Guys,

Thanks again for all the feedback on my previous turn. I appreciate all the input. My previous turns were, as noted by John Keeton, from blanks that I glued up from stock I had available. Thanks for the tips on getting the grain going the same way.

I also took Steve Schlumpf's advice on the resolution so I hope these pics looks better. I think I got it when you said "try to make a continuous curve from rim to foot - both inside and out." At least the idea of it. Certainly will take some more practice though.

This bowl is from a solid block of maple. Its 7 1/2 x 2 1/4.
This was the first bowl that I sanded past 220 grit. I stopped in at my local Rockler store and the gentleman there set me up with a muti pack of sanding pads that range from 1200 up to 12000. Wow what a difference. This was also the first bowl that I finished the bottom. Due to the price of the bowl jig, I had to hold off on that for now, so I made my own by turning down a 2 x 8 with a slight angle until I was able to just press fit my bowl on it. It worked quite well the only problem is I will have to custom make one for every bowl. I could use some input on finishing the bottom. I am not sure what the norm would be or if there is a norm.

Thanks in advance for all your input, good or bad.

Mike

[Steve Schlumpf]

Mike - really nice looking bowl! Love the wood! Have to ask what a bowl jig is?

When it comes to sanding - I very seldom sand past 400 grit on anything. As far as finishing the bottom - what do you have in the way of a chuck, a donut chuck, jumbo jaws or a vac system? Meaning - there are a number of ways to finish off the bottom of a bowl - depending on what you have to work with.

Let us know and we'll come up with some suggestions for you.

[Dennis Ford]

The bowl looks good. The wood is great and the smooth surface allows it to show. The bottom appears a little thick for my taste (personal preference).

I am attaching a crude sketch of how I (and lots of other people) do the bottoms (friction chuck). I have a wood cylinder that I leave attached to a faceplate. The end is slightly rounded with a flat area about 2" in diameter. A bowl, platter, vase etc is placed over this piece with a piece of thin foam between the bowl and friction chuck. The tailstock pressure holds the bowl against the friction chuck. I turn the bottom leaving a cone of wood in the very center. The small end of the cone is at the bowl and the large end is just big enough to cover the live center (cup style). Depending on the size of turning, type of wood and grain orientation, the small end of cone will be 1/2" to 1/8" diameter when finished. This cone is easily removed with your choice of chisel, saw, carving gouge etc.

[Jim King]

That is a nice looking bowl. Some will say not round enough and some will say to round. It looks nice. Everyone has an opinion but quality work makes most any shape good.

Here is a simple donut you can make for the bottoms.

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=42174

[David E Keller]

Nice work. I'm wondering if the sanding system you got is a set of micromesh pads... I've never used them for bowls, but I do use them a lot for pens and smaller items. If they are micromesh pads, be careful than you don't get them too hot(DAMHIKT). They will melt and become worthless. If they are MM pads, you can wash them in the washing machine(I put them in the pocket of a pair of jeans) to clean them and extend their usefulness. Micromesh is probably overkill for a bowl or larger form.

As for finishing the bottom, it's a matter of preference. A lot of people like to embellish the bottom with a few thin lines or some kind of detail. John Keeton on this forum uses a nice wooden insert on some of his turnings. I prefer not to see a formal recess or foot on bowls, so I might have turned away the chuck recess when finishing the bottom... Just my preference.

I think a friction or jam chuck would be the simplest way to turn the bottom, but I plan on building a donut chuck when the weather warms.

Nice work on the photos.

[Bernie Weishapl]

Really nice looking bowl. I never sand above 320 to 400 except for pens. I would make a donut chuck to finish the bottoms. Simple and cheap to make plus will give you access to the bottom and is what I used when I started. Now setting up a vacuum chuck.

[Richard Madison]

Yeah, whatsa "bowl jig"? And why buy something expensive when you can make what you need in a few minutes from scrap pine?

[Bill Bulloch]

You are doing good, that has some nice tool work. I am assuming that what you are calling a "bowl Jig" is really a "Cole Jaw"???

[MIKE E BEE]

Well I obviously threw everyone for a loop with the "bowl jig" comment. The gentleman at the store showed me a four jaw chuck along with 4 aluminum wings that mounted to it. The wings had adjustable screws with what looked like rubber grommets that would hold the top of the bowl??? I just called it a bowl jig. Maybe it is a cole jaw. Either way I think the 2 pieces cost more than my lathe did and those will have to wait. I think I will take Richards approach and just make what I need. What I did for this bowl worked out just fine I think i just need to finish the bottom in a different way.

The only thing I have is the faceplate that came with the machine at this point. Again, total rookie here. I do like the link that Jim King put up. That is a pretty nifty way to hold the bowl.

As far as the sanding, I probably did go overboard. After the 600, I think i was more polishing it than sanding it but it does look really nice and going over it with each little pad didn't take very long.

By the way Steve, I checked out your picture gallery and was completely blown away. Wow!!! ABSOLUTLY BEAUTIFUL!!!!

Mike

[MIKE E BEE]

Hi David,
Yes they are the micro mesh pads. Maybe 1 1/2' squares. The gentleman at the store did warn me about them getting hot. He said just use them very lightly so thats what I did and didnt have any issues. Great tip, pocket of jeans in the wash. I like that. As far as the bottom, well I just wanted to get rid of the holes from my faceplate. I thought about just turning it flush all the way across but I didn't want to lose some of the roundness. Maybe I should have taken the inner circle out closer to the outer edge, leaving just a 1/2 or so?? Like I said it was my first bottom that I finished.
Mike

[Rob Cunningham]

Nice looking bowl Mike. Great figure in the wood.
I would also suggest making a donut chuck. It can be made from scraps you have laying around the shop.

[John Keeton]

Mike, very good choice in wood!! Beautiful grain, and you ended up with a really nice finish.

I suspect the "jig" you are talking about is similar to what Raffan and Stubbs do in their DVDs - turn a piece of scrap to create a large tenon over which your inverted bowl will tightly friction fit. Then you turn it at slow speed to fully access the bottom.

When I saw the videos it looked like a neat idea, but it would sure raise the pucker factor for me!

After seeing a post on the friction or jamb chuck, I have tried that and it seems to work great on those bowls that don't lend themselves to the Cole jaws. However, a donut chuck is on my short list.

[MIKE E BEE]

Yes that sounds right. I was a bit weary of the bowl flying off but it held on just fine. I think i will try to make a donut jig for the next one and see how that works out. It will certainly be a lot safer!

Mike

[Barry Elder]

Mike, I have found it very useful to turn "waste blocks" to glue onto a flat side of a wood block. After gluing and turning a bowl, vase, or "art piece", then by using a jamb chuck, turn away the "waste block" and finish the bottom. Using the waste block allows you to use smaller blocks of wood. It also allows you to attach the face plate to the waste block.