Baxter Smith
02-02-2010, 8:10 PM
These are a couple of small pieces I turned yesterday.
The first is a small red oak bowl. After turning a couple of white oak pieces and finding them “difficult”:), I wanted to compare it to red. Went looking for a piece but all my red 3x5 pieces or thereabouts had the pith going through them and had cracked badly. Found what had been part of a 2x8 in my oak scrap pile that I thought I could get a small bowl out of.
140583
I had saved this part of a foot long section because of the hole in it. :)
It had been used as a cross brace when I raised the first bent of my house. Had drilled a hole on either end of the bent about 12 feet up. Then drove in a white oak peg that stuck out a little over foot. Two 16 ft 2x8’s with holes in the ends were then put over the peg and held the bent upright while the boom truck picked up the second bent. The rest of the piece later became one of my rafters.
Turning this seemed to be about halfway between the whiteoak I had used and the green maple, apple, birch, plum and cedar I have done. I found it very turnable!
140584
Thanks for the earlier suggestions on cutting a groove and using dowels to hold it, along with wrapping the wire 1/3 of the way around to get a more even burn. It worked well. As I was sanding the bowl and thinking about going to find some dowels to hold my wire, I remembered those two pieces of dowel held together by a wire that came with my lathe stuff. Never knew what they were for, but kept them thinking I might one day figure it out! :) I do have some guitar strings as well since my son seems to be always changing his on one guitar or another.
The look of turned oak is growing on me!
4 3/4 x 1 1/4 x 5/16 Finished with Antique Oil
140585
140586
I needed some more inspiration in the afternoon so thought I would try a vase or at least some endgrain. The birch had seemed soft so thought that might be a good place to start. Rounded up a section between centers and slightly concaved an end. Then attached it to a faceplate with 6 2” screws. I had watched a Utube video on turning a vase but couldn’t get the spindle gouge to drill the depth hole in the center. The hollowing tools I have seemed to work well. I could ask lots of questions but I will limit myself to two. Any suggestions for a basic vase or hollowing DVD? Nothing fancy. Sort of along the lines of the Bill Grumbine DVD’s I have. The wall thickness is ¼ inch more or less all the way around. Any reason to go thinner other than to say you did? I left what I thought was a sort of large opening so I could watch what the cutters were doing inside. That concept disappeared in a hurry! :)
140587
5 x 2 3/4 x 1/4 (except for the rim- had to sand out some catches:D) finished with Antique oil
Must say it was rather fun/exciting to turn in the dark. Don’t remember how many times I shut the lathe off to check the thickness but it was quite a few. I would change some things about the shape but that thought always came after I had removed some wood, either inside or out.
All comments and suggestions are appreciated!
The first is a small red oak bowl. After turning a couple of white oak pieces and finding them “difficult”:), I wanted to compare it to red. Went looking for a piece but all my red 3x5 pieces or thereabouts had the pith going through them and had cracked badly. Found what had been part of a 2x8 in my oak scrap pile that I thought I could get a small bowl out of.
140583
I had saved this part of a foot long section because of the hole in it. :)
It had been used as a cross brace when I raised the first bent of my house. Had drilled a hole on either end of the bent about 12 feet up. Then drove in a white oak peg that stuck out a little over foot. Two 16 ft 2x8’s with holes in the ends were then put over the peg and held the bent upright while the boom truck picked up the second bent. The rest of the piece later became one of my rafters.
Turning this seemed to be about halfway between the whiteoak I had used and the green maple, apple, birch, plum and cedar I have done. I found it very turnable!
140584
Thanks for the earlier suggestions on cutting a groove and using dowels to hold it, along with wrapping the wire 1/3 of the way around to get a more even burn. It worked well. As I was sanding the bowl and thinking about going to find some dowels to hold my wire, I remembered those two pieces of dowel held together by a wire that came with my lathe stuff. Never knew what they were for, but kept them thinking I might one day figure it out! :) I do have some guitar strings as well since my son seems to be always changing his on one guitar or another.
The look of turned oak is growing on me!
4 3/4 x 1 1/4 x 5/16 Finished with Antique Oil
140585
140586
I needed some more inspiration in the afternoon so thought I would try a vase or at least some endgrain. The birch had seemed soft so thought that might be a good place to start. Rounded up a section between centers and slightly concaved an end. Then attached it to a faceplate with 6 2” screws. I had watched a Utube video on turning a vase but couldn’t get the spindle gouge to drill the depth hole in the center. The hollowing tools I have seemed to work well. I could ask lots of questions but I will limit myself to two. Any suggestions for a basic vase or hollowing DVD? Nothing fancy. Sort of along the lines of the Bill Grumbine DVD’s I have. The wall thickness is ¼ inch more or less all the way around. Any reason to go thinner other than to say you did? I left what I thought was a sort of large opening so I could watch what the cutters were doing inside. That concept disappeared in a hurry! :)
140587
5 x 2 3/4 x 1/4 (except for the rim- had to sand out some catches:D) finished with Antique oil
Must say it was rather fun/exciting to turn in the dark. Don’t remember how many times I shut the lathe off to check the thickness but it was quite a few. I would change some things about the shape but that thought always came after I had removed some wood, either inside or out.
All comments and suggestions are appreciated!