Spalted Vase

[Steve Schlumpf]

This is from a chunk of wood that Jeff Nicol gave me when I stopped in for a short visit last summer. Unfortunately, I did not write down the type of wood, so I am not 100% sure what it is! Reminds me of Maple but has grain coloring that's very different than any Maple I have ever turned. Also, the wood is fairly brittle and wanted to chip out when hollowing - but that could be from age more than anything else.

Anyway - beautiful stuff! Lots of spalted zone lines, worm holes, some areas of burl and curl!

Spalted vase, 8 1/2" high x 4 1/4" diameter, sanded to 400 grit and has several coats of gloss wipe-on poly.

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As always, your opinions, comments and critiques are welcomed!

Thanks for looking!

[David E Keller]

That's beautiful. I love the photo with the piece laying on it's side... It seems as though the curve is perfect for that position. The wood is really nice, kinda looks like spalted hard maple to me.

[Dennis Ford]

That is some real pretty wood and you did it justice with a form that fits the wood very well.

[Maria Alvarado]

Really nice work Steve! It reminds me of those ancient pointed wine jars. +1 for the lying down photo.

[Mike Golka]

Steve that is one beautiful peice of art work!! Very nicely done sir.

[Doug W Swanson]

Nicely done, Steve!

I have yet to turn any spalted wood so when I do, hopefully mine will turn out this nice!

Doug

[Curt Fuller]

Wow, that's a nice vase! The spalting and the tall shape of the vase really compliment each other. That's some interesting spalting too, the double lines separated by some lighter wood. Nice one Steve!

[Roger Chandler]

Steve,

Very nice indeed! I have a question as to your choice of form for this turning [as well as others]. I notice that you have a small footprint on this, and I have seen the same trend on many others turnings. Is this a matter of personal preference, or is there a "consensus" among turners that vessels should have a smaller foot, rather than one say an inch or so larger than the one on this turning?

Could it be that many just fit the footprint to the size of the jaws on their chuck, and that is what makes many of them narrow compared to the body of the piece?

I really like your work! :) Just trying to learn from the best!

[Tony De Masi]

As usual very nicely done Steve. That form its outstanding and the wood really has a tale of it's own. It sort of looks like maple to me but who knows.

Tony

[Kevin J Lalonde]

Very, Very nice!! I do belive this piece would have looked good without the foot and just coming to a point, then lay it down. Its amazing how you all can consistently create beautiful pieces. I have SO FAR to go! Thanks for posting.

[Roland Martin]

Wow!! Fantastic piece of wood and a great artist doing it justice. Very nice work Steve.

[David Christopher]

simply beautiful !!!

[Joe Meirhaeghe]

Great piece of wood Steve. Looks like it could possibly be Birch. I've turned a couple of piece of Birch that looked very similar.
I also like the smaller foot design you've used on this one.

[charlie knighton]

very nice....

IMHO with the width of 4 1/2 the small foot really helps with the continous curve of the hf, with a larger width a small foot is really dramatic

again very nice

[Baxter Smith]

Very nice! I'm not sure why, but the lying down picture really stood out for me. Maybe I just don't see that pose very often. The wood & spalting is somewhat similar to a spalted white birch vase I turned a month ago. Very pretty wood and shape whatever it is.

[John W Dixon]

Steve, that is gorgeous. I really like the form and the wood is just awesome.

John

[John Keeton]

Steve, that is a beautiful piece!! The most interesting spalting that I have seen, and it really adds interest to this piece. Nice flowing form, and I will also add my vote for the composition of the pic with the vase on its side - well done!!

I got some spalted birch from Jeff, but you have turned that before, and I think you would recognize it. Maple would be my guess from the color, but Jeff has some varied wood on his place.

[James Combs]

Exceptional Steve. Do any you guys ever "show" this art work at arts and craft shows or at community art centers? Especially yours and John Keaton's. It would have to draw a crowed.

[Bernie Weishapl]

Beautiful vase Steve. Really nice wood and love the form.

[Brian Effinger]

Beautiful form and wood Steve. I'm wondering if it might be elm? Whatever it is, it sure is pretty.

And I'm glad everyone said they like the laying down photo. I thought the same before reading the other comments. I can't put my finger on why, but the form looks a little awkward to me standing up, but looks natural laying down. Kind of like a cornucopia.

In any event, very well done, sir. :)

[Bill Bolen]

A bit different from what I have come to think of as your prefered form Steve. Beautiful flowing lines on a knock out piece of wood. Well done Sir...Bill...

[gary Zimmel]

First class as usual Steve!

[Jon Lanier]

I love spalted! Love that piece.

[Toney Robertson]

I too, would be interested in hearing your thoughts on the small base. Is it meant to be laid down? Otherwise It would seem very tippy (if that is a word).

It reminds me of a Roman amphora without the handles.

Beautiful wood and your usually great execution equals equals a very nice piece.

Toney

[Jeff Nicol]

Steve, If you look at my avatar you will see a bowl that I turned from the same tree. It was a hard maple tree that had died then blew over in the wind with the main trunk hanging up on the stump. This kept the bulk of the tree off the ground. The tree had been hanging there for about 8 years. I guess over time the spalting had migrated up the trunk from ground and turned the whole tree into a spalted gem! There were lots of good pieces and more that was to far gone. The farther I got from the ground the wood had less spalting but had the varigated colors and the wood seemed very light and almost punky. As you said it seems brittle and soft and hard and all kinds of things at the same time. So I guess what it comes down to is that I rescued it just before it turned to dust and melted back into the earth!. I have some more of this stuff left and I just cut up a big crotch from it the other day. Some is good and some is almost to soft. But I use the Jimmy Clewes method of thinned out shellac to stablize it for the last cuts.

I like the shape of the vase and it really does show off the spalting very well. Glad it worked out for you.

Jeff

[Steve Schlumpf]

Thanks for the kind words everyone - I seriously appreciate it!

The form on this one was intentional and what I had in mind when starting the vase. At 1/8" thick - it is very lightweight - but the very bottom of the piece was left 3/4" thick in order to give it a little ballast. The small foot was used to enhance the curve - it was not meant to be a functional vase - just a decorative form.

When it comes to design - I am learning right along with everyone else. My tastes in form continue to evolve - right along with my turning. At this stage in the vortex - I feel comfortable on the lathe and can focus on form and the little things that help my work to evolve beyond clunky.

One of the really cool aspects of this heavily spalted wood was the dark zone lines. The vase was oriented to take advantage of them and they sure bring the piece to life! The photos do a good job in showing how the zone lines fool the eye into thinking the curve is distorted. Ir's not. The purpose of the last photo - with the vase in a prone position - allows you to see the actual curve without the vertical influence of the spalt lines. Cool effect and it does remind one of an amphora - one of my favorite old-world shapes!

Thanks again everyone!

[Harlan Coverdale]

Very nice work Steve. Personally I like the small foot. I figure if someone wants a vase to put things in they should go to Ikea or Pic N Save. If they want an artful wooden vessel, they can buy something like this piece.

[Allen Neighbors]

Couldn't think of anything to say other than, "Wow! Nice work, especially that one on it's side."

[Rob Cunningham]

Beautiful piece Steve. The form really accents the spalting lines. Nice work.

[Harvey Ghesser]

Beautiful work as usual, Steve! You always seem to nail beautiful proportions!

Harv:D

[bob svoboda]

Steve. Beautiful work. I totally agree with some of the other posts that the form works perfectly with the wood. Be proud of this piece!!

[steven carter]

Steve,

If a thing of beauty is a joy forever, this will last a long time! Of course I stole that line from a famous John.... surprise, not Keeton, Keats!

Steve

[Roger Chandler]

Thanks for the kind words everyone - I seriously appreciate it!

The form on this one was intentional and what I had in mind when starting the vase. At 1/8" thick - it is very lightweight - but the very bottom of the piece was left 3/4" thick in order to give it a little ballast. The small foot was used to enhance the curve - it was not meant to be a functional vase - just a decorative form.

When it comes to design - I am learning right along with everyone else. My tastes in form continue to evolve - right along with my turning. At this stage in the vortex - I feel comfortable on the lathe and can focus on form and the little things that help my work to evolve beyond clunky.

One of the really cool aspects of this heavily spalted wood was the dark zone lines. The vase was oriented to take advantage of them and they sure bring the piece to life! The photos do a good job in showing how the zone lines fool the eye into thinking the curve is distorted. Ir's not. The purpose of the last photo - with the vase in a prone position - allows you to see the actual curve without the vertical influence of the spalt lines. Cool effect and it does remind one of an amphora - one of my favorite old-world shapes!

Thanks again everyone!

Thanks Steve,

I really like the smaller foot as well, and my question as to how it related to the jaw size on a chuck was to see if you turned the form and had enough of the blank to take it to the small size, or if you had to reverse it and then turn the foot off the tenon?

I'll be glad when my tool techniques allow me to focus only on form, because I am still having to think about what I am supposed to be doing with this tool or that scraper, or how I should present it to the wood, etc. and I guess I need to put in a lot more time between centers. One of my plans when the weather breaks [my shop is unheated]. Thanks again!

[Steve Schlumpf]

Roger - I used the #2 jaws in my Talon chuck and made allowances for the planned foot when shaping the exterior of the form. Once the vase had been hollowed out - it was reverse turned using a donut chuck. The small area of the foot was actually part of the tenon and was given final shape when I reverse turned it.

You do have to pay attention to how much wood you have left in the foot area when reverse turning! Nothing worse than an elongated funnel to show for your efforts!

[Gary Chester]

Beautiful piece Steve.

Great form and great wood.

[Roger Chandler]

Roger - I used the #2 jaws in my Talon chuck and made allowances for the planned foot when shaping the exterior of the form. Once the vase had been hollowed out - it was reverse turned using a donut chuck. The small area of the foot was actually part of the tenon and was given final shape when I reverse turned it.

You do have to pay attention to how much wood you have left in the foot area when reverse turning! Nothing worse than an elongated funnel to show for your efforts!


Steve,

You crack me up! :D I haven't quite gotten that one turned as of yet, and I am trying to hold off as long as I can!

Do you have any pictures of your donut chuck? That is one that I do not have as of yet in my collection. I spent my first 8 years with a lathe mostly doing table legs, maybe a goblet or 2. Now I am getting into bowls, vases, lidded vessels, boxes, and anything else that inspires me. I want to explore the world of segmented turnings, and tommorrow our local club will be hosting Mike Galloway, from Pennsylvania for our club demo on segmented turnings. Looking forward to that...:)

[GLENN THOMAS]

Steve,

Very nice. I really like everything about it.

GT

[john brady]

Nice vessel STEVE!

I too have a bunch of spalded Maple like that. My neighbor cut down two maple trees a few years ago and I got a bunch of logs from him before the guy hauled them all away. He said he didn't know why I'd want them for woodworking - he said he had to cut the trees down because they were infested - so probably not much good for anything but firewood. After I started turning the wood, I found them all to be spalded. Coudn't have ask for anything better! Later I gave him a bowl I made from it. After he saw it - he understood why I wanted it - despite the "defects".

I really like your design - I think it looks cooler sitting on it's side. My wood is all fairly narrow - so I'll have to try a piece in that style.

What did you use to hollow it out? Is it thin walled or does the hole only go so far down (like a weed pot)?

John

[Steve Schlumpf]

John - this vase is no more than 1/8" thick with the exception of the very bottom part of the foot and that is about 3/4" thick - just for some ballast.

I use Randy Privett's Monster hollowing systems and absolutely love using them! Here's Randy's site for more info on the tools:
http://monster-lathe-tools.com/cart.php

[Mike Minto]

steve, that is a really nice vase. i know i've said it b4, and i'll say it again, but spalted wood and hollow forms sure do make a nice combination. thanks for the photos.

[Eugene Malone]

Steve,most seem to agree that the timber is maple, I would guess that it is beech. we get a lot of beech over here i'm not sure if you have it over there,but to me it looks like beech. whatever it is you have got the very best out of it.the vase is a classic congrats and stick with that form ,rgds. Eugene Malone

[Steve Schlumpf]

Thanks Eugene! Haven't seen you posting lately - hope you are going to stop in more often!

[john brady]

Steve - Thanks for the link - Randy's 'Basic' hollowing system seem very reasonable for a good starting system - which I need. I'll definately keep his link handy. Currently I'm using a swan neck hollowing tool I purchased a few years ago - but I've been interested in getting a hollowing 'system', but most have been out of my price range.

Thanks again for the info...John

[Keith Burns]

A lot late chiming in Steve, this is first rate. Excellent job, love the form.