#25 Ky Coffee Tree - more lessons learned!

[John Keeton]

Last month I joined the local chapter of the AAW, and attended my first meeting. I knew a couple of the guys there, and it so happened that they had a truck full of Ky Coffee Tree from where one had blown over in the arboretum. The arboretum donated the tree to the club, in exchange for members doing various turnings to sell to benefit the arboretum. Members were encouraged to take a piece, turn something, and bring it back to a meeting.

I was not in my truck, but I hoisted a very large, very wet chunk of wood in the trunk of my Corolla! I hoped to get at least one very nice blank from the wood, and this was the pick of the litter.
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It is hard to see in the pic, but the blank has a very nice feather, and I was going to try to save it, and at the same time, use as much of the wood as possible.

[John Keeton]

Nearly every piece I have done so far has been a different form - all in an effort to try something new, and hopefully develop some turning skills and technique. This was another new form for me.

I did not have time to let this piece air dry, and I have not tried the DNA drying method. So, I thought I would finish turn this piece, and microwave it to see how that would do.

Other than a small walnut goblet I turned - very thin - this was my first sopping wet turning. I fully appreciate all the dry wood I have been turning!! While it does cut easily, it does have its own challenges when one tries to take it to a finished piece.

I put the bowl in the microwave for one-minute sessions on high. It took 5 or 6 sessions to get it dry. I actually expected a lot more warp and cracking than I got. There is a small pith area in the bottom, it cracked a little, and then there were some hairline cracks in the feather. Overall - not bad. This was a first for me.

After drying the bowl, I chucked the bowl up in the Cole jaws to do the bottom; I had to do it in expansion mode. Realizing that the partially wet wood could be more fragile, I intentionally did not expand the jaws out with much pressure - and, I turned it slow. But, the heavy figure in the bottom made it a real challenge at slow speed. I ended up with a catch while using the scraper to clean up the medallion recess, and the bowl ended up several feet from the lathe!!

Here is what we ended up with -

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8.5" x 4"

In the pic of the bottom, on the upper right, there are two divots and, of course, the crack shown in the pic of the rim. I don't know whether the crack happened first, then the launch, but I do know this was also a new one for me - and I can do without a repeat on this one!

[Dan Gremaud]

Man, that figure is stunning. And I really like your design. Beautiful bowl.

[Bernie Weishapl]

John I like it. The wood is beautiful. Really well done and worth the effort of turning slow.

[Ted Calver]

Very nice John. I'd have been tempted to bandsaw it into two platter blanks with that feather and double the return.

[gary Zimmel]

I really like the effect the grain makes on the inside of this bowl...
Nice work John.

[Karl Card]

I have not been lucky enough to get any of that kentucky coffee tree.. IMHO it is very pretty wood.... but then again there isnt an ugly wood, just that some is prettier than others..lol

[John Tomasello jr]

John nice job outstanding figure, I feel for you having launched one today.

[charlie knighton]

very nice....

[Baxter Smith]

The wood is very pretty and the shape is nice as well. Although the pictures are good, I especially enjoyed the reading about the trials and tribulations. More satisfaction can be gained from overcoming obstacles than by having none at all.:) I wonder how the cracking would have compared to a slow drying? Good looking bowl!

[James Roberts]

Well done, John, and thanks for the story of trials and errors. Having viewed with great interest (and a boat load of envy) your foray into the vortex from the flat world, and the excellence in the finished pieces you've shown, it's nice to know that even the best still have their troubles. It gives me hope that my trials and errors will become fewer and I can rise to the level of proficiency and artistry displayed by so many others.
It's a beautiful piece of wood and your efforts have produced a very nice hollow form bowl. The grain in this piece reminds me of hickory.

[Steve Mawson]

I certainly am not familiar with Ky Coffee Tree but it is very nice. Also a bit of a unique form which I like very well. This one goes into the reference folder. Don't worry about one coming loose, had a cedar tenon break this afternoon. Must be the cold and snow. I bet they hold better when it warms up.

[Gary Chester]

Nice form, nice wood, nice grain... nicely done... again!!! And you had some extra fun chasing it around the shop!

For some reason I want to see a top on it, hmmmmm, #25.5?

[David E Keller]

I like it. It reminds me a bit of the Hawaiian calabash style bowls which I really like. I've not turned coffee tree but it looks a little like ash... It has a very strong grain pattern. Of course, the feathering in the bottom is great as well.

[Steve Schlumpf]

John - that's a beautiful bowl - both in wood and form! Really like the organic shape - very natural feel to it! Reminds me a little of the calabash style bowls that David mentioned but even more of a southwest style pot.

Very nice work John! Looking forward to #26!

[Fred Perreault]

John, you are a champ. You might buy wood and spend more $$$ than some of us, but you are an inspiration. Please, don't stop now. If wood is a drug to you, keep inhaling.

[Michael Dromey]

John you did a nice job. The profile is unique. The wood looks really nice. In this part of Kansas we have a lot of that kind of tree growing.

[Curt Fuller]

Another very nice bowl John. I've heard of the Ky Coffee tree but this is the first turning I remember seeing. That's some spectacular feathering in the grain and I like the form you chose. I'm curious about the microwaving. I've tried it a few times with limited success. I might not be giving it enough time. My wife usually starts telling me to get that stinky thing out of her kitchen after 3 or 4 cookings. Let us know if you get much movement in this over the next few weeks.

[Jeff Luedloff]

Awesome bowl, i like the way you finished the bottom, nicely done.

[Norm Zax]

Nice wood but the feather makes the bottom stunning. A pity your first wet sample cracked and flew as wet wood is an experience many prefer - those long ribbons, not much dust and so forth. Keep em coming,
Norm

[John Keeton]

Thanks, again, for puttin' up with me!!

Very nice John. I'd have been tempted to bandsaw it into two platter blanks with that feather and double the return.Ted, when I looked at the blank, I just didn't think the feather would be deep enough for that. As I hollowed out the bowl, it appears I was right. Though it seems to go up the sides of the bowl, from a "flat" perspective, I saw little evidence of the feather until I got pretty deep.


Having viewed with great interest (and a boat load of envy) your foray into the vortex from the flat world, and the excellence in the finished pieces you've shown, it's nice to know that even the best still have their troubles.James, thanks for your kind words, but I don't at all consider myself anything more than a beginner with this turning thing. While I do put a lot of thought into each turning project before I ever start, I don't see my execution skills as being anywhere near others on this forum.


John, you are a champ. You might buy wood and spend more $$$ than some of us, but you are an inspiration. Please, don't stop now. If wood is a drug to you, keep inhaling.Thanks, Fred!! Wood has always been an "issue" for me - even with flatwork. I guess that is how I ended up with a barn full of it. But, I am not nearly as bad as Baxter Smith!!!! Now, HE has a wood problem!:D;)


Another very nice bowl John. I've heard of the Ky Coffee tree but this is the first turning I remember seeing. That's some spectacular feathering in the grain and I like the form you chose. I'm curious about the microwaving. I've tried it a few times with limited success. I might not be giving it enough time. My wife usually starts telling me to get that stinky thing out of her kitchen after 3 or 4 cookings. Let us know if you get much movement in this over the next few weeks.Thanks, Curt. After the first minute in the microwave, I pulled the bowl out, and my wife's first comment was "Wow, that stinks!!" She tolerated it well, however.

[Jeff Nicol]

John, I have wanted to try to get some of that wood to try and turn some day. Now your bowl gives me more of a desire to get some and try it. I like the shape and the crotch feather in the bottom works well. I try to leave the crotchwood in the bottom of my tunings too.

Thanks for sharing,

Jeff

[Scott Lux]

John that's a gorgeous chunk of wood, and you did your normal fabulous job on it.

You've answered a question I've had for some time. Coffeetree looks a lot like Honeylocust when growing, and now I see they similar turned. They're close related, clear down to the same tribe in the sub-family. That's about as close as a gray fox to an arctic fox. Very close.

[Roland Martin]

Ky coffee is very nice wood, first time I get to see some. I really like the form, as I appreciate the eye you have for form in all of your pieces. I'm sure the time you take up front has everything to do with a balanced form @ the end. I have to train myself to take that time up front. Although it may not have ended the way you would have liked, it still is a great looking piece, glad you didn't get hit.

[Baxter Smith]

Thanks, Fred!! Wood has always been an "issue" for me - even with flatwork. I guess that is how I ended up with a barn full of it. But, I am not nearly as bad as Baxter Smith!!!! Now, HE has a wood problem!:D;)

Thanks, Curt. After the first minute in the microwave, I pulled the bowl out, and my wife's first comment was "Wow, that stinks!!" She tolerated it well, however.
Now that is not true! Although my wife might agree with you!:) I know I never even mentioned to you all the wide white pine that was sawn from my grandfathers timber lot after the Maine fires of 49.

Picked up a microwave for the shop last summer at a recyle shop for 2 dollars. Works well on popcorn and heating water. Might consider it if you have any money left after all those blanks.:D;)

[Donny Lawson]

I like the shape of this bowl.It's got a smooth flow to it.
Donny