#34 - Spalted Holly and Ebony

[John Keeton]

This must be the week for spalted holly! After Mike Minto posted his beautiful piece, I hated to be a copy cat, but this one was already in progress!:o
150523150524150525
6" wide, 3" to the top of the form, and 6" to tip of the finial. The walls are 3/16" or so, and the finial is .09" at the neck. The "appliques" on the finial are spalted holly. The collar is permanent, and the finial is removable.

This was my first experience with Gaboon ebony, and I do not care for it. Compared to African Blackwood, it is certainly more black, but not nearly as friendly to turn. I still have enough for another turning, and will use it. But I doubt I will buy more. I thought it may just be my technique, but I emailed Cindy Drozda on a couple of questions, and she indicated she does not use ebony anymore either. Made me feel a little better!!;)

The finish is lacquer, triple Beall buffed with Ren wax.

Give me your thoughts!

Oh yeah, for those that may keep count, #33 is missing. It is part of the Art Challenge, and won't be posted until June.

[GLENN THOMAS]

John,

I like everything about it but I have to say the finial is the coolest one I've seen so far. I can't recall seeing another one like it.

GT

[Mark Hix]

You mean this is not for the art challenge?? I can't wait to see what you produce for that. Great looking bowl and I love what you did with the finial.

You know, they are hard enough to get right without you raising the bar some more for the rest of us.

[Toney Robertson]

Very nice John.

The holly is beautiful and that is a nice touch on the finial.

Now if you would have just dyed it purple it would have been perfect!!! :rolleyes:

Toney

[Mike Minto]

John, another great piece! Nice form, and the accent on the finial really draws it together. I like how you get the finial so thin - have you broken any yet :p while making them? Can't wait to see your entry in the artistic challenge.

[Thom Sturgill]

Wow, John you've nailed the form and the holly in the finial is an excellent touch. Ties the two together nicely. If you are holding back #33, and display this, I can't wait to see #33!!!

[Sid Matheny]

You sure are making a lot of us look bad John. Super job all the way around!!!

Sid

[George Morris]

John very well done! G

[Bernie Weishapl]

John that is a beauty. Really beautiful finial. I like what you did.

[David E Keller]

Very nice, John. The appliques are a wonderful touch. Great wood combination and great form. I wouldn't change a thing about this one.

[Curt Fuller]

Beautiful work again John. The colors in the holly look great with the black finial.




Give me your thoughts!


Because you asked for thoughts, here goes..
I've never tried a finial like that but I have tried ornaments, specifically the ball portion on ball and icicle ornaments, using the same concept. What bothers me about mine and I see a tiny bit of the same problem in yours too is that #1, it's really hard to keep the wood that's glued to the center piece from chipping where it feathers out to nothing at the edges. And #2, it's also really hard to get the center piece perfectly square and the piece centered perfectly on the lathe so that the glued on pieces turn out the same size on all four sides. It's amazing how just being a hair out of whack can throw it off. I know that's some serious nit picking but your work is getting so darned good that it takes a very close look at it to see anything that could be improved.

[Roland Martin]

Very well done John. The form and the holly are great. The finial is not only attractive with the appliques, but the fragility is amazing. Are you getting some lessons from Cindy?:D From top to bottom, this is a wonderful piece!

[Gary Conklin]

Wow, once there was a flatlander named John, now there is a full fledged woodturner! Well done!!

[Steve Schlumpf]

John - very impressive piece! Love the spalted Holly! Very interesting design concept on your finial!

As mentioned before - I like this form - without the pedestal. Nice overall flow to the piece! Seriously - nice work!

Looking forward to seeing your art submission and any others you get finished before then!

[gary Zimmel]

Another sweet piece John.
My hat is off to you how far you have come in a short time in this round world....
If you are ever way up north can you drop in and give me a couple of lessons.

[Cathy Schaewe]

Unbelievable.

Do you have a link or something on those appliques? Not that I'm at that stage, or anywhere near; I'm still in kindergarden. But it's always nice to read about new things.

Do you have a website yet? If not, maybe you should ....

[John W Dixon]

Another great looking piece. I sure enjoy seeing your work and look forward to seeing where you go next.

John

[Paul Douglass]

John, everytime I look at one of you pieces I go "WOW" as in WOW oh WOW!!! You turn some just plan great stuff. My only complaint is I will never bother posting anything I turn, it wouldn't even get in the ball park.

[alex carey]

I KNEW IT, I woke up and looked at forum and knew that today would be the day we finally got another Keeton turning.

Well done, its a beauty.

[Bill Bolen]

Another beautiful piece John. I've tried the applique metnod on finials and never was satisfied with it. Looks like your spot on with this one. Feels like you really put your heart into it...Bill...

[James Combs]

Nicely done John, nicely done.

[Brian Effinger]

Beautiful form JK. Photos have come a long way as well.
While I like the shape of the finial, I'm not too crazy about the applied holly. That's just my taste though.
Overall, very well done. :)

[John Keeton]

Thanks for all the kind words!! Holly is such a joy to turn and finish, and I like the look of the spalting against the white. I still have another piece of this wood, but it is not as nice and has some bug holes. Just not sure what I will do with it.


If you are holding back #33, and display this, I can't wait to see #33!!!Thom, #33 is my "utility" piece for the challenge, so nothing special about it.


What bothers me about mine and I see a tiny bit of the same problem in yours too is that #1, it's really hard to keep the wood that's glued to the center piece from chipping where it feathers out to nothing at the edges. And #2, it's also really hard to get the center piece perfectly square and the piece centered perfectly on the lathe so that the glued on pieces turn out the same size on all four sides. It's amazing how just being a hair out of whack can throw it off. I know that's some serious nit picking but your work is getting so darned good that it takes a very close look at it to see anything that could be improved.Curt, you are exactly correct! This was the second finial for this piece for a couple reasons - I wasn't satisfied with the appliques, but more importantly, as I was parting it off I was talking to my son who was visiting. NEVER do that!!:eek: After bouncing off the wall, and landing several feet from the lathe, it only broke about an inch off the tip!:mad: The slight alignment issue on this one is due to the stock not being machined dead square. I did it with handplanes. If I do another, I will take more care with that aspect of the design. When I chuck up finial material, I leave the stock square, and clamp it between the jaws of my chuck and line it up with the tailstock. So, getting it centered is not difficult.


Unbelievable.

Do you have a link or something on those appliques? Not that I'm at that stage, or anywhere near; I'm still in kindergarden. But it's always nice to read about new things.

Do you have a website yet? If not, maybe you should ....Cathy, I do not have a website, but the appliques are easy. They are just small slabs of wood that are applied with 5 minute epoxy. Placement is not critical except for grain alignment when it has a pattern like the spalting. As mentioned above, getting the underlying stock machined correctly is the key. And, starting with the correct size. I knew the final thickness I was after, and using that (plus a little) for the hypotenuse, I calculated the cross sectional thickness for the square stock. I did sand the mating surfaces so as to remove tool marks in an attempt to lessen the "chipping" at the glueline. Sanding will remove most of that problem if it occurs.


My only complaint is I will never bother posting anything I turn, it wouldn't even get in the ball park.Paul, posting pics of your turnings is the BEST way to improve. The input one receives is very helpful, and it pushes one to continually improve. I would encourage you to post some turnings - I am betting they are better than you think!:)

[Tony De Masi]

You've done it again Mr. Keeton. Exceptionally well done.

Tony

[Mike Golka]

John not much more can be said about this piece that hasn't already. I like it, fine job.

[Ray Bell]

John, I find it amazing how far you have came, so fast. You have a good eye for wonderful design, and your technique is getting superb.

[charlie knighton]

very nice, thanks for sharing

[bob svoboda]

A beautiful piece of wood made more beautiful by your turning prowess. Nicely done, John!

[Harvey Ghesser]

Beautiful work, John.:)

[Robert McGowen]

I like this one. Everything is balanced and flows together from top to bottom. Extra nice finial!

[Ken Hill]

Incredible work!

[Rob Cunningham]

Beautiful piece John. Nice shape and finish. The accents in the finial really bring it all together.

[John Keeton]

Thanks for taking the time to look and comment, guys!! I do appreciate it.

[Jeff Luedloff]

wow John that is a awesome piece. your design is very evenly balanced out between vessel and finial. great job.

[Tim Rinehart]

John,
As has been said by all, superb work. My only complaint...is that the technique for applying the appliques just became YET ANOTHER thing I want to try on my list of VERY COOL STUFF that you and others do.

Beautiful form and flow. I have a nice sized piece of holly waiting for something to do...but it's absent the gorgeous spalting present in that piece.

[Patrick Schneider]

Very artistic and eye catching. Both your turning skills and finishing skills are well polished!

[Bill Wilcox]

John, I really think you have out done yourself. I also think that you purposely leave a few zero's off of the bowl numbers.

[Bill Wyko]

John, that is absolutely stunning. I would say one of the finest displays of beautiful figure I've ever seen. You really hit a homer with this one.

[John Keeton]

Jeff, Tim, Patrick, and the "Bills", thanks for looking and commenting. I am familiar with the work some of you do, and your opinions mean a lot!

[neil mackay]

John I like it, it reminds me I have a couple decent sized chunks of Solomon Island ebony that I been meaning to turn into finials.:)

[steven carter]

John,

Great form, I really like the spalted holly. The finish is excellent as usual. I know that I'm in the minority here, but to me the appliques on the finial draw my eyers there and away from the hollow form. I think the finial is great (and I have been viewing the Drozda finial videos of yours), but feel it would work better on a plain HF that needs some distraction, and your HF definitely does not need any distraction. Just my $.02.

Steve

[Mark Hubl]

John,

These just keep getting better. This piece is a beauty. The spalted wood and the ebony look great together. Love the finial, you are really mastering these. Great piece.