Beaded Hollowforms....

[Wally Dickerman]

Here are a couple of my latest beaded pieces. The maple and blackwood vessel is 4.5 inches in dia. The zebrawood piece is 4 inches in dia.

The beading tool that I use is shopmade and is my "secret weapon". I'll tell you anything that I know about woodturning except for my beading tool. The tool cuts very smoothly with no tearout (except in certain woods, which of course I avoid). I sand the beads with 320 and 400 in both forward and reverse.

The finish is several coats of Daly's tungoil finish. After the first soaking coat I polish with Tripoli and white diamond. No wax.

Comments welcome.

Wally

[John Keeton]

Wally, these are great pieces!! I have been wanting to try some beading on a HF, and this may be my inspiration. I have even given thought to making a beading tool for consistency - but, I won't even ask about yours!!:D;)

Thanks for posting these! You do such nice work, and the bonus was posting something that I have wanted to try.

[Richard Madden]

Both pieces are very nice. But why so secret about the beading tool?

[David E Keller]

Nicely done on both, but the first one is amazing. That's the prettiest piece of zebrawood I've ever seen... It almost looks like some type of striped ebony. I'll have to consider beading on an upcoming form.

[Tim Rinehart]

I'll say the secret weapon is a vintage Craftsman flat blade screwdriver that has seen a grinding wheel and a round diamond hone....but that's just my guess.

Wally, great looking pieces, I like the effect of increasing the surface area by the beading...adds a nice dimension to the piece. At least for me, it draws me to look over every bit of the piece, and I like what I see.

[Allen Neighbors]

Wally, your forms are exquisite! The beading is precise. And you made the tool in your shop.
I've seen quite a few posts about your "secret" beading tool, and have wondered for as many years, just how it could be?
I now believe it's just your own rendition of a shop-made skew! :D
But, man, can't wait until I get to read some more of those ever coming guesses! :)

[Steve Schlumpf]

Wally - excellent work as always! Great finials! What I like most about your style of beading is that you leave open spaces on each end! That allows your eye to travel the entire length of the form and note the differences in texture. They both have a very balanced feel to them!

Thanks for sharing Wally! Always a treat to see your work!

[Keith Burns]

Surperb as always Wally !

[charlie knighton]

very nice, Wally, thanks for sharing

[Richard Madison]

Nice work Wally, esp. the maple piece. Am pretty sure I have at least one of those beading tools.

[Roland Martin]

Very nice forms on both turnings and the beading is amazing. I especially like the maple form. Thanks for sharing your great work Wally.

[Wally Dickerman]

Both pieces are very nice. But why so secret about the beading tool?

Thanks Richard.....The "secret weapon" started out several years ago as a sort of joke, on another forum. So far, it has just stayed that way. Hey, lots of woodworkers have a secret or two:)

Wally

[Baxter Smith]

Very distinctive! The zebra wood is striking and the form is great for it!

[Steve Kubien]

When Wally passes on (not too soon I pray!) there will be a note beside his cremation urn. It will read something like, "For those who want to know about my "secret beading tool", well, the details are inside this urn.":)

Amazing work as always Wally. I really like the effect the beads have on the zebrano.

[Harvey Meyer]

have you checked your shop lately to see if the secret weapon is still there? I may have "borrowed" it from you while you were out taking a walk. Maple burl 6" tall and cherry 5" tall. But seriously Wally, your beaded forms inspired me to make a secret weapon. On the 3rd try, I now have a secret weapon that performs very well in most woods. I'll honor the code and will keep it secret. ;)
Harvey

[Richard Madden]

OK, Wally and Harvey...code of silence, I can respect that, but help me out here if you can, or if you dare. I have thought about buying Sorby's Beading tool, not the Easy Beader. How does this compare to your secret weapons? Is the Sorby Beading tool any good? Or, is there another you would suggest? Thus, my curiosity.

[Harvey Meyer]

Richard -
Beading tools by Sorby and others are scrapers. They leave a scraped surface and will not cut beads that are very close together like you see in the photos. My tool is homemade and I suspect Wally's is also homemade. The tool I made actually cuts the beads with the exception of the very top or crown of the bead. If I don't stop cutting before the tool contacts the very top of the bead, it will leave a scraped surface on the top and might cause some chipping. I'm careful to not let the tool continue to work as it approaches the extreme top of the bead. It leaves the top with a flat spot that is about 1/32" and the 320 sandpaper makes quick work of it.

My 1st attempt at making the tool used an old 3/8 spindle gouge upside down. The 2nd attempt was from a piece of 3/8 round drill rod. The 3rd and final attempt was from a 1/4" square cross section HSS scraper that I re-purposed into the beading tool. I hone the tool before using it and it can cut lots of beads before needing honing again. If you google "Ashley Iles Beading Tool" you'll get the general idea, but that's not quite what my tool looks like.

If Wally gives the OK, I would post a picture. But only if Wally says it's OK.
Harvey

[Wally Dickerman]

Richard -
Beading tools by Sorby and others are scrapers. They leave a scraped surface and will not cut beads that are very close together like you see in the photos. My tool is homemade and I suspect Wally's is also homemade. The tool I made actually cuts the beads with the exception of the very top or crown of the bead. If I don't stop cutting before the tool contacts the very top of the bead, it will leave a scraped surface on the top and might cause some chipping. I'm careful to not let the tool continue to work as it approaches the extreme top of the bead. It leaves the top with a flat spot that is about 1/32" and the 320 sandpaper makes quick work of it.

My 1st attempt at making the tool used an old 3/8 spindle gouge upside down. The 2nd attempt was from a piece of 3/8 round drill rod. The 3rd and final attempt was from a 1/4" square cross section HSS scraper that I re-purposed into the beading tool. I hone the tool before using it and it can cut lots of beads before needing honing again. If you google "Ashley Iles Beading Tool" you'll get the general idea, but that's not quite what my tool looks like.

If Wally gives the OK, I would post a picture. But only if Wally says it's OK.
Harvey

Well hey, here's a pic of my beading tool...:D

Sure Harvey, post a pic....Sounds like yours is different than mine anyhow. Maybe even better.

Wally

[David DeCristoforo]

Looks to me like Harvey's tool cuts cleaner beads than Wally's. Unless Harvey is just a better photographer! So if I send out spies, I'm sending them to Harvey's shop...

[George Guadiane]

I would not have thought that I would through the title, but these are really cool!

[Harvey Meyer]

For the first time, my secret weapon is revealed. It's made from 1/4" HSS square scraper that has been reground as a bead forming tool. The 1st pic shows the top, side and bottom views. Sorry for the crummy photos, but I'm too lazy to get out the tent and the lights. The second photo shows how I ground the shape. This tool cuts 1/4" beads.

Start out by grinding the top to about a 45 degree angle. Then, using a 1/4" diamond burr in a Dremel or other rotary tool, carefully start grinding the tip of the tool so that a round shape is ground exactly in the center of the tool. The burr is perpendicular to the length of the tool steel when doing this. Then grind a flute on the bottom of the tool by repositioning the burr at the angle shown.

Hone the tool on the top and 2 sides. Hone the flute with a conical diamond hone. The 2 points are extremely sharp.

Use the tool flat on the tool rest, at or slightly above center with the handle slightly down. The flute is down as in the leftmost segment of the 1st pic. Place the points into the wood and advance slowly. The points and wings will score the sides of the beads as the tool progresses. Nice shavings coming off at this point. Just before the center of the tool is about to touch the top of the bead (I where magnifiers when I do this), stop cutting and leave a micro flat on top of the bead. This sands away with 320 in a few seconds.

I generally make 5 or 6 beads at once. Use the points of the tools to mark off and score the outer sides of the beads and then cut each one about half way and then go back and finish them all. Hard dense woods do very well. Open grain woods not so well. Also, you have to have the piece formed to whatever form you're trying for. The surface quality should be free of tool marks and tear out. If you have to sand, you must blow the piece off thoroughly with compressed air or any grit embedded in the wood will quickly dull your tool. I try to get the best surface possible so that I don't have to sand before cutting beads. Another reason to not sand is that the piece must run absolutely true. It cannot have have any run out or you will get beads completely cut on one side and only partially cut on the other side. You cannot use this tool to refine the shape of your piece. It only cuts beads. Lastly, and this should be obvious, for hollow forms, you cut the beads before you hollow the inside. Otherwise the piece will change shape when you gut the inside and it won't run true.

This is based on the Ashley Iles beading tool. It works for me and I've turned about 12 beaded hollow forms in the last year. I also have to add the caveat that I'm not half the turner that Wally is and I don't know what his secret weapon looks like (except for the handle) and maybe Wally will give us some clues about how his tool looks and operates. I have my theory about Wally's tool. I suspect it's just a spindle gouge and he rolls each bead. He leads us to believe that he cheats by using a beading tool, but I think he actually rolls them. I saw Al Stirt do this on the back of a platter. Right in front of me, he rolled about 30 beads in a row on the back of a platter using a spindle gouge. C'mon Wally - 'fess up.

Harvey

[Bernie Weishapl]

Wally those are beauties. I made a tool like Harvey's and going to give that a try.

[Wally Dickerman]

For the first time, my secret weapon is revealed. It's made from 1/4" HSS square scraper that has been reground as a bead forming tool. The 1st pic shows the top, side and bottom views. Sorry for the crummy photos, but I'm too lazy to get out the tent and the lights. The second photo shows how I ground the shape. This tool cuts 1/4" beads.

Start out by grinding the top to about a 45 degree angle. Then, using a 1/4" diamond burr in a Dremel or other rotary tool, carefully start grinding the tip of the tool so that a round shape is ground exactly in the center of the tool. The burr is perpendicular to the length of the tool steel when doing this. Then grind a flute on the bottom of the tool by repositioning the burr at the angle shown.

Hone the tool on the top and 2 sides. Hone the flute with a conical diamond hone. The 2 points are extremely sharp.

Use the tool flat on the tool rest, at or slightly above center with the handle slightly down. The flute is down as in the leftmost segment of the 1st pic. Place the points into the wood and advance slowly. The points and wings will score the sides of the beads as the tool progresses. Nice shavings coming off at this point. Just before the center of the tool is about to touch the top of the bead (I where magnifiers when I do this), stop cutting and leave a micro flat on top of the bead. This sands away with 320 in a few seconds.

I generally make 5 or 6 beads at once. Use the points of the tools to mark off and score the outer sides of the beads and then cut each one about half way and then go back and finish them all. Hard dense woods do very well. Open grain woods not so well. Also, you have to have the piece formed to whatever form you're trying for. The surface quality should be free of tool marks and tear out. If you have to sand, you must blow the piece off thoroughly with compressed air or any grit embedded in the wood will quickly dull your tool. I try to get the best surface possible so that I don't have to sand before cutting beads. Another reason to not sand is that the piece must run absolutely true. It cannot have have any run out or you will get beads completely cut on one side and only partially cut on the other side. You cannot use this tool to refine the shape of your piece. It only cuts beads. Lastly, and this should be obvious, for hollow forms, you cut the beads before you hollow the inside. Otherwise the piece will change shape when you gut the inside and it won't run true.

This is based on the Ashley Iles beading tool. It works for me and I've turned about 12 beaded hollow forms in the last year. I also have to add the caveat that I'm not half the turner that Wally is and I don't know what his secret weapon looks like (except for the handle) and maybe Wally will give us some clues about how his tool looks and operates. I have my theory about Wally's tool. I suspect it's just a spindle gouge and he rolls each bead. He leads us to believe that he cheats by using a beading tool, but I think he actually rolls them. I saw Al Stirt do this on the back of a platter. Right in front of me, he rolled about 30 beads in a row on the back of a platter using a spindle gouge. C'mon Wally - 'fess up.

Harvey

Very interesting Harvey. I have a platter that has 5 beads that was turned by Richard Raffan at least 20 years ago. Turned on my lathe in fact. I watched him closely as he was rolling the beads with a spindle gouge. Each bead is perfect and is exactly the same size as the others. I've tried to do this as Richard did. I can turn the beads okay, but I can't seem to get them all the same size, so the results look terrible. In my eyes, at least.

Your tool is different than mine but similar in it's operation. Our methods are a bit different. I complete each bead before going to the next one. I only use a vessel that's been roughed out inside and out, and is dry. I don't want any movement of the wood. As I work my way down the piece doing the beads, I follow after doing 5 or 6 beads, and complete the hollowing down to the last bead or two. I tend to do my regular hollowing quite thin (hopefully, not too thin with the beads). If I came back after all the beads were done to do the finish hollowing I could run into problems.

I have two tools but I seldom use the one that makes larger beads. I have done it on a large piece and it looks fine, but most of my turnings these days are on the small side.

I like your piece very much, by the way. The beads look perfect.

Wally

[David E Keller]

Very interesting thread. Now I need to find some 1/4 inch HSS stock and a diamond burr for the dremel. I'll pattern my handle after Wally's tool:D

Thanks for the info and the photos Harvey.

[Harvey Meyer]

Very interesting Harvey.

Your tool is different than mine but similar in it's operation. Our methods are a bit different. I complete each bead before going to the next one. I only use a vessel that's been roughed out inside and out, and is dry. I don't want any movement of the wood. As I work my way down the piece doing the beads, I follow after doing 5 or 6 beads, and complete the hollowing down to the last bead or two. I tend to do my regular hollowing quite thin (hopefully, not too thin with the beads). If I came back after all the beads were done to do the finish hollowing I could run into problems.

I have two tools but I seldom use the one that makes larger beads. I have done it on a large piece and it looks fine, but most of my turnings these days are on the small side.

I like your piece very much, by the way. The beads look perfect.

Wally

Thanks Wally. Your method intrigues me. It never occurred to me to cut some beads and then hollow. I'll have to try that. When I turn all the beads and then hollow, I measure wall thickness often and carefully. The beads can give you a false sense of thickness that really isn't there. When I watched Stirt roll beads on the back of the platter, he made them go from larger (3/8) at the platter rim, gradually getting smaller to the platter center. I tried that and that's why I made the tool:D I should also point out that when Stirt rolled the beads, he didn't roll them in the conventional way: top down on each side. He started at the bottom of a bead, rolls all the way over the top to the bottom of the other side. I think I've seen Geo Hatfield do that too.

[Richard Madden]

Wally and Harvey, I thank you both for unveiling some of the mystery here. Sorry if I was pressing (no I'm not):D, but this is something I've wanted to try (beading) and I didn't want to waste $40.00 on a tool that may have been a dissappointment.
Thanks again to both of you.

[Wally Dickerman]

Thanks everyone for your comments and interest. Beading has become almost a trademark for me. I've done a lot of them.

Wally

[Wally Dickerman]

Thanks everyone for your comments and interest. Beading has become almost a trademark for me. I've done a lot of them....:)

Wally

[Norm Zax]

A great thanks to all who have contributed. Sharing is the best way for all to advance. Otherwise, we are just presenting finished work for others to admire.
Thanks again,
Norm