Getting started in hollowing

[Prashun Patel]

Basic question...

I'm making a bowl that is basically a wide-mouth hollow form. I am having trouble hollowing (safely) the area under the lip. What is the best tool for this? Any video suggestions?

- prashun

[David E Keller]

Lots of tools will work... I used the midi-hollower(swan neck) from Sorby for a while before I got the monster.... I still use it on occasion. Lots of homemade options if you're crafty.

[Michael James]

A gouge will be useless in that area if not destructive. Any bent tool with a cutting disk or tab will work, as David has suggested. Good luck

[Josh Bowman]

The John Jordan hollow turning was pretty good. To get under the neck or lip, you'll need a swan neck type tool. Or I use a straight tools with a head/cutter that can rotate. Like this one. The head/cutter can be rotated back wards or sideways to get in the hard to get places.
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/31bcTH6moIL._SL500_AA300_.jpg

[Ron Bontz]

I just had this problem on the Ugly Pumpkin head and bought a Hollow master. It worked very well. Helped keep the thickness down between 3 /16th and 1/4". I don't like the idea of sharpening those small cutters. So a hunter swan neck is perhaps in the future. Best of luck.:)

[Bernie Weishapl]

I use the monster swan neck or on small turnings a hunter swan neck to get in the tricky areas.

[Wally Dickerman]

For simple hollowforms you don't need to purchase a tool. My first hollowing tool was a shop made boring bar. (That was so long ago that there were no Commercially made hollowing tools available). For medium sized HF's a 12 inch mild steel bar 1/2 or 5/8 inch square wil do. Bore a suitable sized hole in one end at about 15 or 20 degrees angle and install a cutter, using epoxy. The cutter is a 3/16 inch used in other hollowing tools and is available for very little money. Install the bar in a 17 or 18 inch handle. The tool will cost no more than $20, and will work very well.

Use the tool by tucking it under your arm and against your side. Body movements will move the tool. You have much better control this way.

Start your hollowing by boring a hole down the center to just short of the finished depth. The hole is an aid in hollowing and is also a depth gauge.

If the opening in the HF is wide enough (and it should be in your initial attempts) most of the hollowing can be done with a bowl gouge ground at about 40 deg. on the nose.

Good luch and have fun.

Wally

[Leo Van Der Loo]

Basic question...

I'm making a bowl that is basically a wide-mouth hollow form. I am having trouble hollowing (safely) the area under the lip. What is the best tool for this? Any video suggestions?

- prashun

Anything that CUTS gives the better surface, Bowl gouge or even a spindle gouge, ring tool (all very carefully), the other thing is a skewed scraper, again careful and no more than needed, sandpaper after that (spotsanding probably) :)