Well ....I tried turning for the first time

[Jay Jolliffe]

and it's harder than it looks. I pick up doing things pretty easy but not this. I took a two day course at the Center for Furniture Craftsmenship in Rockport Maine. Great school. I've taken other classes there. They have a room full of Oneway lathes. 11 of them....Since it was for beginners the stuff we did seemed simple. Did Pommels, beads, coves, tapers the first day. I could do everything well except the beads. The second day a shallow bowl about 10". Could not for the life of me get a nice smooth surface with the bowl gouge. I tried & almost had it then the dreaded catch & boy did it mess it up. So I'm not that keen on spending thousands for something that comes real hard for me. I know it takes practice .......I don't know.......I guess my wife doesn't have to worry right now that I'd be going on a spending spree for new tools.....This shallow bowl took me about 3 hrs.....Don't laugh tooo hard

[Jim Burr]

What's wrong with that Jay? Took me an hour to do a pen once and normally these pop out in 15 minutes. I think it's a fine bowl...and everyone here has had at least 1 catch. Maybe one of us in your area could offer some instruction/help as well. Don't get discouraged and keep it up!

[Richard Madden]

Don't get discouraged. And always remember we have that 80 grit gouge at our disposal.:D

[charlie knighton]

when you finish one, how long is it for????? :D

[Tim Rinehart]

My similar experiences early on had me thinking certain woods just didn't take a tool well. hahaha, silly me. May be true, but had nothing to do with the wood I was turning...it just takes practice and good application of correct technique.
You'll be surprised how much better you are after spending just one session with someone who knows good technique and can see what you're doing wrong.
Have fun...your piece looks great too!!

[Duff Bement]

I hadn't turned all summer, that is untill last weekend. It took 3.5 hours to make 2 little birdhouse ornaments. But that does incude the first 3 that hit the wall :D. The most important thing to remember that evan at it's worst it is still more fun than doing dishes.
]Shapen your tools and take light cuts when you get close, :( now if I just could remember this I would have this turning thing licked.
Good luck and don't give up!

[Rob Holcomb]

I'm still in the learning process and it takes me an 1 1/2 hours to rough out a bowl and another 1 1/2 hours to do the finish turning. I never pay any attention to how long something takes me to make because I'm not doing production work. It's my hobby/pastime and a way to relieve stress after a long day at work. If and when turning or any woodworking becomes a "job" I'll give it up. Sure it would be nice to sell some pieces one day but I do it for fun, not income and I would never want it to become something I "have" to do. I enjoy it just fine being something I "want" to do! When I make a mistake, like get a catch, it's usually not tool presentation for me. It's that I'm trying to go too fast or I get too comfortable or I'm just not being careful enough when approaching the piece with the tool. Usually on the inside of a bowl where things can sometimes not be as easy to get at.

[John Keeton]

Jay, I think turning is somewhat akin to learning to ride a bike - you can try and try, and it just doesn't happen. There is no such thing as improvement in the way one falls over on a bike!!

Then....all of a sudden, it happens!:D The bike stays upright, you go forward, and you get that feeling of euphoria!

Sure, you will still fall over every now and then for a short while, but it all starts to come second nature.

Turning is the same way. It will happen - give it time.

[James Combs]

Jay, don't be discouraged. Ive only been turning about a year and in that time I've probably had 5-6 major catches (I define major as the kind that scare the crap out of you) and I had my first flying bowl last week. The dang thing broke loose from the tail stock live center and went flying across the shop, talk about scare tactics. My point is that I went right back to work on each catch and turned away the damaged area and in the case of the bowl went and found it and after checking it for cracks chucked it back up and went back to work on it.

As John K. put it just get back up on the bike and keep pedaling it will come.

BTW I thing that's darn good looking bowl. Cherry isn't it? A favorite wood of mine.

[Don Alexander]

if at first you don't succeed TRY, TRY again and again if necessary

the only people who don't ever get a catch are the ones who never turn anything

if it was super easy ANY ole wood butcher could do it and then it wouldn't be all that much fun

satisfaction factor is multiplied by the effort needed to excell

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Jay,

The 2nd day you turned that bowl? Great bowl!


Turning like so many other things is a learned skill that takes time and knowledge.....and then more time.

Don't give up...........

[Bernie Weishapl]

Jay don't get discouraged. My first bowl took me 6 hrs and that included a couple of design oppurtunities after a couple of catches that increased the pucker factor by 4.:eek::D The other thing that makes it bad for me is I am not close to anywhere that I could take turning lessons. So stay after it.

[Dan Forman]

"Success is the ability to go from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm"
- Winston Churchill-

Don't sweat it, turning is all about control of the tool, and that comes through experience and guidance.

Dan

[Mike Cruz]

Hey, that's what they make sandpaper for!!!!!!

Seriously, though. Can you just hear the mysery not letting company go? :D These guys are a hoot. They are right, mind you, that it will come to you eventually, that you will fall in love with it, and that YES you WILL spend more on turning than you did on flat work...

Keep at it. Rome wasn't built in a day. Neither were "beautiful first bowls". Get a decent midi lathe off CL for a good price. Turn a bunch. Take more classes. Hang out with and learn from other Creekers. If THEN it turns (ha, no pun intended) out that turning isn't for you, sell the stuff at little to no loss. I agree, don't go out and spend $3000 on a lathe, and another $3000 on tools for something you aren't "sure" about. Wait to spend that $6000 AFTER you find out you really can do it...;)

[Baxter Smith]

Hi Jay,
Not a bad looking bowl at all. Pretty darn good actually! Drove by that school last Friday. Had to pick up some meds for my mothers dog at the vet right across the road. I wouldn't suggest giving up because you will miss out on a lot of fun!:D But then again, it would save you a ton of money and time.:)

[Kyle Iwamoto]

I agree with all the above. I never finished my first 2 bowl attempts, so you're doing MUCH better than I. My 3rd bowl I finished, but it looked way worse than that...... Keep on trying.

[Fred Perreault]

Jay, that is pretty wood, and a great looking form, 1st try or not. Many early turners get frustrated and/or frightened by it all. Keep at it at your comfort level.....practice, practice, practice. And get out there and find some free wood. You'll never look at trees or firewood the same way again.

[Rob Cunningham]

That's a pretty good looking bowl. Don't get frustrated, it takes time and a lot of mistakes. All of the sudden it gets easier.