Cherry Burl Bowls

[Rich Aldrich]

I finally had a chance today to finish two bowls from a cherry burl that I roughed out in September.

I have not decided what to use for finish. On hand, I have salad bowl finish and wipe on poly. I was considering laquer. Any suggestions?

Bowl #1 - the first picture - is about 9" diameter and 2" high. Wall thickness is about 1/4".

Bowl #2 - the second and third pictures - is about 10" diameter and 3 1/2" high. Wall thickness is about 1/4".

[Roger Chandler]

nice form Rich, and pretty grain in that burl! Good job :)

[John Keeton]

Very nice form on both! That burl is going to really come to life when finished. Any of the finishes you mention would pop the grain, but if the bowls are going to be used, and washed, I think I would go with a renewable finish. The poly doesn't do well in that regard. The lacquer can be easily recoated and will "burn in" to the previous finish so long as it is clean of any oils, dirt, etc. But, I think I would lean toward walnut oil, or the salad bowl finish - probably the same thing.

[charlie knighton]

nice bowls.....

[Bernie Weishapl]

Really nice bowls. That burl sure did come out nice. I also would use walnut oil to finish if used for utility.

[Baxter Smith]

I would go with the oil if they are going to be used. Hope you add a finished pic to this post. Always interesting to see how things come alive!

[Richard Madden]

Great looking bowls. Oil finish would be my choice.

[Steve Schlumpf]

Rich - glad to see you got some lathe time in! Nice bowls! I would suggest the salad bowl finish if you plan on using these for food - that way you don't have to worry about the surface finish chipping and getting into your food at some point.

Hope to see a couple of photos of the bowls once finished.

[Rich Aldrich]

Thanks for the compliments. I decided to go with salad bowl finish. I really dont want to see them used as they have porosity and holes and such. However, if someone does use them for food, it wont be a problem.

I will post finished pictures and somewhere I think I have a picture of the burl with my Husqy sitting beside it.

[Matt Newton]

I love cherry burls. I have always used BLO and then Beall buffed. Either way the oil will make the grain pop.

[Rich Aldrich]

When you polish them with the Beal system, are you concerned about the polishing compound getting into the rough spots? These both have rough areas where anything can collect. I didnt fill the porosity with anything but what finish they will hold naturally.