Black Ash Burl with Natural Flaws

[Cory Norgart]

This is my first turning with natural flaws. Natural flaws have always caught my eye. I had some trouble finishing the inside bottom do to some inclusions, I kept catching. So there is a few tool lines on the bottom that are visual. I used a radius, or rounded, scraper to try and finish the bottom inside, but,,,,, Any suggestions?

[Jim Burr]

What a great chunk of burl Cory. Haven't seem that shape to many times...works great for showing off the grain.
Check your scraper and make sure it is crazy sharp. Remember that scrapers address the wood handle up so the burr is doing the work. Last...just super light cuts...whisper thin curlies. That may help with the catches.

[bob svoboda]

Beautiful wood! JMO, but I think the inside shape with steep sides and a fairly flat bottom would make it pretty difficult to get an effective tool presentation angle. That being said, you did a nice job of making a tough transition from side to bottom. Love the inclusions.

[Nathan Hawkes]

Woodcraft makes a super long bowl scraper that is great for working off the toolrest. You really need to use the tool on its side taking shear cuts to refine that transition. There is no powder metal scraper produced that is long enough or thick enough for my liking, so this HSS one is the only one that fits the bill, but you need to sharpen often, as with any tool regardless of the alloy. I don't have a picture of my grind, but I made a much more gentle radius out of the edge of the scraper. Here's woodcraft's website for details.

http://www.woodcraft.com/Product/2000416/3573/WOODCRAFT-Superlong-Bowl-Scraper.aspx?refcode=05INFROO&gdd=12W41

[Dan Forman]

Good looking bowl, like the shape, as Jim said, very light final cuts, keep your tool sharp, and work your way down from the rim in sections all the way down to the final cut, so that the wood below will support the wood above, no more than about an inch and a half per section - otherwise the outer areas will chatter when cut. For deep work such as this, you might want to consider one of these as well http://jtturningtools.com/offset-toolrest

Dan

[Bill Schoppert]

Wow beautiful piece of burl and to me a great looking bowl. Well done

[Steve Schlumpf]

Cory - that sure is some pretty wood!

You did a great job on a very difficult form! You can debate until the cows come home about which tool will work at getting the bottom of a bowl clean! Each turner has something different that works for them and I am no different and will use whatever technique/tool needed to get the job done. In this particular case - seeing as how you are dealing with a flat bottom and a wide open top... I would get the bottom cut as clean as possible, then power sand using an extension! As far as I am concerned - sandpaper is a tool and when used properly - does an amazing job!

Looking forward to seeing more of your work!

[Mark Levitski]

That is a nice piece of burl. Inclusions are a lot easier to cut if they are not loose at all. Sometimes you need to glue them so they are stabile for your tools to cut through without them moving and causing a catch. Sometimes there will be a peninsula-like flap that is the culprit. You will never get a good cut over that latitude of the piece due to the tool bouncing from hitting that flap. Glue it enough to stop movement and your cut will be much better.

And like others said, sharp. After taking all the precautions, you still might need to resort to some sanding in areas that remain problematic. Just be careful with sanding. You can't just apply the 80 grit to the piece spinning on the lathe. The softer areas and bark inclusions will quickly become indentations if you're not careful. Power sand the hard spots and go around the softer ones, at least until you get up in the grits.

I took a quick photo of a piece that is finished but not buffed. Cherry burl, 6 X 6", about 1/8" thick:

189960

[David E Keller]

Nice work on a really great looking piece of wood, Cory.

[Baxter Smith]

Great looking work. Nice shape with some nice wood!

[Michelle Rich]

Yep, I concur with steve..sandpaper is a super tool..can you get your toolrest inside the bowl? Get your scraper closer to the bottom? That truly helps. Great burl