Oregon Myrtle Hollow Form with a How I do it

[Curt Fuller]

I haven't had much turning time in a while but finally got a chance to get after it this weekend. A while back my BIL brought this chunk of Oregon Myrtle back from a trip to the Oregon coast. It was a really dry piece of wood, a little soft in spots, and it really darkened with the oil. It ended up about 6.5" x 4.5" and so far it is just oiled with AO, not buffed yet.
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I took some pics along the way so I'll try one of these progression things.

[Curt Fuller]

It started out like this...194021
I cut it somewhat round on the bandsaw, mounted it between centers, and shaped the bottom side somewhat and cut a tenon. I usually soak my tenons in CA just for a little added insurance...
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Then I continued rounding the top side to see where the low areas would be that eventually form the voids in the finished HF...
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[Curt Fuller]

I usually mark the bottom of my tenons and line the mark up with the #1 jaw of my chuck. Then if I have to rechuck for any reason it's easier to get it chucked more true. 194031
So now it's chucked up and ready to drill out the center to begin hollowing..
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I usually begin hollowing with a straight cutter until I get enough room inside for an angled cutter..
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I also soak the edges of what will be the void with CA to help prevent them from splintering while hollowing...
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With the voids it makes it pretty easy to see where the cutter is working.....This is one of the reasons why I don't try to wrap it or anything to hold it together. Sometimes you loose a small piece but for the most part they hold together pretty well if the wood is solid.
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[Bernie Weishapl]

Curt that is a beauty. I really like the rustic look of the wood and form. Thanks for sharing your how to.

[David DeCristoforo]

Those are some wicked pics showing the cutter inside the spinning form!

[Curt Fuller]

When I get about 2/3 of the way hollowed I switch to a straight cutter. (btw, I'm using small round carbide cutters on a captured hollowing system). If you set the tool rest so the cutter is right on center and level it will remove right down to the last bit of nub.....
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Then I remove it from the chuck and mount it on an extended post sort of friction chuck... This piece didn't have much to ride on so it kept slipping, so I used a little shelf liner for traction
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Then I finish turning the bottom using the tenon for part of the form making it a little taller....
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That leaves just a small nub that I sand off.....
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Hope that makes sense. It's harder to explain it than it is to do it sometimes.

[David Reed]

Nice form and tutorial. I also like turning with the voids and an added attraction is that I can see the cutter inside as you so clearly demonstrated in the photo.

[Richard Madden]

Curt,
I love these pieces I see with voids and inclusions, and your's is no exception. Seeing "how" with your pictures is gonna help me take the plunge and someday try one myself. Thanks for sharing.

[Sid Matheny]

A super HF and super photos to go along with it. Thanks for sharing and all the time you took making the turn-a-log.


Sid

[David E Keller]

That's a cool piece, Curt! I love the action photos, and I appreciate you taking the time to document the process.

When you reverse the piece to remove the tenon, do you make any effort to size the jam chuck to the effective opening? I remember seeing a doodad somewhere the had a cone which could be adjusted to sit in the opening... Sometimes my pieces don't run exactly true when reversed(more often than not), and I've often thought that getting some kind of fit on the opening would help align the piece better.

Love the finished product! I don't think I've ever turned myrtle, but I like the subdued color of this piece. Looking forward to seeing what you come up with next!

[Steve Schlumpf]

Another beautiful form Curt! Really like your series of photos! Gives us a little insight into how you create these! Don't know if I would buff this one - looks great with a matte finish!

You going to enter this one in a contest somewhere?

[Curt Fuller]

Thanks everyone! Seems like it would be easy to do one of these picture shows after turning quite a few pieces. But there's a lot of stuff you do that you don't even think about.



When you reverse the piece to remove the tenon, do you make any effort to size the jam chuck to the effective opening? I remember seeing a doodad somewhere the had a cone which could be adjusted to sit in the opening... Sometimes my pieces don't run exactly true when reversed(more often than not), and I've often thought that getting some kind of fit on the opening would help align the piece better.

Keller, I know what you're referring to and I do sometimes use a cone shaped piece that sits in the opening to drive it while finishing off the bottom. It usually works a lot better that way. But this particular piece doesn't have an even surface on the opening and it doesn't have a lot of wood to put any pressure against. I've done a couple like it and using the long post that holds it in the bottom, jammmed against the tail center, keeps me from breaking it after a couple hours of hollowing.




You going to enter this one in a contest somewhere?

Thanks Steve. No plans for any contests or shows so far this year. Too much work and other stuff getting in the way.

[John Keeton]

Great piece, Curt, and an excellent "blow by blow." Amazing that this piece stayed together for the entire trip. I love the rustic look of this one, and agree with Steve on a matte finish.

[Ken Whitney]

Nice job, Curt. Beautiful piece, great information.

Ken

[Jim Burr]

Well done Curt! It sure looks good with the AO matte finish.

[Chip Sutherland]

The doodad you are referring to I think is the woodpecker chuck? I don't see it anymore in CSUSA or Packard. It does work. I don't think it would have been much help with this piece but I would have tried it out before going commando. You never want to friction fit the HF collar to the cone on a vessel that doesn't have some thickness. The cone is the last thing I setup. I split a HF at the collar with the cone when I locked down too soon. I basically became a wedge and cracked the piece. I get the post snug in the bottom of the HF against the tail stock. That is the primary clamping action. The cone just helps center the piece and keep it from slipping and it does help with truing the piece....but never perfectly true.

I love picture series postings like this. Especially when the result is so spectacular.

[charlie knighton]

very nice, thanks for sharing

[Baxter Smith]

Nice HF Curt and thanks for the pictures! I hadn't considered putting thin CA on the edges of the voids before hollowing.

[Tim Rinehart]

Great looking piece Curt and super thread on how you did it. It's pretty much just what I went thru on mine. I love pieces like this to hollow...it takes much of the guess work and chip cleaning issues away to have a big void.

[jwjerry w kowalski]

Curt, that's a great piece, sure appreciate the tutorial, now with a few of your insights in how to get it done I might try one like this. I think the piece is a real eye stopper.