Split-In-Two Box Elder crotch - "Vase" in progress

[Matt Hutchinson]

Another major local art competition is ramping up, and I hadn't planned on participating. But along comes word of a downed box elder, and I end up with a large crotch piece (and the desire to enter the competition again). It looked like a great opportunity to make a type of piece that's been on my short list for a while. The plan is to come away with a thin walled, soaking wet piece that I will let warp (a la Burchard's Basket (http://www.burchardstudio.com/images/stories/pictures/White-Basket-11.jpg) series).

A little way into roughing it became clear this wasn't going to be straight forward. To my dismay, the splits just got deeper and ran through the entire piece. it was being held together by the faceplate on one end, but the other end was getting more and more dangerous as I went along. So I stopped and thought on it a while and I think I found a safe solution. (See photos)

So far the plywood jig is holding one end together while the chuck and a hidden hose clamp are holding the foot together. The plywood will also double as a place for the steady rest to locate. I will turn away the center of the plywood, proceed to hollow the piece, but leave a thick rim where the plywood is attached. While hollowing I plan on wrapping the rest of the piece with plastic twine and duct tape, and later the thick rim will be parted/cut off completely.

Tomorrow is going to be an interesting day. :rolleyes:

-Hutch

[Roger Chandler]

That one has a lot of pucker factor to it.......pretty ingenious setup there Hutch, and it sounds like your plan will work, and when you part off the rim, etc...........do you have the crack stabilized with more glue or what? Looks like it could just split in half on you otherwise.

Post some more pics as you get the process advanced further...........I would like to see how this one ends up! Good stuff!

[Dennis Ford]

neat idea; it will be interesting to see the results

[Scott Hackler]

That ought to be a nice piece. BTW, where you been hiding? :)

[John M. Smith]

Looking great Matt. Hope you can score a good venue this year.

[John Keeton]

Hutch, good to see you posting! Looks like a reverse set of Cole jaws - pretty neat. This will be an interesting project.

[Thomas Canfield]

IT looks like you got things under control so far. Are you going to hollow through the plywood or use some other means to hold the piece together for hollowing? You got a lot of people curious.

[Jim Burr]

Looks like more fill work Hutch...your work is cut out and you are a great guy for the job! How big is the monster?

[Matt Hutchinson]

Thanks for the encouragement y'all! I will be taking a video through the rest of the process, and hopefully I will have something to show you by the end of the day. (fingers crossed)

Roger - Yup, a bit o' pucker to it indeed. I am trying to avoid CA gluing the bananas out of it because I don't want any staining from it. After it's done drying and warping I hope to carfully glue/stabilize it. If it ends up in two dry pieces then I'll glue them back together at the foot.

Scott et al - In a nutshell: I've decided to "pinpoint focus" my woodturning energy...soul searching if you will. :) I'm tired of just making stuff for deadlines. So I have been waiting for the right wood in order to pursue specific sculptural ideas that represent where I want to go with my turning, as opposed to collecting wood and just making stuff. Also, I am trying to grow a woodturning/woodworking business, and I don't have time to produce a ton of stuff without a way to sell it (the house is filling up :D). Trying to focus on spindle turning, as well as creating my own artistic identity with sculptural turnings.

Thomas - Exactly! The plywood will stay on the piece while hollowing, and I will dig thru it before proceeding with thicknessing the walls.

Jim - The monster is almost 10ft long, and it can turn 6.5 feet between centers. Also, it's rather worn and imprecise so I use it mostly for heavy roughing and large faceplate turning. (Or large vase forms.)

-Hutch

[Bernie Weishapl]

Cool idea Hutch. Going to be interesting seeing it finished. Good to see ya posting.

[Bill Wyko]

Something tells me it will be quite a beauty.

[Matt Hutchinson]

Woohoo! It worked with no hint of trouble! YEEEEEESSSSSSSSS!

Tomorrow morning I have to clean up the ridges on the inside by hand, but I sorta expected that would be the result of turning against the grain. That's the big problem with a form like this, especially when it's wet, a softer wood, and the grain direction isn't consistent. But I am really excited about this one, and the tedious few hours of work are gonna be well worth it!

I recorded a bunch of video during the hollowing, and sometime over the weekend I hope to get it edited and uploaded.

-Hutch

[Roger Chandler]

L. I. B!!! :D That is super, Hutch............making this one a unit and not a pair will be interesting to watch.........keep up the good work............geez.........that is impressive and very ingenious.

[Mike Cruz]

I'm simply amazed...

[Jon Nuckles]

Very cool process and result! I came back to this thread in hopes you had posted pictures of your progress and am glad to see that you did. The wood looks like it has some nice figure to it in addition to the color and inclusion. Congratulations on your success and creative solutions.

[Kathy Marshall]

Very cool Matt! Amazing that you've kept it together so far! Looking forward to seeing the finished piece!

[John Keeton]

Hutch, it looks like the crack goes straight across the bottom! Only thing holding this together is your band clamp, the chuck and lady luck!:eek:

[Matt Hutchinson]

Thanks all!

John- yup, cracked right through, but it's held together by a few fibers of wood and standing on its own!

After a few tedious hours of sanding wet wood and carefully cutting the rim it's ready to dry for a few months. Also, the foot has been drilled to remove excess wood and aid in the drying process.


- Hutch

[David DeCristoforo]

Well, that ain't gonna hold water... But it's pretty wicked. In case you didn't grow up in California in the "hot rod era", that's a great complement!

[Mike Cruz]

You know, you could give Keller a heart attack by filling those big cracks with epoxy... ;):D

[Jamie Donaldson]

I wonder if you considered butterflies to reduce the potential splitting completely apart, and add a touch of craftsmanship as well?

[Matt Hutchinson]

Thanks David! I really looking forward to finishing this piece!

I think I am going to try to keep the view to the inside free from any leather string, wire, etc.....if possible. Up to this point I have been thinking that it inevitably WILL fall apart as it's drying, and I was planning on putting a couple dowels hidden in the bottom (where the bead on the foot is) to pull it back together. However, inlaying a Dutchman in to foot to keep it together is definitely an option. :D Thanks!

- Hutch

[Baxter Smith]

Neat looking piece Matt! If it comes apart, perhaps you could attach them back to back but just at the top rim. Give them a title something like "mirror images". Funny what crosses my mind at times.:rolleyes: