Which wood for an easy bowl?

[David Hestad]

Good morning!

I'm still just getting started in this woodturning world, and am currently working on my first bowl. While my technique, sharpening, etc. undoubtedly need some improvement, I'm realizing that my choice of wood is probably not ideal for a first bowl: it's a piece of very dry mesquite, from a tree I took down about five years ago. I know from spindle turning that mesquite looks very nice and finishes well, but I think that when it's dry, it's also very hard and probably isn't making my learning curve any easier.

So the question: what are a couple wood options that are easier to turn for bowls? Not looking to get fancy right now with grain, color, etc., more just wanting something that will help me get some experience with turning bowls.

Thanks!
Dave

[Scott Hackler]

Dave,

For starting out (or even after years and years) green, wet wood is going to be your friend. I am not sure where your located, so I don't know the trees available to you. But if you have mesquite I assume southwest or Texas area. Sooooo, most of the woods in that zone will be a bit harder than from the middle or northern states. Green mesquite turns nicely though and there is little movement so no need to turn rough, dry and return to final shape. If you can score some silver maple, sycamore, bradford pear or even walnut....any of those would be similar while turning green.

I would advise staying away from the dry wood, for now. Without some time on the lathe (practice) developing the correct techniques....dry wood might scare you out of turning. After you get your technique down and learn how to sharpen your gouges to razor sharpness, you will be able to tackle the dry/hard woods.

[Sean Hughto]

Most wood turns easily when green. If you want a dry wood, eBay has reasonably priced small blanks available in many species. Mahogany is easy, as are cherry, maple, and walnut, for the most part.

[kenneth walker]

Cherry is a great starter wood.

[Tim Rinehart]

Great input so far Dave, especially on turning green. My wood of choice for ease and stability would be soft maples, like silver maple. Pretty forgiving and holds up well to use.
More open grain woods like walnut and oaks can be problematic with avoiding tearout. Softer woods like poplar can also be difficult sometimes to avoid tearout while getting the feel of things.
Maple, sycamore, elm, cherry work well. Be careful with the fruit woods (i.e cherry, pear, apple, etc) as they can be more prone to cracking if you don't get good consistent thicknesses or if you leave too much pith in.

Avoid turning anything with a crack running thru it till you get much more comfortable with your tools and such. If you harvest any wood ... be sure to seal end grain to prevent rampant checking.

Welcome and look forward to seeing how things go. If possible, look up your closest club in area, they'll have you knee deep in wood before you can get a chance to clear the chips!

[Dennis Ford]

If you have Hackberry or Elm growing nearby, those are good choices and usually free.

[Bob Bergstrom]

Just as important is turning bowls that are not too deep or ogee designs. They take more skill and tool control. Turn as much green wood as possible and learn to keep your tools sharp. Look for examples of simple curves,rims and bottoms.

[Scott Conners]

Maple! I don't turn it often, and every time I do I ask myself "why don't I turn more of this stuff?" It's a great wood to turn, finishes easily, and holds up well in use.

[Bob Hamilton]

If your goal is to learn proper cutting technique on practice pieces that you can then apply to "keepers" then you might be well advised to pick up a 2x6 or two at the lumberyard, cut it into squares, and try different approaches and cutting angles while reducing it to shavings. Once you find what works to get clean cuts on spruce or pine the same techniques should let you turn most any wood.

Here is a video of a practice session I did turning white pine: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLB6989D60369D7CA2&feature=plcp

Take care
Bob

[Deane Allinson]

[QUOTE=Bob Hamilton;1957419]If your goal is to learn proper cutting technique on practice pieces that you can then apply to "keepers" then you might be well advised to pick up a 2x6 or two at the lumberyard, cut it into squares, and try different approaches and cutting angles while reducing it to shavings. Once you find what works

Take care
Bob[/QUOTE

All of Bob's advise is golden. I had a little lathe and didn't know what to do with it. I found his video on utube on " how to turn a bowl without a chuck". It got me started.
Deane

[David Hestad]

Thanks for the replies everybody! Sounds like I should definately look for some wet wood to make things a bit easier. I'm pretty comfortable with the techniques, tools, sharpening, etc., but I appreciate all of the suggestions for wood type!

I'm in Minnesota by the way...just updated my profile to add that piece. The mesquite I've been turning was from my time in California a few years ago.

Dave

[Thomas Canfield]

Using 2x6 material for learning will make you work on your techniques with the different grain and tear out. You can add a small waste/glue block to the bottom to give you more material to work with for a tenon, or to also use as a foot for a bowl. Most construction 2x6 today is fairly soft, but the yellow pine can have some interesting sap wood grain. You can certainly learn that a sharp edge makes a big difference in the quality of cut.