Kathy Marshall
09-11-2012, 12:33 AM
Last year I turned about 45 small bowls for Deb and Paul (the tree trimmers) to give as Christmas gifts for their best clients.
This year Deb asked if I could turn some Coasters.
December is coming up quick, so I thought I better get started :eek:.
This is the prototype I came up with.
I started with about a 5" x 12" mesquite log, peeled off the bark, roughed it to round and then turned a tenon on the end.
Mounted it in the chuck with the tailstock for support, and re-trued it. Then I set up my steady rest and removed the tailstock.
I leveled the face and then turned a shallow recess, then sanded the face and sides (didn't worry about sanding the recess). Then I parted it off about 1/2" thick. On the main piece, I turned a short tenon to match the recess on the coaster and used a mallet to gently persuade the coaster onto the tenon. It was a perfect fit, it held it securely without the tailstock, but I was able to remove it with just a slight pull and twist.
I leveled off the bottom and then turned a concave starting about 3/8" in, then used my decorating elf to add a little decorative detail.
I applied DO to all the exposed areas (not the recess), then I painstakingly cut out a cork disc to fit the recess (I picked up a roll of cork shelf liner, it's a little thin so I may try to find some thicker cork board). I applied a thin coat of epoxy to the recess, both to hold the cork and hopefully to provide some protection from any moisture that soaks through the cork (although the liner on the back of the cork will probably provide enough protection.
I'm not sure about the final finish to use. It needs to be able to stand up to use and be somewhat resistant to moisture, and since I'll be doing a bunch of these, it should also be quick and easy to apply. I'm leaning towards WTF. I'll try it on this one and see how it goes.
I should be able to get at least 10 from this blank and I've got plenty of logs of a similar size, different varieties, that have been sitting around long enough to be fairly dry.
I'll need to turn at least 45 of these, and if I can get a production line going to do them quickly, then I'll try for 90 and they can give a pair to each client, and on the next one I'll try burning their company name on the face and see how it looks.
240930240931240932
Thanks for looking!
Comments and critiques are welcome.
This year Deb asked if I could turn some Coasters.
December is coming up quick, so I thought I better get started :eek:.
This is the prototype I came up with.
I started with about a 5" x 12" mesquite log, peeled off the bark, roughed it to round and then turned a tenon on the end.
Mounted it in the chuck with the tailstock for support, and re-trued it. Then I set up my steady rest and removed the tailstock.
I leveled the face and then turned a shallow recess, then sanded the face and sides (didn't worry about sanding the recess). Then I parted it off about 1/2" thick. On the main piece, I turned a short tenon to match the recess on the coaster and used a mallet to gently persuade the coaster onto the tenon. It was a perfect fit, it held it securely without the tailstock, but I was able to remove it with just a slight pull and twist.
I leveled off the bottom and then turned a concave starting about 3/8" in, then used my decorating elf to add a little decorative detail.
I applied DO to all the exposed areas (not the recess), then I painstakingly cut out a cork disc to fit the recess (I picked up a roll of cork shelf liner, it's a little thin so I may try to find some thicker cork board). I applied a thin coat of epoxy to the recess, both to hold the cork and hopefully to provide some protection from any moisture that soaks through the cork (although the liner on the back of the cork will probably provide enough protection.
I'm not sure about the final finish to use. It needs to be able to stand up to use and be somewhat resistant to moisture, and since I'll be doing a bunch of these, it should also be quick and easy to apply. I'm leaning towards WTF. I'll try it on this one and see how it goes.
I should be able to get at least 10 from this blank and I've got plenty of logs of a similar size, different varieties, that have been sitting around long enough to be fairly dry.
I'll need to turn at least 45 of these, and if I can get a production line going to do them quickly, then I'll try for 90 and they can give a pair to each client, and on the next one I'll try burning their company name on the face and see how it looks.
240930240931240932
Thanks for looking!
Comments and critiques are welcome.