Turned my first large size bowl - pics

[Dennis Peacock]

OK....no laughing now. This bad boy was a real challenge since I have never turned a bowl blank that was 65 pounds wet, roughed out and then dried via the alchy method. Then the real challenge was getting the mounting surfaces round enough to remount so I could re-turn this bowl back round. This persimmon warped pretty bad, meaning that it was at least 3/8" warp on each end where the pith was located. :eek:

You can see in one of the pics some cracks on the end of the bowl where the pith used to be. These showed up during the dry turning process and I belive it was due to heat. This stuff when turned dry is HOT coming off the turning tool. :(

Anyway, here it is. 16" in diameter, 3-1/2" deep with 1/4" wall thickness. These pics were taken prior to buffing. I'll post some pics of the buffed bowl a little later. She weighs in at about 3 pounds now.

One things is for sure. A bowl this size and this hard requires a LOT of sanding!!!!!! :eek:

[Gary Max]

Dennis what are you useing for a container for soaking something that big?? The bowl
looks real good to me --I know you spent several hours getting this turned.

[Glenn Hodges]

Dennis, I do like persimmon. Great curves on this bowl, nice job.

[John Hart]

Nicely done Dennis. I want to try something that big..but gotta wait til I know something! I know what you're talking about with heat...Ash gave me the same problem.(it came off the tool like fire and I needed gloves)

Pretty cool bowl though!!

[Ernie Nyvall]

Yup, I'd have to add some HP to my lathe to turn something that big. Good looking bowl Dennis. Is persimmon that color or did you darken it some? I've never seen it before other than standingin a field.

Ernie

[Michael Stafford]

Dennis, you did a fine job on that big'un! Nice smooth flowing curves, great sanding job and finish. Glad to see you having some turning time for yourself and not just as a turning teacher. Very nice, Dennis! :)

[Carole Valentine]

Very nice, Dennis! What did you use to mount the rough blank to get the tenon round for rechucking? I bet that was a bear to turn. The reason they used to use that stuff for golf clubs was because it is so darn hard and dense!

[Dennis Peacock]

Dennis what are you useing for a container for soaking something that big?? The bowl
looks real good to me --I know you spent several hours getting this turned.

Gary,

Here's how to dry a blank bigger than your 5 gallon bucket.

All you need is a 15 gallon "foot tub":

1. Put shavings in the botton to about 4" up.
2. Place shaving around the edges to start the shavings up from the bottom of the tub.
3. Place the bowl in a contractor grade black trash bag.
4. Place the bowl and the bag in the foot tub.
5. Place more shaving to conform to the bowl but it needs to be a "loose" fit.
6. Pour in enough alcohol to just cover the bowl by about 1/4"
7. Twist the bag closed tight about 12" above the alcohol line.
8. Use a small 6" clamp to clamp the narrow throat of the bag to hold it closed.
9. Let that baby soak for 24 hours.
10. Remove the bowl from the bag and do as you please from there.
11. Pour that alcohol from the bag into a 5 gal bucket for reuse.

Purdy simple hugh? :rolleyes: :D

[Dennis Peacock]

Yup, I'd have to add some HP to my lathe to turn something that big. Good looking bowl Dennis. Is persimmon that color or did you darken it some? I've never seen it before other than standingin a field.

Ernie

Ernie,

I try and leave all my bowls as close to thier natural color as possible. Persimmon is Yellow in color and has the dark spotting in the wood when dry. Turns real good when wet though. :rolleyes:

[Dennis Peacock]

Very nice, Dennis! What did you use to mount the rough blank to get the tenon round for rechucking? I bet that was a bear to turn. The reason they used to use that stuff for golf clubs was because it is so darn hard and dense!

Carole,

You just happened to ask the question that took me a bit to figure out. I finally decided to use my 5" vac-chuck and the tail stock of the lathe. I put a good piece of carpet padding on the chuck and slid the tail stock up. I remembered on this one to leave the "dimple" from turning green (thanks Bill Grumbine), so the line up wasn't hard at all. Apply enough pressure to hold is all in place, turn on the lathe and stick a tool in it!!! :D

[Gary Max]

Thanks Dennis---

I had this pic of having to use something huge with 20 gallons of DNA.

This will work a lot better.

[Jim Becker]

It's a big-un, Dennis! Nice job on it. It turned out very nicely...

[Don Henthorn Smithville, TX]

Dennis, there is no cause to laugh about that bowl. That is a beauty. I like the color and have always wondered what persimmon looks like. Thanks for the post.