My last turning for July

[Bill Stevener]

Hi All,

This form was turned (using a 1/2" skew) from a local maple burl. It stands 4-1/2" tall and is 8" wide. The finish is tung oil, with a Beall Buff.
I suppose I could have squatted it down some, however, I just couldn't justify turning all of the character into chips on the shop floor. I find it just amazing, as to what can come out of such an ugly looking hunk of wood.
Thanks for lQQking, and comments are always welcome.

Bill.>>>>>>>>>>>:)

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Bill....I always look forward to pictures of your projects! Another beautiful piece!

[Rick Simmons]

That is a beauty, Good Work!

[Ron Jones near Indy]

Very nice! I'm gonna have to try that someday.

[Jim Ketron]

Nice piece Bill.

Beautiful finish to boot

[RL Johnson]

And you said you turned this hollow form with a 1/2" skew? :eek: You did hollowing with a skew? It is a beautiful piece of wood but I would never be able to do the same thing with a skew.

[Ernie Nyvall]

That looks great Bill and that is a beautiful piece of wood.

Had I tried that with a skew, I would have certainly skewed it up.

Ernie

[Bruce Shiverdecker]

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and I LOVE to find Nasty chunks of wood. They have a tendency for being like the ugly duckling.........just give them a turn and you have a REAL beauty!

That you do. Good Design and execusion, too.

Bruce

[Dick Parr]

That is a really nice piece and some beautiful wood Bill, great job. :)

[Keith Burns]

Great looking turning. I like the form (and the wood). I would like to know how you did it with a skew. Can you offer some insight?

"Some days it's not even worth chewing through the restraints."

[Bill Stevener]

Thanks to all for stopping by to take a look and to those that noteed the verry nice comments.

I have always found that turning a burl is somewht like opening a geode, one never knows what will be found inside.

This burl was drying for about 5 years and was found to be extremely hard. Burls do not really have any gran pattern, they just do there thing. I use a bowl gouge to rough them out, however for the finishing I use the skew. Upon running into an unexpected void I find the bowl gouge tends to suddenly find the same, and at times can destroy a nice piece. The skew must be extremely sharp and used with a light touch, as well as, the tool rest must be right in with the work. I guess I use what is called a sheer cut with a back draw. This approach works well for the inside-out rolled over rim. Turning a great deal of exotic hard wood, and like a hard burl, I find the skew works best, well, for me anyway.:confused:

As a final note, this piece of wood was the finest wood I have ever turned. Every cut, had it looking like a piece of glass, and not even a single pin hole was ever encountered.

Again thanks for lQQking,

Bill.>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>:)

[John Hart]

Beautiful work Ed and a very pretty piece of wood. I really like working with maple...especially the ones with lots of character like yours.