what to do when to go too deep

[Derek Voigt]

So I have a couple bowls that I hollowed too deep and created a hole in the bottom. Anyone have any advice on how to salvage a bowl after something like that? Or is it just a total loss? You think I would have learned after the first bowl...

Derek

[Tom Brouillette]

I had a very old piece of rosewood, all weathered and aged. I had the same thing happen, and took an oak dowel and plugged it. Finished it smooth, top and bottom, and told everyone I meant to do it that way!323704

[Faust M. Ruggiero]

Derek,
Unless the wood is something special, I would chalk it up to experience. I tried to fix a couple through the years and was never satisfied with the results. More importantly, figure out what you did wrong and fix your method. If you are turning a "once turned bowl" you need to measure more often. Your caliper is your friend. If you are second turning a dried rough out, you can use your drill press to drill a witness hole just off center. Drill only deep enough to leave your desired final thickness. When you see the hole disappearing you are home.

[John Grace]

I agree with Tom...you can either glue in a plug or even fill it in with some colored CA glue for that 'special' unintended effect. Guaranteed some friend or relative will be thrilled to have a 'one off' kind of bowl.

[Mark Greenbaum]

Lamp shade or funnel. One of our club members has salvaged his blowouts and made them into lamp shades for his restaurant with cloth drop cords and Edison bulbs. Very chic.

[Toby Bouder]

Made this out of mine. Cut it in half on the bandsaw, glued the rims together, mounted it on a base, and created a hole in the top with a drum sander.


323737

[Aaron Craven]

Very creative, Toby!

I agree... don't just toss it out unless you just want to (I have thrown away some spindle work before out of complete frustration -- I shouldn't have, but I felt better afterward!)...

Set it aside and try to come up with a creative way to salvage your work.

[Al Wasser]

If you apply a fix, however good it is, it will always look like a patch job to you. Maybe a patch is ok for for a family popcorn bowl or salad bowl but doubt I would want to sell it, Now if you come up with something new and creative and it no longer looks like a bowl. Having said all that I have one I set aside to do something with, but it still sets there and reminds be to be more careful

[Russell Neyman]

I love Toby's solution. And someone else also installed a small drain and downspout (complete with stopper and chain) when he blew through the bottom of a bowl.

Of course, this has never occurred in MY SHOP (rolls eyes and turns red-faced) but using a two-piece insert through the bottom is the most logical and aesthetic way to "repair" a bowl. Essentially, you construct a mortise and tenon affair that captures the thin material both inside and out.

[William C Rogers]

I'm still learning. I have a fireplace, so I just watch it burn and maybe a slight tear. I got one now that I went too thin on the wall. There was a knot and I didn't CA it and it came out. Art to me, but not the wife. Lost it trying to fix the hole. I have already learned enough from my mistakes to write a book. However I do get lucky and make a nice bowl, but still a long way to go.