Cherry bowl

[brian zawatsky]

No-frills Cherry bowl turned from KD stock. Ended up a little thinner than I had planned, and it vibrated like crazy up by the rim when I was trying to make finishing cuts. Needless to say I had a fair amount of sanding to do to get rid of the chatter. But this is the first bowl I've turned that I'm really pleased with!

[Steve Doerr]

Nice looking bowl and a good shape. Keep up the good work.

[David Delo]

My only criticism is there's no popcorn in the bowl!!! Nice job Brian.

[daryl moses]

Nice bowl and great presentation!!

[Prashun Patel]

That's a great bowl. I'd be pleased too. Keep it by a sunny window...

[Allan Ferguson]

Looking good. You're on your way.

[George Conklin]

I think that bowl turned out quite nicely! It had to be challenging when it started to vibrate, but it looks like you handled it well. I also think the thickness on this shape works well.

What did you use for a finish?

[John K Jordan]

No-frills Cherry bowl turned from KD stock. Ended up a little thinner than I had planned, and it vibrated like crazy up by the rim when I was trying to make finishing cuts. Needless to say I had a fair amount of sanding to do to get rid of the chatter. But this is the first bowl I've turned that I'm really pleased with!


Nice job! What size is this bowl?

Some people use a special steady rest to support the outside of a bowl near the thinning rim while cutting the inside. I often just use my left hand to stead for finishing cuts.

JKJ

[john taliaferro]

WOW that looks better than my 20th bowl a lot better . Whats the size and finish ?

[brian zawatsky]

Thanks for the encouragement guys! The bowl is about 9" in diameter and 4" deep. Finish is Watco salad bowl finish, whatever the heck that actually is. It smells like an oil with aliphatic solvents, and has some wax mixed in. It's food safe and more water resistant than just plain old mineral oil, and since this is a user bowl I figured it would do the trick. I've used it on end grain cutting boards with good success.
Took 4 coats with a soft cloth buff after the last one.

I guess I've turned about a dozen bowls, this is just the first one that I didn't screw up too bad haha. I do need much more practice though. I have a tendency to get some tear out with the bowl gouge when I hit end grain going down the inside of the bowl, and just can't seem to get the hang of a super clean cut.

I need to get to a turning club, or maybe find someone near me who wouldn't mind giving me a few lessons. The closest turning club is about an hour away from me, which isn't too bad but my work schedule is insane at the moment and I can't seem to make time to take the trip.

[John K Jordan]

... just can't seem to get the hang of a super clean cut.


My experience is super clean cut:
- starts with a super sharp gouge, then
- turn at a reasonably fast turning speed
- have a steady controlled tool movement, the slower the better
- make very light, "whisper" cuts

This is with good wood. If the wood is soft or otherwise prone to tear out soaking with something then letting it dry before cutting can help. I have used sander sealer (thinned shellac or lacquer), oil, or occasionally just plain water in trouble spots. If one thing doesn't work in a specific situation, I try something else.

On extreme cases such as very soft, punky wood I usually douse with thin CA glue. This works on non-punky wood where tear out is a problem too. I spot treat if possible, but the thin CA can wick and spread and leave "water mark" stains in the wood, so I usually end up just coating the entire surface. (use ventilation) Make a cut then reapply as needed and repeat. Doing this I've gotten beautiful glass-like smooth surfaces on wood that was in such bad shape it would tear out with a thumbnail. Follow the smooth finish cut with a sheer scrape with the gouge.

I often use small curved cabinet scrapers after the gouge, often with the lathe off, which usually smooth the surface enough to avoid coarse sandpaper.

JKJ

[Rich Aldrich]

Nice bowl. I find it difficult to get clean cuts on the end grain and end up with quite a bit of sanding because of the end grain. Nice work on this one.

[Brice Rogers]

My experience is super clean cut:
- starts with a super sharp gouge, then
- turn at a reasonably fast turning speed
- have a steady controlled tool movement, the slower the better
- make very light, "whisper" cuts

This is with good wood. If the wood is soft or otherwise prone to tear out soaking with something then letting it dry before cutting can help. I have used sander sealer (thinned shellac or lacquer), oil, or occasionally just plain water in trouble spots. If one thing doesn't work in a specific situation, I try something else.

On extreme cases such as very soft, punky wood I usually douse with thin CA glue. This works on non-punky wood where tear out is a problem too. I spot treat if possible, but the thin CA can wick and spread and leave "water mark" stains in the wood, so I usually end up just coating the entire surface. (use ventilation) Make a cut then reapply as needed and repeat. Doing this I've gotten beautiful glass-like smooth surfaces on wood that was in such bad shape it would tear out with a thumbnail. Follow the smooth finish cut with a sheer scrape with the gouge.

I often use small curved cabinet scrapers after the gouge, often with the lathe off, which usually smooth the surface enough to avoid coarse sandpaper.

JKJ

Great advice. Thanks.

I haven't tried water for tear out but will give it a try. I have used oil and sanding sealer.

Sometimes if I have a ring (perhaps a burnish mark) that is stubborn when sanding, I'll wet the piece down and raise the grain. Then it seems the mark comes off more easily. I'm not sure of the basics behind this, but it helps.