Tear Drop WIP

[Bruce Jones]

Okay everyone the progress continues on my new WIP. Made from staves then turned on the lathe. I'm just about done carving out the first side. You can see in the photos some of the hand tools being used to carve the tear drops to a point. The first step is to make ta hole using a Dremel and a rotary cutter, then the Flexcut knife to cut the point. You will also see the layout of side two. This is just the start of the first section of several parts. This Teak cylinder is 4 1/2" x 9 1/2" 1/8" thick wall.

[Frederick Skelly]

Appreciate the chance to see your "build up". Hope you'll continue to post pics as this project continues toward completion. I always wondered how you achieved some of the finished designs you have posted. So thank you.
Fred

[Bruce Jones]

Appreciate the chance to see your "build up". Hope you'll continue to post pics as this project continues toward completion. I always wondered how you achieved some of the finished designs you have posted. So thank you.
FredThank you Fred I use to post my WIP's all the time but did not think many were following so I stopped posting them and only posted completed projects. I will be mor than happy to post more as I go along.

[Michael Schuch]

I am very impressed with the workmanship but I can't for the life of me figure out what it is?

[Bruce Jones]

I am very impressed with the workmanship but I can't for the life of me figure out what it is? Thank you Michael, there is still a great deal yet to do, (hint) this piece will be sliced in half the lines are already there in the lay out but there at least two more pieces to make besides the piece shown.

[John K Jordan]

Thank you Michael, there is still a great deal yet to do, (hint) this piece will be sliced in half the lines are already there in the lay out but there at least two more pieces to make besides the piece shown.

Count me as one who loves to see work in progress. It adds another entire dimension to the pictures of the finished piece. Inspirational as well as instructive. Thank you!

JKJ

[Bruce Jones]

Count me as one who loves to see work in progress. It adds another entire dimension to the pictures of the finished piece. Inspirational as well as instructive. Thank you!

JKJJohn so nice of you to comment, I really like to show how I make my work so that others might give it a try. I do not make videos as of yet, and this is the best way I have to participate in the wood turning community at the present time. I'm hoping more people might follow along and ask questions. Thank you.
Bruce

[John K Jordan]

John so nice of you to comment, I really like to show how I make my work so that others might give it a try. I do not make videos as of yet, and this is the best way I have to participate in the wood turning community at the present time. I'm hoping more people might follow along and ask questions. Thank you.
Bruce

Well when I saw your pictures my initial questions were answered immediately: the construction (staves), how it’s held turned, and about the making points on the teardrops. If a picture is worth 1000 words your three pictures PLUS explanation are so valuable to a woodturner. This could make us “average” turners realize “hey, I could do something like that!”

One problem I’ve always had when I see beautiful and artistic work, especially things that are not entirely round, is trying to figure out “how'd they do that?”. How much is turned, what is glued (perhaps cut apart first), how much carved, special tools used. Some of the work featured in the AAW magazine (is it an art gallery or a woodturning mag?) presents unanswered mysteries.

While beautiful for the art, the mysteries leave holes in my overall interest, a glance and I turn the page and quickly forget the piece and the artist. I’m much more impressed when the process is described or hinted - and I’m far more likely to remember the piece (and the person). With some artwork I sometimes wonder if there is intention to keep secrets.

BTW, if a picture is worth 1000 words then a word must be worth a mili-picture. (first heard from a friend well over 1/2 century ago)

JKJ

[Lawrence Duckworth]

Well when I saw your pictures my initial questions were answered immediately: the construction (staves), how it’s held turned, and about the making points on the teardrops. If a picture is worth 1000 words your three pictures PLUS explanation are so valuable to a woodturner. This could make us “average” turners realize “hey, I could do something like that!”

One problem I’ve always had when I see beautiful and artistic work, especially things that are not entirely round, is trying to figure out “how'd they do that?”. How much is turned, what is glued (perhaps cut apart first), how much carved, special tools used. Some of the work featured in the AAW magazine (is it an art gallery or a woodturning mag?) presents unanswered mysteries.

While beautiful for the art, the mysteries leave holes in my overall interest, a glance and I turn the page and quickly forget the piece and the artist. I’m much more impressed when the process is described or hinted - and I’m far more likely to remember the piece (and the person). With some artwork I sometimes wonder if there is intention to keep secrets.

BTW, if a picture is worth 1000 words then a word must be worth a mili-picture. (first heard from a friend well over 1/2 century ago)

JKJ


the average person spends 27 seconds viewing museum art....:D

[Bruce Jones]

Well when I saw your pictures my initial questions were answered immediately: the construction (staves), how it’s held turned, and about the making points on the teardrops. If a picture is worth 1000 words your three pictures PLUS explanation are so valuable to a woodturner. This could make us “average” turners realize “hey, I could do something like that!”

One problem I’ve always had when I see beautiful and artistic work, especially things that are not entirely round, is trying to figure out “how'd they do that?”. How much is turned, what is glued (perhaps cut apart first), how much carved, special tools used. Some of the work featured in the AAW magazine (is it an art gallery or a woodturning mag?) presents unanswered mysteries.

While beautiful for the art, the mysteries leave holes in my overall interest, a glance and I turn the page and quickly forget the piece and the artist. I’m much more impressed when the process is described or hinted - and I’m far more likely to remember the piece (and the person). With some artwork I sometimes wonder if there is intention to keep secrets.

BTW, if a picture is worth 1000 words then a word must be worth a mili-picture. (first heard from a friend well over 1/2 century ago)

JKJ
John I would gladly post photos of all my projects here start to finish with procedure and explanations every time, if there are enough people interested in seeing and participating.
Bruce Jones

[Eugene Dixon]

I'd be interested in WIP postings, FWIW.

[John K Jordan]

… this is the best way I have to participate in the wood turning community at the present time. I'm hoping more people might follow along and ask questions…

Don’t forget that many more may follow and benefit than interact. For example, so far for this thread I see over 650 views with just a half dozen people interacting! And the more “how I did it” you provide might answer most questions before they are asked while still inspiring many and building your “fan club” :) You may never even guess the impact you make all over the country and even around the world!

[Bruce Jones]

Don’t forget that many more may follow and benefit than interact. For example, so far for this thread I see over 650 views with just a half dozen people interacting! And the more “how I did it” you provide might answer most questions before they are asked while still inspiring many and building your “fan club” :) You may never even guess the impact you make all over the country and even around the world! Very good point John, I forget there those who do not interact but follow. Eugene glad to keep posting progress photos and verbal updates. At the same time I'm making this project I'm also building a large steady rest for my new Lugna Revo 1836 it will take a piece up to the 18" D with four 3" wheels, a wooden circle frame and steel tubes for the wheels and a steel base that mounts to the lathe bed.I'll post some photos of that as well.

[John Kananis]

John I would gladly post photos of all my projects here start to finish with procedure and explanations every time, if there are enough people interested in seeing and participating.
Bruce Jones

Pretty sure there are more than just a few of us interested. I really enjoy seeing not only the completed works but also the progress. Thanks again for sharing.

[Bruce Jones]

Pretty sure there are more than just a few of us interested. I really enjoy seeing not only the completed works but also the progress. Thanks again for sharing.
Okay John I'll start posting more in progress photos and procedures.

[Bruce Jones]

Lots of holes !! The precision carving continues, I have pierced almost all of the holes in this first section of the project. Now I have to hand carve the rest of the tear drop away with knives and clean them all up smooth.

[Richard Madden]

I too, love seeing WIP photos. I appreciate the time and effort that goes into a project and I appreciate the sharing of knowledge and experience.

[Frederick Skelly]

Good stuff Bruce. Thank you!

[Bruce Jones]

I too, love seeing WIP photos. I appreciate the time and effort that goes into a project and I appreciate the sharing of knowledge and experience.Thank you Richard I'll continue to post my work in progress photos.

[Bruce Jones]

Good stuff Bruce. Thank you!
Thank you very much Fred you have followed me for quit sometime now.

[John K Jordan]

Lots of holes !! The precision carving continues, I have pierced almost all of the holes in this first section of the project. Now I have to hand carve the rest of the tear drop away with knives and clean them all up smooth.

You appear to be blessed with more patience AND creativity than the typical human! I’m looking forward to seeing the next installment.

JKJ

[Keith Outten]

You have my interest, don't have a clue where your project is going but I don't have any turning experience other then pens.

1,525 Views and counting.

[Bruce Jones]

You have my interest, don't have a clue where your project is going but I don't have any turning experience other then pens.

1,525 Views and counting. Glad to have you along Keith. I won't give the whole project away just yet, but you can see the lines where I'll be cutting the cylinder into two pieces they are drawn on the piece in the photos. Just a little bit more carving and I'll be cutting it apart, I'll make sure to take photos and give a detailed description of the process.

[Bruce Jones]

You appear to be blessed with more patience AND creativity than the typical human! I’m looking forward to seeing the next installment.

JKJThank you John you are very kind, I try to share what I know and what I do. It's very nice when there are people that want to know and take the time to join in. I'm making fairly good progress and should be cutting the cylinder into two pieces in the next day or so, then it's on to the next phase of the build.

[Bruce Jones]

My WIP continues to evolve: I have finished cutting the vast majority of the tear drop holes and have cleaned them up some what, more fine tuning yet to come. Then I have sliced the whole cylinder in half and cleaned it a bit as well. I have photos of me carving the V section and cutting the piece apart I will post those photos in just a bit.

[John K Jordan]

My WIP continues to evolve: I have finished cutting the vast majority of the tear drop holes and have cleaned them up some what, more fine tuning yet to come. Then I have sliced the whole cylinder in half and cleaned it a bit as well. I have photos of me carving the V section and cutting the piece apart I will post those photos in just a bit.

More and more intriguing.

I'm curious about how you made the cut. A fine hand saw, some power tool, magical incantation?

[Bruce Jones]

More and more intriguing.

I'm curious about how you made the cut. A fine hand saw, some power tool, magical incantation?
Teardrop WIP Carving & Cutting.
I had wanted to get back earlier to posting these photos John.

[Bruce Jones]

Teardrop WIP Carving & Cutting.

[Bruce Jones]

And some more photos Teardrop WIP Carving & Cutting.

[John K Jordan]

And some more photos Teardrop WIP Carving & Cutting.

That well answers the cut question!!!

[Lawrence Duckworth]

You take a nice photo of your work Bruce, makes it ez to follow.

[Bruce Jones]

Thank you John and Lawrence More yet to come.

[Bruce Jones]

“Can we stop all the tears”
This piece is composed of art 101 shapes: cylinder, sphere and cone. The teardrop shape is very close to the cone shape. The main part or the piece, the cylinder was made from Teak staves, glued up about 3⁄4” thick then turned to about 1⁄8” thick. The teardrop was made from Acrylic. I had a leftover sculpture blank from about 30 years ago when I made Acrylic sculptures.
The coloring on the teardrop was added to a glue seam, this is a combination of dye and metallic powder. The base is a hollow sphere with a puck light inside, made from Walnut. The piece's finish size is 5" x 15" and the wood was sealed with satin lacquer. I will post more of the in progress photos soon when I get them resized, thanks for following along and commenting. If you have questions please ask I will do my best to answer them all.

Bruce

[Frederick Skelly]

My first reaction was "Holy cow! Look at that!"
I've wondered for some time how you executed some of your builds. Watching along gave me insight and ideas - can't match your skill, but watching shows what's possible. Thanks for teaching us.

Fred

[Bruce Jones]

My first reaction was "Holy cow! Look at that!"
I've wondered for some time how you executed some of your builds. Watching along gave me insight and ideas - can't match your skill, but watching shows what's possible. Thanks for teaching us.

FredThank you Fred, glad to have you along and it's good that following along gave you ideas. I'll be posting more of the build photos soon.
Bruce

[John Kananis]

Superlative work - really enjoyed watching along!

[Lawrence Duckworth]

I like the first photo unassembled. Nice work!

[Keith Outten]

Bruce,

It's a beautiful design and amazing craftsmanship. It's must be well balanced to stand on such a small flat area of the base.
Thanks for sharing.

[Richard Dooling]

I'll join the chorus and say thank you for your thoughtful presentation of this project. Besides admiring the finished form, I am intrigued with your process. I'm interested in the way you cut the tube in half.

What saws did you use? The larger one looks like the Veritas flush cut saw.
Is the smaller one a mounted saber saw blade?

An impressive job

[John K Jordan]

My first reaction was "Holy cow! Look at that!"
I've wondered for some time how you executed some of your builds. Watching along gave me insight and ideas - can't match your skill, but watching shows what's possible. Thanks for teaching us.
Fred

Agree!! Thank you again.

When will the book be published?! You would be rich and famous, well, at least famous. 😄 Your name remembered 100 years from now!
I’ve seen so many pictures of incredible finished work but it’s so rare (and special) to get a glimpse into the creation process. As previously stated, I, and some others I’ve talked to sometimes get a little frustrated at pictures of incredible pieces in certain woodturning magazines that look fantastic but often difficult to guess what steps even needed a lathe. Pictures like yours provide that insight and maybe a drop of hope to some that there may actually be life beyond the big bowl.

If you’ve photographed WIP of some of your other pieces a compilation should make a best seller among turners and artists. Even mostly photos (and even rough sketches, of available) with a few sparse captions would be wonderful. I suspect it would inspire some artists to take up woodturning to add a new dimension to their own creations.

JKJ

[Bruce Jones]

Okay everyone I had some time today to put together some more photos of this project on the lathe. I did not go into detail on the sphere box for the light. Most have seen a box being made, I will try to answer the questions in another post in a day or so. This is the Teardrop I had forgotten to take my camera a the beginning to show the Acrylic blank but took a photo of the cutoff.

[Bruce Jones]

And some more photos of the Teardrop. All of the lathe work on the Teardrop was done with carbide cutters. I use this tool brand https://www.amazon.com/Simple-Woodturning-Tools-Comfortable-Interchangeable/dp/B00G9CVOCG/ref=sr_1_18?crid=1FVXFPG53PSEK&keywords=simple+woodworking+lathe+tools&qid=1656859716&sprefix=simple+woodworking+lathe+tools%2Caps%2C186&sr=8-18

[Bruce Jones]

I'll join the chorus and say thank you for your thoughtful presentation of this project. Besides admiring the finished form, I am intrigued with your process. I'm interested in the way you cut the tube in half.

What saws did you use? The larger one looks like the Veritas flush cut saw.
Is the smaller one a mounted saber saw blade?

An impressive job Thank you Richard Yes the larger saw is Veritas detail flush cutting saw the second saw is a homemade saw: a coping saw blade mounted in a dowel with epoxy I make two types push and pull from one blade cut into two pieces. these work very well for many processes.

[Bruce Jones]

Agree!! Thank you again.

When will the book be published?! You would be rich and famous, well, at least famous.  Your name remembered 100 years from now!
I’ve seen so many pictures of incredible finished work but it’s so rare (and special) to get a glimpse into the creation process. As previously stated, I, and some others I’ve talked to sometimes get a little frustrated at pictures of incredible pieces in certain woodturning magazines that look fantastic but often difficult to guess what steps even needed a lathe. Pictures like yours provide that insight and maybe a drop of hope to some that there may actually be life beyond the big bowl.

If you’ve photographed WIP of some of your other pieces a compilation should make a best seller among turners and artists. Even mostly photos (and even rough sketches, of available) with a few sparse captions would be wonderful. I suspect it would inspire some artists to take up woodturning to add a new dimension to their own creations.

JKJThank you John you are very kind, this build is now done but I have a different type of piece already started this past spring. I now have a new lathe that can handle the size of my next piece. I have posted the making of a steady rest for my Revo 1836 and I'll be posting this next piece soon. This one will have a hollow form, carving and iintarsia all in one stay tuned.