'Lil butternut box

[Erin Raasch]

Nothing special as far as form, but my first attempt at something other than a spindle . . .

http://i68.photobucket.com/albums/i18/eraasch/SmallBox02-4-06.jpg

http://i68.photobucket.com/albums/i18/eraasch/SmallBox01-4-06.jpg

The wood is butternut, from a blank I picked up at Kettle Moraine Hardwoods way back in November. Finish is BLO, then a few coats of HUT friction polish.

Thanks for lookin'!

Erin

[Chris Barton]

That looks very nice Erin, keep up the good work!

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Erin.....Nice Nice box! 1st or otherwise ....Nice.......I like that undulating form!


Okay....own up.........You'll pardon my improper Engish:eek: .........Ain't it a kick?:confused: :D :D :D

[Alan Turner]

Very nice. Isn't butternut a pleasure to work with?

[John Hart]

Nicely done Erin! Pretty lil' piece. That would definitely end up holding change on my desk.:) :)

[Bernie Weishapl]

Erin that is a awful pretty cup. I like the form and finish. Keep it up they get easier with every one. Great work.

[Corey Hallagan]

Nice job Erin. That butternut has some wondeful grain in it. I think you did just fine! How did you go about hogging it out?

Corey

[Michael Stafford]

Erin, that is a wonderful little cup. I love the undulations and the way the grain plays with them. Butternut, what little of it I have turned, is not the best turning wood. I found it to be very prone to end grain tear out and difficult to cut cleanly. But that is just my problem. You obviously did not have that problem with your piece. Nice job.:D

[Bob Noles]

Erin,

From close inspection of the picture, I'd say you did that stick some might fine justice. Excellent choice of wood, great design and turning technique and a beautiful choice of finish..... just what more could anyone ask of the finished design. Great piece for the bedroom dresser.

[John Miliunas]

Hey Erin, kinda' fun doing something besides spindles, ain't it??? :D Nice job and, although I've never turned Butternut, it looks to me as though it didn't cause you any problems. :) Great job...Keep it up! :) :cool:

[Curt Fuller]

Great work Erin. Nice job on the curves too.

[Ernie Nyvall]

Keep it up Erin. Nicely done.

Ernie

[George Conklin]

Way to go, Erin.

I was curious what butternut would be like to turn. Interesting grain pattern.

[Erin Raasch]

Thanks to all of you for your kind comments. As far as the relative ease/difficulty of turning butternut, I really have no basis for comparison. Most of my turning thus far has consisted of playing around with scraps of 2x4 cut down to 2x2 stock. I didn't have any particular problems, other than those I ascribed to being a total newbie and not having the technique down very well, but some of those may have been related to wood species choice.

It did take a bit of work to get the end grain smooth, and I ended up doing a fair amount of sanding, but I have no idea whether it's more or less than I would need to do with other woods.

One thing I can say about butternut is that it is a really pretty wood, with some lovely grain.

When I began this piece, I had only my basic Harbor Freight beginner's tool set. I started using the round-nose sraper to hog it out, but after going an inch or so deep, I was a little uncomfortable with it and put it on hold till I could get a proper bowl gouge. I got a 1/2" Pinnacle brand bowl gouge from Woodcraft, and finished it up. After using that bowl gouge, I'm afraid that the Harbor Freight tools feel like toys!

I must say that I now see where the addicting part of this comes into play! Working with that bowl gouge was darn fun!! After I finished the inside, I needed to turn a jam chuck so I could finish the bottom. I had a great time with that, and for the first time, felt like I was "getting" it. Even got a little carried away and took it down just a little too far, so I had to scrap the first 1/2" or so and try again. Fortunately I had a thick enough piece attached to my faceplate to allow some room for error (intentionally so), and didn't have to go back to the scrap bin. :p

Yup, this spinny stuff is waaaay fun!

Erin

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Sorry to inform you Erin..........You're hooked!:eek: :rolleyes: :D

I find it a kick just making tools...jam chucks...compression chucks.....just turning 2x2s to get some skew practice!

It's an addiction!

[Scott Donley]

A beginner huh ? All I can say is you have set the bar way high for us other newbies. I would be thrilled to turn something that nice. Great job :)

[Bruce Shiverdecker]

Personally, Erin, I feel that the form you gave this piece is perfect. My first thought in looking at it was "Wow..............that flows sooo nicely."

Bruce

[William Bachtel]

Erin I will be having some cut offs from some 8/4 Butternut, that I am using to build a dining table. The size will be 2 plus inch thick, approx 6 inches long, are you interested, I will ups them to you for shipping cost. Nice turning.

[Stu Ablett in Tokyo Japan]

LOVE that grain in that wood, and I agree with others, the flow of the shape and grain is really unique!

Good tool, I got to get me some......

Cheers!