My 1st HollowForm, and 1st Collar

[Gil Jones]

6.25" wide X 4" hi. Turned from a green chunk of Georgia Live Oak, and the collar is ebonized Walnut (1st time for ebonizing also). The finish is two-coats of wipe-on Poly (collar finish is Deft), smoothed out with 0000 steel wool, then buffed and waxed. After I rough turned it, I put it in a bag and let it slow dry for several weeks. The Scorpion tool worked great.

[John Miliunas]

Gil, that looks absolutely fantastic!!! :D Really killer, from the form to the finish to wood selection! Great job. :) Now, for the really silly (read this as "dumb") question: How exactly do you guys go about doing the collars on these great HF's? Are the collars formed and fitted after the HF is done or glued on part of the way through the process or some other way? I'm not equipped to do HF's at this point but, somewhere in the future, I hope to get some hollowing tools and I really like that effect. Thanks for any info and keep up the great work! :) :cool:

[Dick Parr]

Great Job Gil! How was that oak to turn?

Great shape and a very nice collar.

[Corey Hallagan]

That is a sweet piece Gil! Nice job!

Corey

[John Hart]

Pretty spectacular piece Gil....Form, Finish, Wood, Craftsmanship....everything. The wood has a grunch of character!!:)

[Jim Dunn]

Gil that is beautiful. How did you keep the bark on and finish it. Finish by hand?

[Michael Stafford]

Most excellent, Gil! A very pretty piece with lots of character and good form!:D

[Jim Becker]

Beautiful hollowform, Gil! Very nice work! (And only a brave turner...or David Ellsworth...works in oak!)

[Scott Donley]

All I can say is WOW . Truly a work of art. It's seeing pieces like this that make me want to keep trying. ( or just throw in the towel :rolleyes: )

[Bruce Shiverdecker]

I really like the effect of the bark. WTG, Gil.

Bruce

[Keith Burns]

Very nice Gil. Great job all around:) :) (no pun intended)

[Ed Scolforo]

Really nice, Gil. I hope my first HF looks as good.
Ed

[Mark Cothren]

Looks great to me, Gil! Impressive piece of Oak!

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Excellent hollowform Gil.........1st or otherwise!

[Jim Ketron]

Beautiful Gil!
Great form and finish!

[Vaughn McMillan]

Hard to add anything that hasn't been said, but at the risk of repeating...that's a wonderful hollow form. Excellent on all counts.

- Vaughn

[Gil Jones]

Thanks to you all for your kind words. Creating this piece was very enjoyable.
If Oak is supposed to be a problem to turn, I was not privy to that knowledge. It seems to be a bit more course than other woods, tends to crack easier unless controlled, but overall I thought it was OK as a turning wood (especially when it is free). The bark did not come loose at all, but I gave it a soaking with thin CA anyway (for me, the CA keeps it from fuzzing up while sanding and finishing). As for the collar, I had no idea what the procedures were (are), so I finished the HF completely, except for the base, which I left as a tenon in the scroll chuck, and removed it from the lathe. Ebony was not at hand, so I put 3 ounces of white vinegar into a baby food jar, along with a golf ball sized piece of de-oiled 0000 steel wool and let it react for a few hours. Then, mounted a 2" X 2" X 3" piece of Walnut on another scroll chuck, and turned it into a collar shape that fit the hole in the HF. Prepared a very strong couple ounces of Lipton tea, brushed it onto the collar, and let it dry. Then two coats of the ebonizing liquid (iron acetate) was brushed onto the tea coated Walnut, turning it a dark black within 2 minutes. After removing the raised grain, and applying several coats of Deft gloss lacquer, I parted off the finished collar, and CA glued it to the HF. Mounted the HF in my donut chuck, turned the tenon off while reshaping the base, and applied some finish to the base.

[Travis Stinson]

Great job Gil. I like the orientation you used.:cool:

[Henry C. Gernhardt, III]

Beautiful hollow form, Gil, and thanks for the play-by-play on how it was created. I hadn't realized that a simple ebonizer could be made with iron acetate. You make the entire process sound easy. I'm sure the first time I try my hand on a hollow form, I'll blow out the bottom, sides, and god knows what else... :)

[Bernie Weishapl]

Gil looks good. I like the form and finish. Nice job.

[Ernie Nyvall]

Wow Gil... spectacular.

Ernie