First HF

[Dario Octaviano]

Here is my first hollow form (5" tall x 8.5" wide) made out of an unknown root that I picked up a couple of days ago. I am thinking it is mesquite but I am not sure.

It is still not totally finished...2 coats of Minwax Tung oil. One more coat and will be Beall buffed after a few days. Hole is close to 2".

I turned this green and had problems with wood movement. There are also some rotten areas that keeps on tearing out. After turning, I dried it in the microwave and applied the first coat of finish the same day. Still got some movement and it is not totally round now [:I]. All in all...not bad for a practice piece I think.

Critiques welcome.

http://www.penturners.org/forum/uploads/dario/20072612944_P1030181a.jpg

http://www.penturners.org/forum/uploads/dario/2007261309_P1030190a.jpg

http://www.penturners.org/forum/uploads/dario/20072613034_P1030197a.jpg

[Tom Sherman]

Dario, I agree with you not bad for a practice piece, or not a practice piece for that matter. Looks pretty good to me.

[Travis Stinson]

Excellent job Dario! Form looks great and it looks like you did a good job on the inside, along with nice uniform wall thickness. Ain't this fun!? You just discovered a whole new level in the abyss. :D

[Mike Vickery]

Beuatiful piece Dario. I wont show you my first hollow form.

[Neal Addy]

Way to go, Dario! Really nice HF! Ya done good.

Purdy piece of wood, whatever it is. Nice figuring.

[Bernie Weishapl]

Dario ya did good. Looks like the walls are pretty consistant and form looks good. Looks like the new HF tool did good. Great job. Guess I had better get mine ordered.

[Andy Hoyt]

Yup. I like it too.

[Mark Cothren]

Wow! That looks great, Dario! As has already been mentioned, the inside looks pretty clean and smooth. Keep 'em coming!

[John Hart]

Sorry Dario...that's not your first hollowform. Can't be. Your first is supposed to be 2 inches thick with big gouges all over the inside. Sheesh!:rolleyes:

Beautifully done!!

[Mike Ramsey]

First or last it looks great!

[Ernie Nyvall]

Wow Dario, that looks great. Nice job.

Looks a lot like some China Berry I had, and I know you guys have a lot of big ones over there as well as mesquite.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Beautiful wood and great form! Way to go Dario!

[Jonathon Spafford]

First or last it looks great!
Last??? I am quite sure there ain't no such thing ;)

Nice piece... I like it alot. The wood is a really good piece!

[Steve Schlumpf]

Very nice work Dario! I like the form and the wood is beautiful - lots of color and curl. Looking forward to your next one!

[Brad Kimbrell]

That's one great looking piece of wood! You did it justice with your turning.

I may be confused, but I believe that I was told to stay away from roots due to the movement. I found some really cool roots in a pile of wood that was bulldozed down at a home site last week and turned it. It split into several pieces a few days later.

How should I have handled the root?

[Christopher K. Hartley]

Dario, Beautiful Job! It hard to believe it is your first HF. Keep em coming.:)

[Dario Octaviano]

Thank you all.

Be it known that if not for the posted pics here, I would probably have not strived for same style and quality finish with my 1st HF. Again, thank you for the inspiration, tutorial and guidance.

Things I leaned from this piece...

1. Clean recessed hex bolt before tightening/loosening it, else you will strip it.:eek:
2. Green wood is not good to use for hollow form...it will change shape before you are finished.
3. Spalted wood is good...PUNKY wood is bad. Tear out can really get frustrating. Thank God for bowl gouge shear scraping.
4. HF with natural holes on the side makes for easy clean up of shavings (inside the vessel).
5. HF with natural holes on the side will mess the entire/shop garage and makes for very difficult clean up of te entire shop :mad: . (reminder to look at shower curtain enclosure)
6. I just got reminded that bigger turnings create a lot of shavings.
7. Microwave is indespensible if you want to finish a green turning the same day.
8. Working through a small hole is difficult...and the hole sometimes need to be enlarged. :D :p
9. Side wall holes is good for newbies to check progress and improve cut quality :p

[Jim Becker]

That's a really, really nice piece, especially for a first HF. Lovely wood, too.

As to critique, I think I'd like it better if you reversed it and turned off most of the foot/tenon. 'Just a slightly undercut recess under the piece for stability would be more suitable to this form, IMHO.

[Dario Octaviano]

Jim,

You are the 2nd person (1st is thought PM) who suggested that I eliminate the foot. I will do that on my 2nd try.

I also think I should have reversed the wood...but it was too late when I saw the figure.

Thank you.

[Randy Privett]

Great job, like Travis said "ain't this fun". Love the shape and the way you held the thickness.

Randy

[Ed Scolforo]

Ok, showoff, I'm officially jealous! ;)
Ed