NE Osage Orange Burl Bowl

[George Guadiane]

The wood for this bowl came from Eastern PA, by accident - I was looking for a garage sale and got into a conversation about a sycamore tree. . .Blah Blah found this stump, made a deal, cut it up, filled the van, drove home, went back a couple of months later, van STILL crying.:cool:

Diameter: 14 inches
Height: 5 3/4 inches
Finish: Oil sanded to 600, bee's wax burnished.
As Always, Questions, Comments and Critique Welcome
And I CAN handle the truth!

[Nancy Laird]

Beautiful bowl, George. I like the way you've finished off the bottom.

I know what you mean about the van still crying. So's our F-150 after our trip home from Tennessee with the lumber. Did you know that 388 bd/ft of lumber weighs a LOT!!!!

Nancy (99 days)

[Ed Scolforo]

Hi, George. It's a pretty piece of wood. For me, I probably would like to see it with thinner walls to lighten the look of it.

[TYLER WOOD]

It does seem a little heavy. Is this piece still moving? Seems there are some shrinkage scracks starting, or is it just voids? A little tear out here and there, but overall not a bad piece.

I'm not a huge fan of natural edge burl bowl though so I really would not be the one to ask if I liked it or not. But this piece does make me look at it and think. Not much curl in the wood for a burl, but still nice wood, I love O.O.

[George Guadiane]

Hi, George. It's a pretty piece of wood. For me, I probably would like to see it with thinner walls to lighten the look of it.
MOST of the time, I agree... Almost everything I make is fairly thin. This burl splits on the points, FAR down the blank. I was afraid that it just wouldn't hold up. There was one other HEAVY piece I did recently, someone called it a "dog bowl," but it sold right away, so I thought I would try this one heavy, what with the stability issues and all.

[George Guadiane]

It does seem a little heavy. Is this piece still moving? Seems there are some shrinkage scracks starting, or is it just voids? A little tear out here and there, but overall not a bad piece.

I'm not a huge fan of natural edge burl bowl though so I really would not be the one to ask if I liked it or not. But this piece does make me look at it and think. Not much curl in the wood for a burl, but still nice wood, I love O.O.
The cracks are the burl points opening up. Too close to an outer surface and/or too parallel to them and they split.
The tear out was from a punky area, I guess I should have filled it with coffee or something, Seems like none of the osage orange burl has intense eyes. Positioning in the blank is very important, or you could lose the whole burl effect.

[TYLER WOOD]

Nice counterpoints to what I pointed out. That said, well done!!!!

[Christopher K. Hartley]

I'll echo Tyler's last comment and simply say "well done". :)

[George Guadiane]

I'll echo Tyler's last comment and simply say "well done". :)
Thanks All!
I want to mention one other consideration...
The "audience:" I can hollow a 9 inch diameter piece through a one inch hole, and get it fairly even and really light... SO? Many, most of the people that I sell to don't get it. They really don't understand the difference between an one and a three inch hole, nor the greater degree of difficulty involved in getting a piece evenly thin. I have a BEAUTIFUL 11 inch red maple burl bowl that is 1/8 inch thick, all over. People are afraid it will break, so they ooh and aah and put it back down. I have decided to loosen up my sphincter a little and do "good" work that satisfies me and my customers first. Not sloppy or careless, just enough better than they can understand.
When I do a demo or enter a contest of some kind, that's a different story. People in those environments are looking for "talent" along with the eye appeal.

[charlie knighton]

Many, most of the people that I sell to don't get it

being a new turner, i quite agree, you sent me a pm once about how straight some my work was instead of a continious curve, well that helped me to improve, we have a small gallery here in town which i have a few pieces displayed and they think one of the straight pieces is my best work, it is a nice piece of wood but the craftmanship has improved since i did that piece, but if they want to highlight that piece so be it, you can never tell what the public will like and not like:D

[Christopher K. Hartley]

Thanks All!
[/URL] I want to mention one other consideration...
The "audience:" I can hollow a 9 inch diameter piece through a one inch hole, and get it fairly even and really light... SO? Many, most of the people that I sell to don't get it. They really don't understand the difference between an one and a three inch hole, nor the greater degree of difficulty involved in getting a piece evenly thin. I have a BEAUTIFUL 11 inch red maple burl bowl that is 1/8 inch thick, all over. People are afraid it will break, so they ooh and aah and put it back down. I have decided to loosen up my sphincter a little and do "good" work that satisfies me and my customers first. Not sloppy or careless, just enough better than they can understand.
When I do a demo or enter a contest of some kind, that's a different story. People in those environments are looking for "talent" along with the eye appeal.Great points George! Thanks for bringing them up. Especially the part about what pleases you and your customers.
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[Bill Wyko]

I really like the grain inside the piece. It looks like it's a meteor crater. The whole piece is a real beauty.

[Tom Collins]

George,
You hit the nail on the head! I have only recently become interested in turning. I used to go to shows and galleries and admire the turnings, maybe notice their weight and that was it. Since I have started to turn and have observed the postings and pictures on this forum I have developed a much more critical eye. Now I notice the form, finish, thickness, etc, etc and I actually enjoy and appreciate the turnings and workmanship much more. And while I may not like it I can understand why the prices are so high.

Nice pieces. I normally am not too crazy about NE but this one I like.

Tom

[Neal Addy]

Beautiful work, George. You nailed it.

[Ernie Nyvall]

I like the bowl George. I'm working on a piece right now that has some punky wood in it. It's like every other ring rotted all the way through leaving an area that looks like tear out. Can't decide on filling it.

O O burl... that must be hard as a rock.

[Bernie Weishapl]

George that bowl is a beauty. Well done.