Hollowing tool(s) suggestions?

[John Miliunas]

So now I have that fancy-dancy Vega and, wouldn't 'ya know it: LOML now thinks I have to use it, too! The nerve! :mad: Mind you, she has a pretty vivid imagination and sees me doing some hollow forms for her. Fer cry-eye....I've got enough problems making a little bowl, much less something on the order of a vase or such! I says, "But Dear, I don't think I've got the proper tools for that." At that point, she caught me right off-guard and says, "Well, there's all kinds of hollowing tools, aren't there?!" Keeeeeeeripes! Bad enough *I'm* spending my money on all this stuff, but now she's pitching in, too! Oh...Wait. That's a good thing, isn't it? :D

Just as when I started with the spinny thing in general, I really have NO clue as to what's good, bad or otherwise for hollowing tools. I've heard some guys say that the OneWay "Termite" thingy is super. Others say, "No way!" I've looked through the catalogs and see all kinds, mainly stuff which looks like they're based on some type of scraping basis. I keep looking, but really don't know what it's all about. Any and all guidance would be greatly appreciated. I'm primarily looking for one, maybe two items, which would give me the most bang for the buck and serve me for the majority of my needs. :cool:

[Barbara Gill]

Again, there is a vast amount of information on another woodworking forum. I am not sure if I can even mention the name so I will private message you.

[John Shuk]

John,
I know you have the Ellsworth Bowl Gouge do you know if he has hollowing tools. My buddy bought a Poolewood lathe from him and I was lucky enough to get out to David's house and meet him. I was also unlucky enough to have to carry that monster into Matt's basement! I think if you drop him a line via E-Mail he'll respond pretty fast. I'm nowhere near trying hollow form work so I tend to pass over that part of the catalogs. Good luck.
John

[John Miliunas]

Again, there is a vast amount of information on another woodworking forum. I am not sure if I can even mention the name so I will private message you.

Got it, Barb. Muchos gracias! Looks like some good info out there and I'll start checking at length! :cool:

[John Miliunas]

John,
I know you have the Ellsworth Bowl Gouge do you know if he has hollowing tools. My buddy bought a Poolewood lathe from him and I was lucky enough to get out to David's house and meet him. I was also unlucky enough to have to carry that monster into Matt's basement! I think if you drop him a line via E-Mail he'll respond pretty fast. I'm nowhere near trying hollow form work so I tend to pass over that part of the catalogs. Good luck.
John

Email Ellsworth himself? :confused: Huh? How? Who? Me??? :confused: Yeah, I'm sure HE could give me some dynamite direction! I do indeed have his bowl gouge (the Crown PM version) and I only wish I'd have gotten it about 14 months sooner! I love it. Great improvement over my other bowl gouge, even though it's a Sorby. That one does a nice job, but the Ellsworth is definitely superior, at least, by my experience (which isn't saying a whole lot!) :cool:

[Jim Becker]

John, David is a very warm and welcoming person and he does answer his email regularly. You should consider taking his three day course one of these days...which means you could also visit moi in the same trip as my house is about 20 miles from David's studio. (Pics of the class on my site)

That all said, I'd suggest you start small with hollowing tools like David's or even the Sorby multi-tip tools, but move on to the Stewart system with it's arm brace. My personal preference is the Jamison captive system as it takes the physical work out of holding the tool so you can concentrate on the art, but that will require some fabrication for your Vega in order to accomodate the required rear captive support. The pic below shows that setup on my Stubby. Keep in mind that these hollowing tools are generally designed for end-grain work; not for "bowls" as such. For those, your Ellsworth gouge is one of the best tools going.

[Wolf Kiessling]

John, Jim gave it to you dead on.

My preference for hollowing is also the Jamieson System. I had seriously considered buying a bowl lathe and that is why I changed my mind about that. It's would take some modification on that Vega to make a rear capture system work. I, also, would recommend one of the arm brace systems and then you would have to get a boring bar and hooker tool to go along with the arm brace. This is, of course, not counting the scrapers, cutters and holders.

[Jim Becker]

John/Wolf-- the good news is that the tools that fit in the Stewart arm brace also fit in the Jamison system and vice versa. So starting with the Stewart handle isn't a wasted effort and there will still be some times when a freely held tool is convenient.

[Steve Plunkett]

John,
I'm a new member here and generally lurk and learn from you guys, but I couldn't resist responding to this topic. I took a hollow form class from David a couple of years ago and bought his hollowing tools then. I used them for some time and they were great for learning about hollowing. After a while I got the Jamison system and really like it. It is SO much easier on the body and the nerves when you are deep inside a form. I don't know much about your lathe but it sounds like you are getting real good advice from the guys.

I concur with your comments about the Ellsworth gouge. I had a Sorby when I took the class and David even put his grind on it for me, but when I got the Crown PM gouge I put the Sorby away.

And Jim Becker is right. David is a very friendly and accomodating guy.

[John Miliunas]

John,
I'm a new member here and generally lurk and learn from you guys, but I couldn't resist responding to this topic. I took a hollow form class from David a couple of years ago and bought his hollowing tools then. I used them for some time and they were great for learning about hollowing. After a while I got the Jamison system and really like it. It is SO much easier on the body and the nerves when you are deep inside a form. I don't know much about your lathe but it sounds like you are getting real good advice from the guys.

I concur with your comments about the Ellsworth gouge. I had a Sorby when I took the class and David even put his grind on it for me, but when I got the Crown PM gouge I put the Sorby away.

And Jim Becker is right. David is a very friendly and accomodating guy.

Steve, first of all, a BIG welcome to the Creek! Glad to have you. Secondly, a BIG thanks for your input! Man, now that's the way to jump right in! Yes, I'm leaning toward the Jamison system and, from seeing Jim's setup for the Stubby, I should be able to do something real similar on the Vega. I'll keep you all posted on progress....And thanks for the suggestions! :cool:

[John Miliunas]

So, I've been looking at the Jamieson system, but now have a follow-up question or two. The stabilizing handle is a gimme, but then what? There are numerous options thereafter, such as "standard" and "jumbo" boring bars, numerous cutters, straight and bent holders, etc... What should a guy start with? Should I stick with everything from Jamieson or throw a mix of the Stewart system in there? I don't anticipate going with real small mouth/long body vessels for a while, if that makes any difference. I appreciate your patience with all these questions. This is a whole new arena for me. :cool:

[Jim Becker]

The "standard" boring bar is just fine for most things you will do...the "jumbo" is only necessary for very deep vessels and I don't think you or I will be going there very soon! To date, I'm only using the standard bar with either the straight or bent tool holder. 99% of the time, I use the regular cutter.

The rear captive support was very easy and very inexpensive to make. I used wood (oak scrap and plywood) but some folks make it out of square metal tubing. Either way is just fine and the tool comes with a sketch by Lyle for how it should be set up. The only real variable is the mounting/height which is lathe specific. You use your normal tool rest as the front support.

For things too small for the Jamison system, I just use some small, hand-held tools since the forces are small and the hollowing generally quick.

[Michael Cody]

So, I've been looking at the Jamieson system, but now have a follow-up question or two. The stabilizing handle is a gimme, but then what? There are numerous options thereafter, such as "standard" and "jumbo" boring bars, numerous cutters, straight and bent holders, etc... What should a guy start with? Should I stick with everything from Jamieson or throw a mix of the Stewart system in there? I don't anticipate going with real small mouth/long body vessels for a while, if that makes any difference. I appreciate your patience with all these questions. This is a whole new arena for me. :cool:


John, for hollowing deeper stuff, I use a tool post like this with a hollowing bar... forgive the poor cylinder -- haven't figured out how to draw them yet with sketchup... but the long extension nose of this rest supports the bar deep into the hollowing.. great for boxes also... just have to have 1" or bigger hole in the piece..

[Michael Cody]

Oh one other note for those still considering 3d software, if I hadn't messed around with the stupid cylinder part of the drawing -- I had maybe 10 minutes into the whole thing dimensions and all. This Sketchup Software is awesome.

[Anthony Yakonick]

...that a captive system is right for me at least, I like to change the position of the cutter when I'm hollowing, roll to the left for a more scraping cut, roll to the right for a bevel rubbing cut and also raising and lowering the tip for different cuts. Even after shoulder surgery I have no problem with a Stewart tool. I used the Jamieson system for about two minutes at the AAW symposium but wasn't convinced, but I'd like to put one through it's paces. Everyone likes what the like, find someone that has these tools and road test them for awhile.

Anthony

[Jim Becker]

Michael, to do a cylinder in SketchUp you start with a circle and just extrude it out to length, the same way you would for something rectangular. I figured that out when I drew a cyclone...trust me, the tapered cylinder/cone was trickier!!

[Jim Becker]

...that a captive system is right for me at least, I like to change the position of the cutter when I'm hollowing, roll to the left for a more scraping cut, roll to the right for a bevel rubbing cut and also raising and lowering the tip for different cuts. Even after shoulder surgery I have no problem with a Stewart tool. I used the Jamieson system for about two minutes at the AAW symposium but wasn't convinced, but I'd like to put one through it's paces. Everyone likes what the like, find someone that has these tools and road test them for awhile.


All good points. What you could do is hollow with the captive system and "finish" with the Stewart. It would take some of the exertion away, yet let you work the final shape the way you are most comfortable.

You're welcome to come down to the shop and work with mine, Anthony...the rate is cheap in that it's wood related...:D