one ugly turquoise spotted platter/bowl

[Bob Hallowell]

The title says it all, I was experimenting with turquoise and made this peice. I thought I was going to love it but instead it is way to busy for me. It was also alot of work. I only posted it to talk about cutting the 3/4 spots. I had someone give my some 1/2 triangle carbide metal cutting bits and I mounted them on a 1/2 steel bar and they cut the stone just fine. Afterwards I talked to Mike Hunter on the phone do to his post and he said that his ring tool would cut the turquoise well also and I believe him as I did use my ring cutter some before.

Bobhttp://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r111/bobha8/Picture005.jpg

[Jim Evans]

You are right - I'm not crazy about the turquoise. I like the platter though, the colors and finish look great.
Just tell yourself how much you learned doing this one.

[Raymond Overman]

Bob,

I tend to agree with you. Is there anyway you could remount it and make the turquoise one continuous ring instead of the polka dots? I think the wood color and the turquoise would work well together.

[Dave Carey]

Bob,
I see what you mean about the "busy-ness" (though I think the execution is great!) I might be inclined to invest some more time and work on the rim a bit more; it might make it really over the top or redirect the eye a bit. For example if you were to burn lines that would connect the outside dots and then form a triangle with two outside dots as the base and an inside dot as the point it, the resulting texture and the triangles might direct the eye more toward the grain in the center. I'd try it with some pencil lines first though. Or there may be other ways to add texture to the rim that damps down the stark effect of the dots and makes them a real asset. Just some thoughts. Cheers, Dave

[Harvey Mushman]

Bob.....You already have spent considerable time and effort into a finished piece. If you try anything further, you just might ruin what you have.

Treat it as a learning experience. Remember......When it comes to design....LESS IS MORE!

[Steve Schlumpf]

Bob - whiile I will agree that the bowl is a little busy I do think you did a really good job on the form and inlay. The color of the cherry and turquoise go together beautifully! Glad to see you found something that will work with the stone - gave it a really nice surface! As busy as we all think it is - there is someone out there that just lives for polka dots - course they are locked into the 1950s - but they are still there!

Looking forward to seeing your next experiment!

[Bob Hallowell]

Actullay a neighbor just loves it and wants to buy it, I think we might just give it to her as a house warming gift and Steve she's only 38. I just can't seem to like it no matter how hard I try.

Bob

[Steve Schlumpf]

Bob - that's one of the funny things about turning - no matter what I think about a certain piece there is someone out there that will just love it! Glad you have a neighbor that loves this bowl!

I do think you have the stone cutting issue resolved and hope that you will consider using the cherry/stone combination again as they look great together! Looking forward to your next turning!

[Mike Minto]

Bob, it's almost Art Deco - not ugly. Think of it as 'neo-retro', haha. Mike

[Richard A. Rivera, M.D.]

I am also planning to inlay some turquooise. I picked up a carbide tipped cutting tool that will fit into a 1/2 in. steel square pipe. Did you mount the square steel into a wooden handle? That was my plan and the drill and tap 1/4 X 28 threads into the steel to seat the cutter head with two set screws.

Do you think I could use the 1/2 in pipe as the handle and not worry about turning and boring a handle....sure would save some time and work?

[Bob Hallowell]

Richard yea I think the pipe will work, I plan on making a nice tool but for now I had a peice of 15" 1/2 square cold roll I just drilled a hole on one end and ran a size 6 bolt through to a nut and it work fine to hold the bit in place.

[Richard Madison]

Richard,
Half inch pipe makes useable handles. Some of my best (home made) tools use 1/2" pipe and allen set screws to secure the tool bits. Two of them hold 1/8" x 6" long pipe nipples, which in turn hold tiny tool bits via allen set screws. After several years of use, recently added wood handles to these last two, mostly so they would sit in the tool rack better.

[Bernie Weishapl]

Have to agree that it is a little busy. I think the form is great but if the lady likes it you are in good shape.

[Dennis Peacock]

Actullay a neighbor just loves it and wants to buy it, I think we might just give it to her as a house warming gift and Steve she's only 38. I just can't seem to like it no matter how hard I try.

Bob

Well there ya go Bob..!!!! It's a win-win situation. Nicely done, but now I've got "dots" before my eyes. ;)

[Clara Koss]

it's a bird, it's a pane,it's a hollowell!!!!!:cool:

[Ben Gastfriend]

I'm sure some little 6 year old girl would love that bowl, but I can't say I appreciate the polka dots.

[jeremy levine]

I think it would be a killer candy dish.

[Don Orr]

Hey Bob, this is obviously a well executed piece and you seem to have learned a lot from doing it. The buyer (or gift recipient) already likes it so it is a successful endeavor. Take what you have learned and the critiques and go forward. If this is cherry as someone mentioned, it will get much darker with time and change the whole appearance eventually. Maybe try smaller dots or bands or different shapes-you have a good thing going here. Nice to hear that carbide machine cutters work well with turquoise. Good information for the future.

[Bob Hallowell]

Hey Bob, this is obviously a well executed piece and you seem to have learned a lot from doing it. The buyer (or gift recipient) already likes it so it is a successful endeavor. Take what you have learned and the critiques and go forward. If this is cherry as someone mentioned, it will get much darker with time and change the whole appearance eventually. Maybe try smaller dots or bands or different shapes-you have a good thing going here. Nice to hear that carbide machine cutters work well with turquoise. Good information for the future.

Thanks Guys, this is ambrosia maple. I told the wife I was going to give it to her as I hate to sell anything I don't like.

Bob

[Bob Hallowell]

I'm sure some little 6 year old girl would love that bowl, but I can't say I appreciate the polka dots.

Ben My 6 year old girl does love it.

Bob

[Rick Gifford]

I had a thought after looking at this that the turquoise would look good on a clock, just marking the 12, 3, 6 and 9 positions. Smaller dots for the other hours.