When to give up ?

[Scott Donley]

OK, I have been turning this piece of black walnut crotch, even has a limb going through it, started out about 8X6, now 7X6. The wood is very dry. I have sharpened, resharpened, and sharpened my tools and still have tear out. I have tried shear cuts and scrapers. I even tried the spindle gouge.
Sooo, my question is,,,,,,,, when do you just give up and grab the 80 grit ?:o

[Jim Underwood]

....when do you just give up and grab the 80 grit ?


And the power sander?

I dunno man. I'm right there with you. I can't seem to make a fine cut to save my life. I did figure out that you should NOT use worn out sandpaper. It just takes a heck of a lot longer.

I really wish some folks around here would step up to the plate and commit to a two day class with Stu Batty. I'd get it all set up if they would. Then I might figure out what I'm doing wrong. Or I'd find out how to do it right!

[robert hainstock]

I still struggle with it after fifty some years. Sometimes it goes good, sometimes not so. Bottom line---do what you gotta. :eek::eek::eek:
Bob

[Scott Donley]

I still struggle with it after fifty some years. Sometimes it goes good, sometimes not so. Bottom line---do what you gotta. :eek::eek::eek:
BobThanks, I needed that :o The only other wood I had this problem with was a piece of black locust, and it is still on the shelf for "LATER" :D

[Nathan Hawkes]

Scott, I think there are some woods that just won't cut cleanly no matter what. I'm by no means an expert, and have only been turning about a year, but I've gotten decent at shear scraping and very light touches with a sharp gouge. I had a log of butternut recently, half of which turned beautifully, very cleanly. The other half of the log was a nightmare. I didn't know it when I started, but it also had an old knot scar coming almost perfectly centered in the bottom of the bowl. This wood was very wet, but my futile attempt to slowly dry it out produced checks, even with sealer, so I just decided to go for it. Well, it was so d@mn stringy that when I went for 80 grit sandpaper to try to clean it up, the sandpaper itself would pull the little stringy bits out!!! It started over 1/2" thick, and is now about 1/4" because of sanding, and it still has a bit of tearout showing.

I haven't tried it yet, and i don't know if it would work on dry wood, but a long-time turner/mentor I got a lesson from suggested using a thick coat of water-based poly on difficult to cut wood, allowing it to dry completely, then taking a light cut to remove the polyurethane. It is supposed to stiffen the fibers enough to get a clean cut. Maybe someone else can elaborate on this technique.

[Curt Fuller]

I just saw a t-shirt the other day that read....

"If at first you don't suceed, try try again. If you still don't suceed, give it up, don't be stupid!"

But with woodturning it's a little different. If it's a particularly nice piece of wood, like this sounds like it is, I'd give it a few passes with a gouge and if it still tears, I'd break out the power sanding stuff. IMHO, The end justifies the means when it comes to turning.

[Bernie Weishapl]

One thing I have found that works pretty well for me came from info that Mike Mahoney gave me at a demo he gave. He told me to get a conventional grind 3/8" and 1/2" P & N bowl gouges. He said to leave them in the conventional grind arrangement. He said don't put the swept wings on them. He said to sharpen then hone and leave these for the final light cuts. I must admit I don't use a scraper anymore. Of course Mike made it look so easy when he demo'd the process. His video called From The Tree To The Table is excellent for bowl turning.

[Leo Van Der Loo]

Hi Scott
There are a few things you can try to minimize the tear-out, you can paint some thinned lacker on the problem areas, and let it thoroughly dry, then return, or you could soak in a 50/50 water/white glue mix, for a few hours and then let dry and return the piece, both these procedures will help, but the depth of penetration is shallow, but it does work with some problems.
I had a figured piece of Elm that I gave the white-glue/water treatment, and that did workout just fine, I made some pictures of the before and after finish turning and finished piece HTH
Of course this might not help if the wood is sound and solid, and the tool-angle is lifting the wood out, in that case the 60 grit tool could be your only way out.

[Doug Miller]

Most any kind of finish will stiffen the tearout area so that it can be cut cleanly. I have also had some pretty good success with a good application of wax on the problem area and then giving it a light pass with a newly sharpened gouge before turning to the 60 grit gouge. Filled the paper quickly and I needed to change it pretty quickly, but it worked and saved the piece. That was important since it was a piece of Katrina wood that meant something to me.

[michael gallagher]

Leo-

That's a great save, and the before and after pictures really emphasize the point.

[Barry Elder]

Sounds like a good piece of wood to experiment with. Try the different methods of stiffening the wood to see what happens. That will give you a headstart on the next piece of punky wood.

[Chip Sutherland]

I there with your today. :( I'm turning some spalted red oak natural edge bowl. This stuff always tears out but the usual techniques resolve 95% of it. The 80 grit gets the real stubborn stuff.

But...with my current piece, I could not get a finish cut worth a darn on the outside profile. I've turned off a good inch trying. Finally, I had to resort to the last of my thin CA bottle and a whole can of wood hardener. Last weekend, I put a ton of CA, too. Luckily I work 2 miles from a Woodcraft. I've achieve frequent shopper status.

Anyway, I'm still digging out punky areas in my 12x10 bowl. I'd better double-check my Inlace supply. The biggest area goes in about 3 inches so I'll just put some crappy wood putty in there because it'll get cored out when I hog it out.

I'm still hoping to get a volcano bowl out of it. The LOML calls it a chip/salsa bowl. Guess that's what I get for marrying a Texas chicka. :D

I'll post it when it's done....assuming I can find a digital camera that hasn't been rhinestoned by my teenage daughter.

[Scott Donley]

I just saw a t-shirt the other day that read....

"If at first you don't suceed, try try again. If you still don't suceed, give it up, don't be stupid!"

But with woodturning it's a little different. If it's a particularly nice piece of wood, like this sounds like it is, I'd give it a few passes with a gouge and if it still tears, I'd break out the power sanding stuff. IMHO, The end justifies the means when it comes to turning.I like your thinking Curt :DReally though, this wood has been a problem, burned up my 'lectric chainsaw cutting it in to a size I could handle on the band saw, only time I have stalled the blade on the BS (1 HP) and now this :mad: I normally start sanding with 150 or 220 cause I HATE sanding and have gotten pretty good with the tools, but not this bad boy ! Thanks for all the ideas but I think it is time for the 80 grit just cause I don't need anymore firewood :cool:

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Scott,

In situations like this, what ever you decide is the right thing to do.

12 months ago this month I was turning a bowl from some bradford pear given to me by another turner in Houston. While frictioning a groove in the rim, my frictioning tool (another piece of harder wood) broke letting my left forefinger drive into and breaking the rim on the bowl. The resultant splinter in that finger went with me to an Eric Burdon concert that evening and the next morning it went with me to the ER. 4 trips to the hospital, IV antibiotics for 4 days. Do you think I was going to give up on that bowl? A shorter rim later and a crack later...it proudly resides on my wife's oak sideboard in our kitchen. It's our only bradford pear finger bowl!:rolleyes:

[Brian Brown]

Take a rag saturated in mineral spirits, wrap it around the offending part of the bowl, for an hour or two and let the MO soak in. It will provide a bit of softening and lubrication on the end grain. Sometimes it works, sometimes not. If not, I'm never too proud to use the 80 grit gouge. One note. wear eye protection as the MO can exit rapidly when the bowl starts to spin. Very messy!