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Steve Friedman
12-17-2008, 12:49 AM
Recommendations needed.

I would like to try to power carve some bowls. I have only ever carved bowls by hand, but would like to make bowls from dry hardwood and it would be very hard to do by hand. The bowls will be between 4" - 12" deep, with diameters ranging from 6" to 24".

It seems that my choices are:

1. 4-1/2" grinder discs (Arbortech or King Arthur)
2. Saburr-Tooth wheels
3. Arbortech power gouge grinder attachment
4. 2" grinder (Arbortech or Proxxon)

Any suggestions? The 2" seems really nice, but seems very small for the size I want to do. The larger ones seem fine, but I'm not sure whether the size will limit how deep I can get the bowls.

The power gouge also seems interesting, but I don't think it will work for anything deep because the gouges are straight - not sure how I would flatten the bottom.

Thanks in advance

Steve

Jim Finn
12-21-2008, 3:22 PM
A power gouge will be a lot quicker and easier and cleaner to do than grinding all that wood to dust. Gouge out 90% and then flatten the bottom with the power grinder.

Maria Alvarado
12-21-2008, 4:32 PM
Steve,
I carved these bowls using the 2-inch arbortech. It was indeed dusty and took longer than had I used a 4-inch, but I liked the control and the ability to do smaller things if I wanted.
104192
Cherry salad bowl and spoons (my first, go easy)
104193
Sweetgum bowl, 8 X 11
104194
Malle burl "winged" bowl
104195
Cherry Chip & Dip, single piece

Benjamin Dahl
12-22-2008, 6:18 AM
Maria, those are all beauties. I like how you have both practical (dip bowl) and "artistic" (burl) pieces. very impressive.
Thanks.
Ben

Steve Friedman
12-22-2008, 5:21 PM
I agree, very impressive. As usual, it seeems that they each have their own benefits and limitations. Maria, I love the finish you were able to get on your pieces. Unless I am confused, it seems like the basic Arbortech grinder can be used with a 4" wheel, a 2" wheel attachment, or a power gouge. Do you know if that's true?

Steve

Maria Alvarado
12-22-2008, 6:39 PM
Thanks Ben and Steve for your comments.

Steve, I have the mini-grinder from arbortech, which only takes the various two-inch blades. If you have, or want to buy, a full-size angle grinder, then you can use the 4-inch wheels, or buy a 2-inch adapter, or use the chisels. I believe this is similar to the King Arthur choices. I have found that you can use the 2-inch carbide grinding wheels on the mini-grinder which also give some flexibility....and a lot more dust! The bowls I've done with the mini-grinder range from 4-inch to 12 or so, both deep bowls and shallow platters, green to spalted wood. I can't comment on the other brands or the power chisels as I haven't used them, but the King Arthur seems to provide a lot of options as well.
Hope that helps,
good luck with choosing!

Chuck Nickerson
12-23-2008, 1:32 PM
Steve - I have the ArborTech 2", 4", and power gouge set-ups. The switch-over time got sufficiently irritating, that I dedicated an inexpensive grinder to each.

Steve Friedman
12-23-2008, 3:05 PM
Any recommedations on Arbortech vs King Arthur on the 2" and 4" wheels? Is Arbortech the only company that makes a "beefy" power gouge? I know Flexcut and others make power gouges and chisels, but they seem flimsy compared to the Arbortech.

Chuck Nickerson
12-24-2008, 1:06 PM
Steve - three years ago, professional turner/carver Bin Pho strongly preferred Arbortech to King Arthur. That drove my choice, and I have no regrets, yet.