These seem trivial after seeing "The Hatchling" but. . .
First is an old growth redwood sphere, about 5.25". It was made from demolition waste. Years ago I was at the Acme Tools store here in Duluth (then "Tool Crib of the North") and the contractor's pickup in the next parking space had a bunch of grey pieces of timber in the back. I looked more closely and realized it was old growth redwood. I kept an eye on the door while I was shopping and caught the guy at his truck; asked if they were waste and he said yes. Asked if I could take it and he said, "Saves me a trip to the dump." This sphere has 206 years of growth in it; even older than the Doug fir sphere I posted a while back, but not as eye catching. The black streak is a weathering check, and there is some iron staining in it from fasteners. Was averaging less than 1/32" per year in growth for the two centuries it took the tree put down this wood. Mind boggling.
Next is curly silver maple, from a piece of firewood I spotted at my sister-in-laws. About 3-1/4".
Next is pau ferro (aka Bolivian rosewood or morado). A purchased piece of wood, no story. Only 1-3/4", the "2x2" piece I bought was undersized. First time I've turned this wood, it takes a terrific polish, like glass.
Last one is walnut, a piece of the root buttress (hence the curl) from the firewood pile of a friend in Missouri. About 3-1/8".
All turned by hand. I wouldn't want to discourage anyone that prefers a jig from getting one, but I can't emphasize enough that turning a sphere by hand is not that hard if you use the multi-axis method. You don't have to have an eye for spherical, the ghost image formed when the "not-yet-a-sphere" rotates in a new axis shows you exactly where spherical is. You basically just cut away wood until your cut is no longer interrupted. When your tool isn't vibrating when you rub the bevel, you're there.
Best,
Dave
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Originally Posted by Robert Hayward
