Red Alder bowl

[Grumpy John]

Knocked up a small red alder bowl from some of the timber I scored 2 months ago. So far three coats of oil and it's still thirsty.

150mm dia x 50mm high.
151248 151249

[maddog 62]

very nice,

[mkypenturner]

nice i like the spalting

[Manuka Jock]

Beaut bowl there mate :2tsup:.
Alder takes on a shape all of its own eh :U.


Yep , it's thirsty stuff alright John .
I found the same thing with the ones I have done .
I now oil it up a few times with raw linseed , letting it dry well each time and then with my bare hands rub some semi jellied danish into it , with a re-coat or two on the end grain areas that suck it in deep , untill the whole thing , both sides have a surface buildup.
That sticky brew takes about a week to dry , and then I wet sand it with fine grit paper and raw linseed oil.
The end result is a smooth satin sort of wood finish without the plastic feel to it

It takes a while , but well worth it in the end

[Grumpy John]

nice i like the spalting

Yeah, just starting to spalt and still solid enough to turn :2tsup:. I've got heaps more sweating in plastic bags with shavings, might open a few of 'em up tomorrow and have a look at how things are going.



Beaut bowl there mate :2tsup:.
Alder takes on a shape all of its own eh :U.


Yep , it's thirsty stuff alright John .
I found the same thing with the ones I have done .
I now oil it up a few times with raw linseed , letting it dry well each time and then with my bare hands rub some semi jellied danish into it , with a re-coat or two on the end grain areas that suck it in deep , untill the whole thing , both sides have a surface buildup.
That sticky brew takes about a week to dry , and then I wet sand it with fine grit paper and raw linseed oil.
The end result is a smooth satin sort of wood finish without the plastic feel to it

It takes a while , but well worth it in the end

You're not wrong about it taking on a shape of it's own Jock. The blank was sopping wet when I roughed it out so I nuked it in the microwave with 30 second blasts at 50% power. Got the weight down from 170g to 135g (20% weight reduction) so there's still some moisture left in the bowl, but it was dry enough to sand. I don't mind if it moves all over the place, that gives the bowl more character IMHO :D.

[Manuka Jock]

I don't mind if it moves all over the place, that gives the bowl more character IMHO :D.
Pre antiqued :U

[artme]

Nice one GJ!!:2tsup::2tsup::2tsup:

Jock - does jut linseed oil darken things a bit too much?

[Grumpy John]

BTW the oil I'm using is a blend of 50% turps 50% boiled linseed oil 50%clear poly.

[Manuka Jock]

So its pretty much a danish mix then huh.
Maybe with mine , because the mix has started to jelly , enough of the thinner has evaporated so that its mainly oil and poly solids and that's what is sealing the surface.
How about a small test run of just oil and poly ?

Red Alder is unlike any other wood that I've worked on , needs more elbow grease , but well worth it in the end.

[Manuka Jock]

Nice one GJ!!:2tsup::2tsup::2tsup:

Jock - does jut linseed oil darken things a bit too much?

Yeah it can . The big bowl was drying and cracking so thats why I loaded it up with oil. The stuff that I've got is a very pale brew in the bottle , and tho it does darken the wood somewhat , but it pops the grain very well .
Alder is a light one to start with so it works ok for me .
The big one in this nest is the end result , the 'red' is not too dark .
I'm working on the second one now .

[tea lady]

Knocked up a small red alder bowl from some of the timber I scored 2 months ago. So far three coats of oil and it's still thirsty.

150mm dia x 50mm high.
151248 151249:cool: Oh pretty! Must break out that one I have. Maybe while the boss is away!:D:cool:

[munruben]

Nice looking bowl there GJ:2tsup:

[Grumpy John]

I've just put the sixth coat of oil on the bowl :o, and it's gone in twenty minutes. I don't want a gloss finish, just a nice sheen.

151325

[Manuka Jock]

When I come to finishing the third bowl of the nest , I might just fill it to the brim with oil , and see how long it takes to soak in :D

[Grumpy John]

When I come to finishing the third bowl of the nest , I might just fill it to the brim with oil , and see how long it takes to soak in :D

I was thinking of soaking it like some people do with Norfolk Island Pine.

Jock, does all red alder get that "furry" tearout. I've found that a light touch with a very sharp scraper gets good results.

[Manuka Jock]

I was thing of soaking it like some people do with Norfolk Island Pine.

Jock, does all red alder get that "furry" tearout. I've found that a light touch with a very sharp scraper gets good results.

That and sanding mesh for me John. The grain seems to go every which way.

Its gotta be one of the softest woods that I've worked with . A mate of mine is a traditional Alaskan artist , and he carves his masks and the like out of alder , on his knee , with wee knives , while sitting in a chair :U