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View Full Version : Blast, damn & other words to that effect...!



Skew ChiDAMN!!
27th June 2009, 04:00 PM
I unexpectedly had today off, so thought I'd get some relaxation in. Had a lovely piece of highly figured Spotted Gum (courtesy of Waldo & his big project) and thought it'd make a fantastic winged bowl, so spent some time gluing on sacrificial pieces.

Then waiting... and waiting... and waiting... is it my imagination or does glue dry even more slowly when you're watching? :rolleyes: Finally decided "Damn the glue, Fulls Speed Ahead!"

Started turning... damned hard stuff that Spotted Gum. The fiddle-back is very prone to tearout, too. Nevertheless, all things considered, it's coming up nicely.

Took too big a bite and lost one piece of sacrificial wood :doh: but decided to keep going with it unbalanced anyway, I'd already turned the outside to form so as long as I watch my fingers, everything is still going nicely...

Until... *CATCH* Whoops! Try again... *CATCH* :? Sharpen the gouge, try again... *CATCH* Switch to a scraper... THWOCKETY-THWOCK-THWOCK-THWOCK...

Perhaps I'd better shut 'er down and have a look? :B

BUGGER! BLAST! Hit a resin pocket. :~ Sadly, I've been turning both sides of the wings simultaneously to maintain a 4 mm thickness, so I can't "deepen" the offending cove. Even a mere 3 or 4 mm or so would've made a big difference.

So... what am I to do with it now? It looks it's gonna run right through the middle of the bowl and I want the grain to be the highlight, not some resin fill... almost wish I'd cut it up for pen-blanks instead.

(At least it has given me a chance to glue the miscreant off-cut back on.)

wheelinround
27th June 2009, 04:04 PM
Nice Skew

what about resin or epoxy mixed with shavings or brass fillings CA maybe

Woodwould
27th June 2009, 04:24 PM
I used to shove my mishaps into the workshop woodburner. It stopped me gazing glumly at them wondering "What if..." and the heat they produced kept the kettle boiling, so it wasn't all a waste. Got a woodheater?

rsser
27th June 2009, 05:04 PM
Too much by way of voids to use CA and wood dust?

Pity. Nice lump of captured carbon there.

Skew ChiDAMN!!
27th June 2009, 05:35 PM
Yeah, it's a pretty piece of wood. The resin vein didn't show in the end-grain of the squared blank, dammit.

At the mo I'm sorely tempted to scrap it, but will probably persevere with an epoxy filler. Too big for CA... in the two spots I've exposed it the "crescents" are about 1 1/2" long, maybe 5mm thick.

I'm thinking perhaps if I stain the filler a dark chocolaty brown? If it still doesn't look right, I may use the whole bowl as an experiment in graduated staining.

I already know I won't be happy with the result but it'll all be a bit more practice in the ancient woodturner's craft of "curtus obscura."

If that also fails, then I'll liberate it's therms in a heater. :U

rsser
27th June 2009, 05:52 PM
Yeah, worth persisting. May well come up OK.

Woodies know that yewks and sap pockets go together.

dai sensei
27th June 2009, 06:17 PM
Fill with resin, or CA with brass or coffe, should be fine. You have gone too far to burn it, so you have to save it :U

jefferson
27th June 2009, 07:47 PM
Andy, nice to know you are human afterall! :D

I don't know whether you can salvage or not. But the project seems a little large for you. This is the largest piece I've seen you turn, but with 10000 + posts, I'd have go checking.... :?

Jeff

Skew ChiDAMN!!
27th June 2009, 08:20 PM
Andy, nice to know you are human afterall! :D

Human? :rotfl: All too much so... I'm too busy experimenting with trying new shapes and improving my tool technique to bother with minor details such as finishing or form. So although much of what I do might seem difficult, the end results tend to be pretty mundane. :B


I don't know whether you can salvage or not. But the project seems a little large for you. This is the largest piece I've seen you turn, but with 10000 + posts, I'd have go checking.... :?

It's not the largest I've turned by a long shot. :no: But I dry my own wood, only started a bit over 5 years ago... so I'm just barely beginning to get large blanks that are worth using. On t'other hand, I've plenty of small stuff...

issatree
27th June 2009, 08:28 PM
Hi Skew chi damn,
Just my thoughts, cut an equal amount off both sides, & you would end up with a rectangular turned plate.
Regards,
issatree.

Skew ChiDAMN!!
27th June 2009, 08:41 PM
Hmmm... I don't think that'd work because of the position of the vein.

But there's nothing to stop me from cutting out the strip the vein is in, and then replacing it with brass rods à la "lost wood" style.

I'll have to have another look at the blank - too late, dark and cold to wander out to the shed now - but it's certainly something I'll keep in mind next session!

Thanks for the idea. :2tsup:

tea lady
27th June 2009, 09:32 PM
But there's nothing to stop me from cutting out the strip the vein is in, and then replacing it with brass rods à la "lost wood" style. That sounds inter sting. :cool: maybe a strip of something wiggly and interesting in the gap kinda echoing the form, or going completely against it. :2tsup:

artme
27th June 2009, 10:40 PM
Wouldn't toss or burn Skew. Think over the suggestions, select one and try.
If it doesn't "work", what have you lost?

Ed Reiss
28th June 2009, 12:35 PM
...you sure that's not a dead caterpillar there?

Shouldn't worry 'bout it...makes for a nice feature, but whatever you decide to do with it I'm sure it'll turn out fine:2tsup:

Paul39
28th June 2009, 01:49 PM
You might just ignore the void if it does not weaken the piece enough to come apart on the lathe. It is what it is.

The figure of the wood is too nice to abandon.

I like to make bowls out of the transition area between root and tree, so some have a cleft down the side, or holes in them. I love the crazy grain and bullseyes.

Waldo
28th June 2009, 10:38 PM
:doh:

I think sheds or 'spaces' can sometimes be places best not entered into, as that project we've built in our heads gets a visit by the stuff-up fairy without our consent just as we start to put out mits onto it. :grumble:

You still got the second lump?

Skew ChiDAMN!!
28th June 2009, 10:45 PM
The second lump is the one which I know has a resin vein.

At least with that 'un I can plan ahead to incorporate the vein into the design... :)

Waldo
28th June 2009, 10:52 PM
The second lump is the one which I know has a resin vein.

So you started on the good end cut off.

It'll have some epoxy resin too then. :doh: Sometimes things are shot down before mice and men even get a shoe in.

:kickcan:

We needs to make another visit to Mats Timber. But you do have that real nice lump sitting in the wood rack over here. :2tsup:

Skew ChiDAMN!!
28th June 2009, 10:59 PM
We needs to make another visit to Mats Timber. But you do have that real nice lump sitting in the wood rack over here. :2tsup:

:doh: I'd forgotten about that! I only remember the Cooktown Ironwood 'cos it's pretty much in yer face where it is.

I really should have another look at that li'l piece, just to see what I can get out of it. (Besides a small occasional table. :D)

Groggy
28th June 2009, 11:21 PM
So... what am I to do with it now?Hmm. Maybe cut the resin pocket out with a holesaw then smooth the edges into a nicely feathered taper. Then change the shape to make it slightly ovoid and seal with shellac. Once complete sell it off as an artist's pallette :wink:

http://tbn2.google.com/images?q=tbn:MGayahkncTHrGM:http://wwwdelivery.superstock.com/WI/223/1491/PreviewComp/SuperStock_1491R-1078935.jpg

soundman
28th June 2009, 11:24 PM
Fill with resin, or CA with brass or coffe, should be fine. You have gone too far to burn it, so you have to save it :U

Listen to "the resin king"......he can fix anything with resin.

I was talking to a certain woodcraft supplier about Neil once......couldn't recall the name.... but upon describing him......Oh the guy that buys all the CA.

seriouly..... I have seen things neil has rescued with resin....A big translucent patch in the side of an item can look realy specy.

cheers

wheelinround
29th June 2009, 09:59 AM
Skew change idea do a pattern cut out round the whole thing

Allan at Wallan
29th June 2009, 10:46 AM
I unexpectedly had today off, so thought I'd get some relaxation in. Had a lovely piece of highly figured Spotted Gum (courtesy of Waldo & his big project) and thought it'd make a fantastic winged bowl, so spent some time gluing on sacrificial pieces.

Then waiting... and waiting... and waiting... is it my imagination or does glue dry even more slowly when you're watching? :rolleyes: Finally decided "Damn the glue, Fulls Speed Ahead!"

Started turning... damned hard stuff that Spotted Gum. The fiddle-back is very prone to tearout, too. Nevertheless, all things considered, it's coming up nicely.

Took too big a bite and lost one piece of sacrificial wood :doh: but decided to keep going with it unbalanced anyway, I'd already turned the outside to form so as long as I watch my fingers, everything is still going nicely...

Until... *CATCH* Whoops! Try again... *CATCH* :? Sharpen the gouge, try again... *CATCH* Switch to a scraper... THWOCKETY-THWOCK-THWOCK-THWOCK...

Perhaps I'd better shut 'er down and have a look? :B

BUGGER! BLAST! Hit a resin pocket. :~ Sadly, I've been turning both sides of the wings simultaneously to maintain a 4 mm thickness, so I can't "deepen" the offending cove. Even a mere 3 or 4 mm or so would've made a big difference.

So... what am I to do with it now? It looks it's gonna run right through the middle of the bowl and I want the grain to be the highlight, not some resin fill... almost wish I'd cut it up for pen-blanks instead.

(At least it has given me a chance to glue the miscreant off-cut back on.)

"Thwockety-thwock-thwock-thwock" ... very interesting!

I looked it up in my book of ancient aboriginal expressions and
it states, "Oh, goodness me, what a waste of time for now but
retain it for future use when someone invents wooden pens":D

Allan

Bagmann
30th June 2009, 12:14 AM
just a thought, but how about using a blowtorch or similar to really make a feature of it rather than trying to fill it?.......or not.

Skew ChiDAMN!!
30th June 2009, 12:52 AM
Mmmm...

A few good ideas there folks, but I want to keep the fiddleback as the main feature, so any method I use to fill or conceal the veins shouldn't be a "feature" as such, but something more subtle. Not an easy call.

I gave some thought to ebonising/burning a straight band across the bowl to cover the filled sections but a bit of experimentation shows that although this looks alright from a distance, it looks like crap when close up. It makes the fill into an obvious patch. :doh:

Maybe if I painted the band it'd work, but I'm loathe to do that. Until & unless all else has failed, anyway. :D (I really like the idea of infilling the entire band, but that's not anywhere near as easy as it sounds and, I suspect, beyond my abilities at this time.)

Calm
30th June 2009, 07:58 AM
"Thwockety-thwock-thwock-thwock" ... very interesting!

I looked it up in my book of ancient aboriginal expressions and
it states, "Oh, goodness me, what a waste of time for now but
retain it for future use when someone invents wooden pens":D

Allan

Allan who was the author of that book?:D:?

rodent
1st July 2009, 08:32 PM
Mmmm...

A few good ideas there folks, but I want to keep the fiddleback as the main feature, so any method I use to fill or conceal the veins shouldn't be a "feature" as such, but something more subtle. Not an easy call.

I gave some thought to ebonising/burning a straight band across the bowl to cover the filled sections but a bit of experimentation shows that although this looks alright from a distance, it looks like crap when close up. It makes the fill into an obvious patch. :doh:

Maybe if I painted the band it'd work, but I'm loathe to do that. Until & unless all else has failed, anyway. :D (I really like the idea of infilling the entire band, but that's not anywhere near as easy as it sounds and, I suspect, beyond my abilities at this time.)
Rubbish drew have a good look at them , they look like fossilized wood grubs so go with it . a bit of pyro a touch of ink and hay presto , you have a fossilized bowl with fiddle back as well .:oo:

Skew ChiDAMN!!
2nd July 2009, 11:20 PM
Rubbish drew have a good look at them , they look like fossilized wood grubs so go with it . a bit of pyro a touch of ink and hay presto , you have a fossilized bowl with fiddle back as well .:oo:

Trust me, I have had a good look at it.

Don't forget I've got the real thing, not just some crappy snaps taken by an inept photographer... :rolleyes:

CameronPotter
3rd July 2009, 12:58 PM
If you would be happy with a band - I suspect that it wouldn't be that hard to fill a band with resin. Turn a shallow groove, fill liberally with dark resin, cut back to wood. There you have a resin filled band...

Finally, I know that you wanted the fiddleback to be the feature, but maybe you need to reset expectations? :no:

Finally, if you feel up to a bit of carving you could do a pierced carved pattern around the place where the problem occurs and simply cut it out - but of course, then you are back to having a different highlight...

Best of luck.

Cam

Frank&Earnest
4th July 2009, 05:20 PM
Hi Skew, I haven't looked into turning for a while, but could not go past your title...:D

My two bobs about your question: given that the resin pocket is not too disfiguring as it is, I would not cut away/fill with contrasting item etc. but would live it showing: it's a natural part of the timber anyway. If it needs filling for structural reasons, because there is a passing gap, I would fill the natural voids with same colour resin (i.e. coffee), otherwise, if there is only some pitting, with restorer's wax, again matching the natural colour of the resin. The glued up piece looks a bigger problem to me, that's what would make me go for the burner unless the joint is really invisible.

Skew ChiDAMN!!
4th July 2009, 06:56 PM
The glued up piece looks a bigger problem to me, that's what would make me go for the burner unless the joint is really invisible.

The glued up pieces are sacrificial... it'll be a wavy-winged square bowl, so they're only there temporarily to help keep my fingers attached. :)

Frank&Earnest
5th July 2009, 12:41 AM
:- Looks like I should have read more than the swearwords. Will you have enough bowl left to be worth repairing then? :D

rodent
9th July 2009, 12:32 AM
We have to go over your way on Thursday ( tomorrow ) drew . So fred ( crazysckew ) and i will drop over do the lawns for your mum , and have a look at your CATastrophy . Ok .:oo:

Skew ChiDAMN!!
9th July 2009, 06:16 PM
So, I ran an experiment and came up with a fill that was subtle, looked good and I was happy with.

Pics 1 shows some after initial application, 2 & 3 are the two resin pockets in the top side after sanding. No finish has been applied yet, I'm not sure whether the brown "stain" around the pocket on pic #2 will sand out or not. Or even if I want to sand it out... it doesn't actually look so extreme in real life. I'll give it another day or two to maximise hardness before I decide one way or t'other.

The black fill in the top LH corners of pic 1 & 3 and top RH corner of pic 2 was the remnants of Digger's Rest resin. You can see that it really stands out compared to my mix. Too much so, IMHO, although the two have blended together nicely and the overall end result looks good; very much like a natural resin but w/out bits falling out.

The worst two pockets - the ones I showed in earlier pix - are on the bottom of the bowl & they haven't been touched yet, as I decided to finish the top and turn the bottom to thickness, hopefully removing the worst of the pocket from the bottom of the cove. (I don't mind a pocket in one or both sides of the cove, but not across it's entire width. :~)

Oh... and the fill? Well... errmm... instant coffee in 5-minute araldite. :B I finally find a use for the muck! :U

Paul39
10th July 2009, 04:42 AM
Skew,

2 & 3 really look good. Even if you are not thrilled with the final outcome, put it on the shelf and look at it once in a while. You may grow to really like it.

My "rotten, spalted, buggy, bowl" turned out that way for me.

I also learned a lot along the way.