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View Full Version : Bowls, butchery and refinement??



cultana
17th May 2010, 02:54 PM
Now somewhere in these gems of wisdom I read something that seemed to associate bowl work with butchery with refinement, though I am not sure how butchery and refinement go together.

But it gave me the thought, since spindle work has to be delicate and errors can not be fudged then a dash at some bowls may be useful.
Heck I can turn any good piece of wood into a toothpick and still have errors so bowl work may be a way to go. Ok I have had a bit of a shot at a couple of small boxes and well they looked Ok but not flashy.

I had some free timber, courtesy of the council and their tree chopping crew so off I started making a blank or two with the good old chain saw.
Timber what type you ask, well its good old Eucalyptus Spathulata. Yes nice soft timber, blunt any sharp chain in a saw any day, and that is green timber.

Well it was an interesting exercise and nice learning experience.
The first two little bowls started to go oval on me while turning the outside shape. Made doing the inside a real horror. The other two well; nice timber, Ok.

The oval bit got me worried I was doing something really odd, so I called in the local guru. He first checked out what I was doing and also the lathe for being square. Then he had a go himself. Well the timber started to do the same with him so just something to add to the entertainment.

Well the outcome:
1. The only thing butchered was my bowl gouge. I blame the wood here.
2. Don’t use Eucalyptus Spathulata too often it plays havoc with the gouge even if it is green timber. It can also start drying out on you when turning.
3. Bowl shape, well lost of work still to go till I get that catenary curve approach as has been suggested elsewhere.
4. A new bowl gouge, preferable one that will hack this timber as it is apparently my main source of free timber.
5. All the other little things on the list which I won’t post.

Result: I think I will stick to my funny little boxes and spindle work.

Pictures, :no: you gota be kidding.

rsser
17th May 2010, 03:55 PM
LOL.

Don't be discouraged by an experience with one species. Most euc's are not good candidates for beginning faceplate turners in my book.

If it was green and you had to hack hard anyway, the heat from friction would've accelerated the drying process, hence the oval-ation.

See if you can find some medium density nature strip finds and have another shot. And keep your gouge sharp. On some dry hard timbers I have to give mine a lick on the grinder every 30 seconds of cutting or less. The sharper it is, the easier the control and the less heat.

cultana
17th May 2010, 04:20 PM
Discouraged!!!!!!!!

The biggest discouragement was being confronted by the CO holding a 'dustbuster' every time I came near the back door. Something about wood chips and wood dust no coming in the house.

Around here there is little to choose from. I suspect it would be illegal to throw a member of the local council on the lathe and turn it. Well that would be less dense, vacuum level anyway. :D

rsser
17th May 2010, 04:57 PM
LOL x 2!

Yeah, I found Cultana on the map after my post. Didn't think you'd have street plantings of Plane or Silver Birch.

All I can suggest is that you scrounge some nice bits of semi-arid desert species and offer to swap with someone in Adelaide or the A. Hills, or else dig deep and order some beginner-friendly blanks from an online supplier.

As for the CO (SO?), time to get tough. Try something like, 'OK, I'll shake the head before getting into bed so there are no chips falling out of the ears onto the sheets, and you get some unique salad bowls that will make you the envy of your sewing circle'.

Calm
17th May 2010, 06:35 PM
Try an get your hands on some cypress or pine - best practice wood around.

cheers

artme
17th May 2010, 07:22 PM
Send 'em to Ad! He is the resident oval turning expert.:p

cultana
17th May 2010, 10:25 PM
Send 'em to Ad! He is the resident oval turning expert.:p

Don't need an expert in oval turning, the wood was doing it all by itself while being turned. The solid piece had started going oval while doing the outside. All very symmetrical as well.

Both little bowls were take from one piece. Both went oval in one degree or the other along the same axis. The one on the right just went further. And both have flat tops and bases just to be difficult.

As for nice training banks its expensive just to ship in timber just that. Pine in a reasonable size is a bit like hen's teeth and what can be extracted/pilfered/borrowed/begged is full of knots.

Well besides all the gripes one must slowly continue.
New bowl gouge turned up today so I have a bit more steel to pay with.

orraloon
18th May 2010, 10:26 AM
I have had a few oval ones especially in sheoak. They went oval overnight after turning. If you let some of that wood dry then it should be ok to make a nice bowl.
Wood management is just another thing the turner has to come to grips with. So far I am only getting mixed results and have had a fair bit of wood crack on me after doing all the things like sealing the endsand stacking in as cool a place as possable. Some woods are bitches to dry with success.Wood turning lathe tips:techniques: woodturning instruction (http://aroundthewoods.com/)
There are a few tips on this site on gathering and drying wood.
Regards
John

cultana
18th May 2010, 12:06 PM
I have had a few oval ones especially in sheoak. They went oval overnight after turning. If you let some of that wood dry then it should be ok to make a nice bowl.
I would but that will take about 2 years with this timber. Actually warping after turning would be less of a quandary than a block going oval while turning. As I mentioned it had the local guru a bit perplexed as well.
Wood management is just another thing the turner has to come to grips with. So far I am only getting mixed results and have had a fair bit of wood crack on me after doing all the things like sealing the endsand stacking in as cool a place as possable. Some woods are bitches to dry with success.
This wood is just one of these bitches. It seems to have a high moisture loss rate. I normally cover each end with a wax oil paste as it is more flexible than say normal pure wax. This does help. Much of the timber has heat stress splits in it anyway. These are formed during the normal growing process and nothing to do with drying. At the moment I am considering painting the whole log with flexible paint/tar base paste to see if that helps slowing down the drying process.
Wood turning lathe tips:techniques: woodturning instruction (http://aroundthewoods.com/)
There are a few tips on this site on gathering and drying wood.
Regards
John

Thanks for the site as it has some interesting points there.