Red gum platter ideas.

[sturina]

Hi All. I will admit I havent had time to research the sites yet but will this week on this matter. A friend has given me two bits of red gum she wants un-specified things done with. I have uploaded the photos while I have a chance and will read more while Im away all week with work.

Im thinking one peice I will try and turn into a bowly/platter type thing. The lady would love the natural timber edge left on. How is it best to preserve this, what to coat with etc. I was planning on trying to turn the flat side smooth of peice 1 on the lathe then carve out a bowl and polish. Not sure how my lathe will handle such an off centre large bit of timber.

The second bit I think I may cut up for a smaller natural edge bowl and some other bits. Any ideas what to do and how to do it.

Thanks

[sjm]

Those cracks look a bit daunting... I've found cracked redgum to be quite fragile unless you glue as you go.

[hughie]

Hmm, yes the cracks are a worry, maybe fill em with CA before you start and then keep the revs down as you turn.

[sturina]

Yep, the cracks have certainly been on my mind since I saw the wood yesterday. I have been contemplating whether to turn it at all, and just plane and sand the surface smooth. I guess I will be putting in a lot of thinking time prior to commiting metal to timber.

[bellyup]

Yep, that's Redgum alright. Not quite sure how big it is - hard to tell. If it was me I'd find the centre of the most interesting bit on the flat side and mount a faceplate using 4 roofing bolts or at least 12 gauge square drive self tappers( far better that philips head - very hard to strip out) even the bit with the chainsaw marks will be ok so long as you fix it on well.
Next , as the boys suggest, start slowly on the lathe and turn the beginnings of a base then turn a recess for your best/largest chuck jaws to neatly fit. From there you can start on the outside walls and get it to the shape you like. It's easier to do 90% of your finishing on the outside now unless your not sure of the final shape. Now fix the bowl with the chuck and away you go. I wouldn't be too worried about the cracks in the wood - it would become a problem if you were turning a really thin bowl or if the burl had gum/resin vains running through - if that were the case I'd be wearing full-on protective gear!!
Finish-wise, if the redgum is very dry then U-Beaut Shellac is very good - two coats and your done, seals the timber quickly, a littleU-Beaut traditional wax if you like.If the burl is smooth then Sanding sealer followed by Shellawax looks pretty good.
The finishes will always look better if you can blow the dust off with a compressor first.
Sorry if I'm preaching to the converted.
As they say in the classics -" Here's one I prepared earlier " ie yesterday (with natural edges, cracks and inclusions)
This is Bimble Box burl - as hard as any I've turned - sanded to 600 and finished with 2 coats of Shellac.You wont get the same level of shine from Redgum.
Hope this helps, Bruce.


178584

178585

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[smiife]

hi sturina
the first one looks a bit dodgy to me ,proceed with caution or use as firewood:oo:
the second one you do something like this

178616

just a suggestion,

178617

finished with danish and shellawax
hope it helps:2tsup::2tsup::2tsup:
cheers smiife

[dr4g0nfly]

Me thinks there are a couple of steps in the process missing from between Smiife's first and last photo!

[bowl-basher]

I would consider filling the cracks with some casting resin before starting to turn. I have had some success with this in the past
Good Luck:rolleyes:
Bowl Basher

[Pat]

I hope you had a bit of fun today, Stuart. Redgum is always fun to turn. :2tsup:

[sturina]

Thanks Pat I had a great time. I hadn't realized how hard the wood was. I brought it home and sanded the top down and applied some Danish oil. Looking forward to finishing it off. Thanks for all the pointers.

[sturina]

Ok it has been a while but the Red Gum progect is over for now. It has been amazing fun and a long way from the photos in post one. A big thanks to Pat for the help, tips, suggestions and lessons.

The first photos are a peice that I planed flat and sanded to 1200grit then a little polish. Lot of sweat and elbow grease.

The second and most fun was the plate. Turned with the help of Pat on his lathe and some much larger tools than my own. I did mount it on mine and turned it on at its slowest speed of 500rpm and nearly launcehed the bench across the garage (a little scary). Sanded to 1200 then four coats of danish oilt and three of wipe on polly. We ledt some natural edge and some of the chainsaw marks in to help tell the story. I will be sad to give this back to the owner.

Then a keyring and a few pens with the offcuts. Two slimlines and a Polaris.

[Skew ChiDAMN!!]

You did the pieces justice. :2tsup:

I like the platter... but I always like natural edged red-gum platters! :-

[Sawdust Maker]

noice :2tsup:

[Ozkaban]

nice result. Love the colour in the pens. Looks great.

Cheers,
Dave