bowl savers

[hughie]

Hi,
Just wondering what the accumlated wisdom of the forum is on bowl savers. Good points, things to watch out for,any recommendations etc.
I have had a look at the Mcnaughton and Woodcut bowlsavers via the net. R.Raffan recommends the Mcnaughton, either way its a fair chunk of $$ part with, without any recommendations.
hughie

[DavidG]

I use a Sorbey slicer (straight cut). A bit cheaper but looses some wood.
Tend to have conical pieces left over from the middles.

The bowl savers cut nice hemispheres so you are a bit stuck for shape options but can get more from the blank.

You can use a parting tool on very small pieces.
Chain saw for very big pieces.:eek: ;)

[rsser]

Hughie, have you done a search of the forum? Think we might have canvassed this before.

Long story short, the Woodcut is easier to use but less versatile in what it can core; the Kelton is harder to use but offers more options for size and shape.

See http://www.sawg.org.nz/News%20Letters/SAWG%20News%20Oct%202005.pdf

Note that the Kelton requires a min gap between banjo height and lathe centre. It won't fit on my Vicmarc 175 eg. It's also not at its best on anything with less than 1.5 hp.

[Cliff Rogers]

I have the Woodcut.
If you watch the video 2 or 3 times & follow the instructions, it works well.

You are limited a bit by the size & shape of the blades but I have no complaints as the shapes it cuts suits my eye.

It is an exey toy & you have to be using it on expensive or precious timber to warrant the cost.

[hughie]

[quote=rsser]Hughie, have you done a search of the forum? Think we might have canvassed this before.

Ern, I did not find any thing in particular doing a search of the forum, using "bowlsaver", "bowl saver" If it has been canvassed before I wonder under what heading?
hughie

[rsser]

Hi Hughie, yep, the web is like the wild west; don't foller no rules.

Try searching on Kelton.

[Skew ChiDAMN!!]

I've considered buying one but haven't really felt I'd use it enough to justify the price, mainly as most of the ones I've seen limit the choices of forms for the final vessels to shapes I don't particularly like.

So, as a matter of curiosity, just how frequently do forum members use theirs? Are they oft used, or only occasionally set up for the odd piece of highly valued (for one reason or another) wood?

[Cliff Rogers]

The latter.... I don't often get a good big block without cracks to use it on. :(

[DavidG]

So, as a matter of curiosity, just how frequently do forum members use theirs
I use a slicer which does not require any setup and is a lot cheaper than a bowl saver.
I take a cone out of nearly every large (250mm+) dia blank and turn it into something that I hope will cover the cost of the blank.

[hughie]

Hi All,
Thanks for all the replies.
I have pretty well narrowed it down to Woodcut or Kelton. At present I am looking at Kelton due to its versatility, a bit more of a learning curve.
It has only become a topic due to a load of Tas. burls I picked up reasonably cheap some around 250mm dia x 100+ thick and it would be a shame to just turn away the centres into wood chips.
hughie