Thread: Online horrors

Some 25 0dd years ago when we used to do the Working with Wood Shows I would turn a bowl inside and out in around 15 minutes maybe or there about. Then came the sanding and finishing which I was really there to demonstrate, but after all that time watching the turning the punters walked away as they'd had enough. Those were really quickly turned and bloody good bowls, but the finishing.... the most important part just didn't seem to be of interest.

After the same thing happening a number of times I decided to take a new course of action. Instead of turning a whole bowl I turned what approximated the outside of a bowl. I sanded and finished one of these in around 2 - 3 minutes from start to brilliant gloss finish, off the lathe and into the hands of the audience.

Boy did that help with sales and stop hundreds of stupid questions.
Have included a couple of pics below.

• Fully turned bowl demo (full time blank to fully finish including sanding stain and finishing around 30 minutes)
• Quick demo (remove old finish, sand to 1200 grit, apply EEE-Ultra Shine then Shellawax around 3 minutes, tops)

I think a few Youtubers need to take a look at speeding up their demos. I get that they want you to see the entire process but after the first 10 min it gets to be a bit on the boring side and many will fast forward through sections and on to the last 5 minutes to see what it ended up like.

I recall a set of (I think) 3 videos by a very well known woodturner that went on for ever and ever and many people watching them falling to sleep part way through the first one.

I was told a story of one lady who's husband never got past the first 10 minutes or so without falling asleep. After doing this a number of times, she waited until the next time he sat down to watch it again. As per multiple other times he was out to it shortly after the first video started. She let him sleep on and whilst he snored his way through the session she put the last video video into the machine and fast forwarded it to almost the end then made a loud noise that woke her husband, who then watched the last minute or so of the final video.

She said OK that's the last time I'm going to let you watch all those 3 videos. They are no longer allowed to be played on this machine. You've seen them all now and that's enough. With that she took the last video out put it in its box and took the full set away and gave it to his woodworking club.

Below
Fully turned and finished
RIGHT: quick demo

Both show the finish one takes forever 30min or so. The other takes 3min and no one falls asleep or gets bored.