Cracked Bowl

[Wyatt Holm]

Hello,
I was rough turning a bowl today, a 20" salad bowl and I noticed it had a lot of cracks in it. I don't particularly want to turn it clear down so there are no more cracks, because then there wouldn't be much of a bowl left. I would like some ideas of fixing the cracks or filling them with something to make them look nice but still be structural. Give some ideas interesting or stupid I want to see some.
Thanks
Wyatt

 

[Odie]

Hello,
I was rough turning a bowl today, a 20" salad bowl and I noticed it had a lot of cracks in it. I don't particularly want to turn it clear down so there are no more cracks, because then there wouldn't be much of a bowl left. I would like some ideas of fixing the cracks or filling them with something to make them look nice but still be structural. Give some ideas interesting or stupid I want to see some.
Thanks
Wyatt

Hi Wyatt......

I recently turned an Elm salad bowl that had a partial knot with bark inclusion in it. I was able to fill in the gaps with clear 5-min epoxy. Although it was 5-min, or quick setting, I did leave on the epoxy a couple of days before I returned to this bowl. The epoxy will sand out on a spinning lathe, but I chose to use a 1" diameter 60gt disc, and just come in there and sand away the excess epoxy without touching the wood. In other words, take the excess epoxy off, right down to the level of the wood.

For this bowl, the knot/bark inclusion was rather large......much larger than the Instabond, or CA glues were capable of doing well.

If you are dealing with small hairline, or slightly larger cracks, the Instabond thin, or thick CA might work out for your needs.

otis of cologne

 

[Gretch Flo]

cracks

Hello,
I was rough turning a bowl today, a 20" salad bowl and I noticed it had a lot of cracks in it. I don't particularly want to turn it clear down so there are no more cracks, because then there wouldn't be much of a bowl left. I would like some ideas of fixing the cracks or filling them with something to make them look nice but still be structural. Give some ideas interesting or stupid I want to see some.
Thanks
Wyatt

Currently I use mineral oil to "wet sand". i use Danish oil and or walnut oil for the final finishes. On cracks that develop I make sure to swipe the crack with mineral oil first, sand to get saw dust in crack, use thin superglue (I use the oderless kind as I am "allergic: to the regular stuff, and this stuff sets in 30+ seconds), wipe it and sand again immediately. Depending on the porosity of the wood, there will be telltale stains from the glue, and so I like to sand it immediately to disperse. Often it works, other times it doesn't and I still see the discoloration or shininess. If cracks are larger or voids, I sometimes use colored powder. and tell people I discovered turquoise within the wood. I say that with a smile!!! Gretch

 

[MichaelMouse]

This is fully cured wood? If not, trying to fill cracks is a fool's errand. You'll have to take the chance and let the piece cure for re-turning before filling. Sometimes end checks will open all the way and ruin the piece, but radial checks will close somewhat, or perhaps all the way, depending on the grain.

I'm a big fan of bark. It looks natural around a knot, and even more natural if you tuck in some medium CA and wedge the pieces into the gaps. You can fill the small gaps with ground bark, but you won't have an ugly uniform fill looking back at you like a dead fish's eye, because the big pieces will break up the pattern.

I also use hair of the dog in another way, putting in wedges of the same wood to fill a crack. With a bit of effort to match the grain orientation, they look convincing. Wedges or whittling shavings tamped in with a small screwdriver work especially well for those radial checks that didn't quite close.

If you're looking for contrast, then all the color stuff you want can be mixed with epoxy and pushed in. It's easy to go to excess with the contrast method, in my opinion. I've seen some stuff that reminded me of the plastic puke puddles we used to put in the halls at school.

 

[Joe Greiner]

I've used all three methods:

1. Toss it into the firewood pile and start over.

2. Cut to a lower profile or different shape.

3. Excavate and fill with a mortar of epoxy and coffee grounds or key-cutting shavings. This is my usual procedure, best done before achieving the final surface. I overfill, so that the final cut and sand intersects some of the "aggregate" to produce a terrazzo-like finish. I don't care if it looks like a puke paddle, whatever that is.😀

Joe

 

[Gretch Flo]

I've used all three methods:
I don't care if it looks like a puke paddle, whatever that is.😀

Joe

Joe-I had the same question for Michael, 😀 Gretch

 

[Rob Wallace]

'Puke Puddle' and lacquer question.....

As a former owner and user of a 'puke puddle', I'm fairly sure MM is talking about the fake vomit that you could buy from novelty and "magic" stores, or by mail order, (i.e. Johnson Smith Catalog) to use in various [distasteful] pranks on your 'friends'. I can still remember seeing the face of Mrs. Aiello (7th grade teacher) when she opened her classroom door to find a 'puke puddle' in the hallway just outside... ...unfortunately it elicited a real "blow chow" response from one of her students (Karen H.). I had a fascinating experience in the vice principal's office that afternoon with some of my friends.... ....then again, I could be completely wrong!

Click HERE to see a puke puddle for sale...

Just to stay on topic, does anyone have experience spraying lacquer in temperatures below 50 degrees Fahrenheit? I want to spray finish some bowls, and would rather use lacquer instead of water-based poly. Has anybody successfully sprayed lacquer between 30 and 40^F??

Rob

 

[Joe Greiner]

Perhaps I mis-read it earlier. I could swear it said "puke paddle," and Google was no help at all. Now it reads "puke puddle." I still don't care.😀

Thanks anyway, Rob.😱

Joe

 

[Wyatt Holm]

The bowl is wet, just rough turned. I will probably use colored epoxy or something similar after it dries.