What’s on your lathe?

[Monty Ivy]

Michael, you're welcome. And Monty, they're dirt simple to turn, really. Brad has suggested drilling width and depth for the inset for different sized brush knots right there on the ordering page. I like 24mm the best, and get the SHD (super-high density) knots for my fancier brushes. I set the knots with 5-minute epoxy, though silicone glue works too. You don't want to set the knot too deep, or the brush will be too stiff. If you do drill too deep with your forstner bit, you can raise the knot back up with a coin or two under it. I just set the knot on this last one with a couple of nickels epoxied under it to get the right loft. Please show us your work if you go down this rabbit hole!

Will do. I ordered a 30mm Silver Tip knot earlier along with some Arko. Mitchell's is my favorite but have been wanting to try some Arko.

Finished turned and started the sanding and finishing routine. ~9x4 pecan calabash. Sanded with 80 grit and applied Seal Coat sanding sealer. This one soaked up so much sanding sealer that I'm going to give it a day or two to dry. This one has some really nice grain.

 

[Aaron Harris]

Nice work on the bowl. And if you're making a 30mm brush, that is a big'un! And shaving soaps are another rabbit hole I went down deep with straight razor shaving. I always have a puck of Mitchell's Wool Fat around. About any Arko variety is great for the money too. So many great cheap foreign creams in tubes too (Godrej, Palmolive, Proraso, etc.). If you want to get really fancy, Wholly Kaw, Noble Otter and others are heavenly for a luxurious shave. But most straight razor shavers agree that the finest, slickest, most luxurious cream is anything by Martin de Candre. It's French, it's expensive, but is sooo worth it! (My favorite is their Vetyver).

Let us see that big brush when it's done!

 

[robo hippy]

Monty, I do have 2 of those flex shaft set ups. I looked at that motor and if I remember correctly, it is high speed. To me, that is way too fast for sanding. I hooked one up to a mini lathe, and that had better speed ranges. I also put a right angle close quarter drill thing on the end too since it seemed more 'ergonomical'. How does the straight shaft work???? Never did find one that went off at 60 or so degrees rather than the standard right angle ones....

robo hippy

 

[Monty Ivy]

I really like the Guinevere. It spins around 3500rpm and I run the lathe at 800-1000. Much faster than the norm to be sure. Running that fast requires a lighter touch and have to keep moving to avoid digging holes. I don't use any of that systems proprietary abrasives. That said it gets the job done rapidly.

Ergonomically it's near silent operation makes it a pleasure to use. I don't have any issues with the straight handle. I guess I'm just used to it by now. I do tend to use both hands.

 

[Sam Fleisher]

I have what's called a dental lathe that I never use (bought to do some clean up of rusty bolts) never thought to use it for a set up like that for sanding. Man you guys are always costing me money!

 

[Michael Anderson]

Here is a progress shot on the Bradford Pear branch I posted on Thursday (post #529 in this thread). I cut apart the spindle, re-arranged, and sanded the curves. I also boiled the pieces for an hour (and then microwaved several times) prior to gluing them together via epoxy. Pretty fast way to dry out and stabilize the wood. You can also see the carving guidelines I have drawn. The majority of the piece is hollow, which allowed me to remove most of the pith and prevent cracking during the accelerated drying process. Tomorrow I will carve/texture the exterior, as well as turn a plug for the bottom hole (not pictured here). This project has been a ton of work so far, but man it’s fun. And, I’m sure excited for the next steps.


Update: Finished the carving/texturing. I think my eyes were crossed by the end of it. lol

 

[Leo Van Der Loo]

I have/had a Black Cherry on my lathe yesterday and today, 13", returned and sanded it, been sitting for nearly 20 years, but it had a 1" round knot hole in it, so it took longer before I picked it up to return it, I needed the look of a knot with the engrain showing, I got a dry small piece of Pin Cherry branch wood and shaped it to fit the hole, the problem is that there is no Black Cherry growing here at all.

So I used Pin Cherry, but it is much lighter in color, I used some dark stain and it almost looks right ;-), I used epoxy to glue it in.

There is no finish on it yet, just final sanded it.

 

[Leo Van Der Loo]

OK, so 2 days later, the look changed for the better (IMO) with 1 coat of Polymerized Tung Oil on it.

 

[Barry Larson]

Hi Leo: I like the look of the polymerized Tung Oil on the cherry - makes your Pin Cherry "graft" blend in like it belongs there! I really like the colour the Black Cherry takes on with the Tung Oil. Will you apply additional coats of the Tung Oil? Worth the 20 year wait I'd say!
Be safe and stay well.
Barry W. Larson
Calgary, Alberta, Canada eh!

 

[Odie]

Northeastern birdseye maple....

-o-

 

[Leo Van Der Loo]

Hi Leo: I like the look of the polymerized Tung Oil on the cherry - makes your Pin Cherry "graft" blend in like it belongs there! I really like the colour the Black Cherry takes on with the Tung Oil. Will you apply additional coats of the Tung Oil? Worth the 20 year wait I'd say!
Be safe and stay well.
Barry W. Larson
Calgary, Alberta, Canada eh!

Thanks Barry , yes one more coat, and then polish it a couple months later.

 

[Odie]

Curly Oregon Madrone with a hint of burl on one side.....

-o-

 

[Phil Hamel]

A piece of chestnut. I think it fits this hollow turning better than the other one I did.

 

[robo hippy]

Odie, I have never seen myrtle that color before. It does have a nice kind of bbq spice smell to it when turning, or it smells like it came from a horse stall.... Not sure if you know, but it is actually a California Bay Laurel, and not even related to myrtle. That is a marketing thing, hard to sell to the California tourists if you call it California bay laurel....

robo hippy

 

[Odie]

Odie, I have never seen myrtle that color before. It does have a nice kind of bbq spice smell to it when turning, or it smells like it came from a horse stall.... Not sure if you know, but it is actually a California Bay Laurel, and not even related to myrtle. That is a marketing thing, hard to sell to the California tourists if you call it California bay laurel....

robo hippy

My mistake robo....It's Madrone.....I'll change that shortly.

-o-

 

[Charles Cadenhead]

Finishing up a spalted sweet gum bowl. It's about 7 inches across.

 

[Michael Anderson]

Yet another Redbud burl. Been turning a lot of it lately for a big project that is getting close to the end. Whew! This wood warps like crazy. I suspect it’s about as close to madrone burl as I can get.

 

[Odie]

Roughed out a 12" pair of rare Thai Red Amboyna burl bowls last evening......took a total of 5 hours to do these. It'll be a few months until I can return them to the lathe for the 2nd turn.....

-o-

 

[Aaron Harris]

Finishing up a spalted sweet gum bowl. It's about 7 inches across.

Charles-I hate sweetgum trees and their gumballs in my backyard with a passion, but it makes some beautiful turned pieces, and I can't seem to make it crack!

 

[Monty Ivy]

Not the lathe exactly....

Installed Carter guides on the bandsaw and installed a 3/4 3TPI Timberwolf silicon steel blade. Adjusted using the Alex Snodgrass method. Tested on a seasoned pecan 5" box blank. Wow! What a difference. No drift or wobble. Surface looks like it came off the jointer.

 

[Michael Anderson]

One more little Redbud burl bowl. I THINK this will be the last one for a while. (Never say never though! Err something like that). Here it is fresh off the lathe.

 

[James Seyfried]

Installed Carter guides on the bandsaw

Which ones?

 

[Randy Anderson]

Red Elm vase - 14 1/2". Now on to hollowing...

 

[Charles Cadenhead]

Charles-I hate sweetgum trees and their gumballs in my backyard with a passion, but it makes some beautiful turned pieces, and I can't seem to make it crack!

They sure are messy and they grow like weeds. Luckily, ours are mostly in places where they don't cause too many problems. They're great for turning though!

 

[Charles Cadenhead]

One more little Redbud burl bowl. I THINK this will be the last one for a while. (Never say never though! Err something like that). Here it is fresh off the lathe.

Try not to drop the ruler on this one. It's very nice.

 

[Leo Van Der Loo]

One more little Redbud burl bowl. I THINK this will be the last one for a while. (Never say never though! Err something like that). Here it is fresh off the lathe.
View attachment 52656

Need little bowl Michael

Red Elm vase - 14 1/2". Now on to hollowing...

Very nice piece of wood Randy, now keep it alive

 

[Monty Ivy]

Which ones?

Here is the link to the product page. Fill out the contact form. They called me about 2 hours later to discuss fitment. It took about an hour to install the parts and adjust the bearings. Alex Snodgrass bandsaw setup video.

 

[Dave Hulett]

finally got to get back to the lathe. 18" diameter walnut. largest I've ever turned. first time turning completely with the headstock pivoted 180 and using the outrigger. will post it to my album when finished

Completed bowl 17" diameter

 

[Stan Pressner]

I am working on learning to cut thin, which is going well. Also trying to learn spirals, which will take a bit longer

 

[Michael Anderson]

@Stan Pressner what is your spiraling setup?

 

[Stan Pressner]

@Stan Pressner what is your spiraling setup?

No set up, just mark it out per Stuart Mortimer, small saw kerf on the line, gouge along the line, and then a rasp. I am trying to move on to burrs on the dremel, but my control is not great yet. My basic knowledge on both is from Steve Sherman, who has been very generous w his time.

 

[Odie]

I am working on learning to cut thin, which is going well.

Your thin walls are beautiful!

In my opinion, and this is only an opinion... The only ones who really appreciate thin wall turning, are those who understand how difficult it is to do it well.....and that would be another turner. The average non-turning person only cares about the eye-appeal of the shape, and doesn't care about thin-ness. This isn't a selling point.

I went through a period of turning many thin-wall bowls, and came to the above conclusion after interacting with others who were familiar with my work. These days, the only thing that matters, is the general eye-appeal of the shape....thinness and whether the outside form matches the inside form is an insignificant consideration...with the stipulation that there is a point where too thick is not a good thing either. and that would be a matter of opinion, as well.

As a side note, there was an incident in my shop where a slight breeze came through the open door, and blew a thin wall bowl off the table, onto the floor! (This has no relevance to the discussion.....just a comment for consumption!)

-o-

 

[Stan Pressner]

Your thin walls are beautiful!

In my opinion, and this is only an opinion... The only ones who really appreciate thin wall turning, are those who understand how difficult it is to do it well.....and that would be another turner. The average non-turning person only cares about the eye-appeal of the shape, and doesn't care about thin-ness. This isn't a selling point.

I went through a period of turning many thin-wall bowls, and came to the above conclusion after interacting with others who were familiar with my work. These days, the only thing that matters, is the general eye-appeal of the shape....thinness and whether the outside form matches the inside form is an insignificant consideration...with the stipulation that there is a point where too thick is not a good thing either. and that would be a matter of opinion, as well.

As a side note, there was an incident in my shop where a slight breeze came through the open door, and blew a thin wall bowl off the table, onto the floor! (This has no relevance to the discussion.....just a comment for consumption!)

-o-

Thanks Odie, I agree with you, the value of learning to turn thin for me is that my tool control is taking a big leap forward from the process of learning.

 

[Charles Cadenhead]

Started a new bowl from salvaged walnut before it got too hot here. It was going to be natural edged but there wasn't much bark and I didn't think it looked good. Maybe I should make and egg out of it. lol

 

[Neil S]

In my opinion, and this is only an opinion... The only ones who really appreciate thin wall turning, are those who understand how difficult it is to do it well.....and that would be another turner. The average non-turning person only cares about the eye-appeal of the shape, and doesn't care about thin-ness. This isn't a selling point.

That has also been my experience, Odie.

One of the few pieces that went to the gallery and never sold was a bowl made of Japanese Maple that begged to be turned thin and delicate. Whereas any piece on the chunky side has always sold, like this piece in the style of a chawan (Japanese tea bowl) that I have carried over from my time as a potter...

http://bamfurlong.com.au/gallery/images/neil_strong_bowl.jpg

.

 

[Barry Larson]

Continuing practice after a long absence from turning. Small bird's-eye maple plate. About 7 inches diameter. Blank started out about 7/8 inch thick. Bottom is about 1/4 inches thick. The shape looks ok (IMHO), but I had a bit of difficulty getting a smooth profile on the inside because the thin edge tends to chatter - maybe a bowl steady would improve this, but I made due supporting the rim with my fingers, and taking very light cuts. On to the the next practice piece.

Be safe and stay well.
Barry W. Larson
Calgary, Alberta, Canada eh!

 

[Steve Nix]

Working on a White Oak Burl

 

[Barry Larson]

Working on a White Oak Burl

I sure hope you submit some pictures of the finished product. I believe it will be spectacular!
Be safe and stay well.
Barry W. Larson
Calgary, Alberta, Canada eh!

 

[robo hippy]

I did go through a phase of 'how thin can I go'. One maple burl piece I had die sell eventually. When at the local Saturday Market, I had to put a juggling ball in it to keep it from blowing off the shelf, even the lightest breeze would make it move. Not sure who said it, but some thing about there isn't enough wood for structural integrity, and it will eventually self destruct.

robo hippy

 

[Charles Cadenhead]

Almost, finished walnut bowl