Hollow form ?

Paul Downes

Member
Messages
959
Location
Westphalia, Michigan
I haven't turned any Hollow forms yet and have been thinking about getting the tooling made soon. A thought crossed my mind. You hollow form guys/gals are ahead of the ball game because you don'thave to sand the inside of the bowl right? That almost sounds lazy to me.:wave: :D I like that idea. I would guess that you just need to be good at getting the insides scraped somewhat smooth? Also, How do you put finish on the insides? poke a rag soaked with finish in the hole and soak it down?
 
Paul I just pour finish inside (Minwax Antique Oil which is about all I use) and roll it around until I can see with a flashlight that it is covered inside. Most times I turn it down to 3/8" or less wall thickness and even green the oil will come thru to the outside. I then pout it out into a cottage cheese or butter container to wipe on the outside.
 
I'm one of the few wackos that does finish the insides of HFs. Some would say I'm a masochist.

I turn mostly smaller HFs with an average 1" to 1-1/4" rim so the viewer can easily peek in as well as put his/her finger inside. The inside will never be as polished as the outside but I like to get it at least "finger smooth". Sanding clamps (hemostats) and H&L disks get the job done.

For finishing I do the same as Bernie (except that I finish WITH cottage cheese. :rofl:).
 
I'm another masochist. I sand the insides a bunch of different ways, and get it as smooth as I can. I will admit there are a few that have slight tearout, but never where it can be seen. Among the things I use is a 1" velcro/foam pad on an 8" drill bit extension, hooked to a right-angle drill, or hemostats holding a piece of sandpaper wrapped around a cushion of some sort -- a balled up rag works. (Keep your fingers out of the holes in the hemostats if you are sanding with the lathe turning.) Inside the lip I hold the sandpaper by hand and get as far as I can reach.

My tool work still has a lot of room for improvement, but I try to make up for it with patience while sanding. I've never actually timed it, but I suspect I spend
as long sanding the insides of most hollow forms as I do shaping and hollowing the vessel itself.
 
Paul - I am one of those folks who actually likes to leave the inside of the form looking like it was turned by hand. I sand the inside of the opening using the same method as Vaughn. Figure most folks are going to stick their fingers in out of curiosity more than anything else and it should be nice and smooth in that area. Other than that - if they can't reach it I don't sand it but it does have a smooth enough surface to be pleasing to the eye when they peek inside.

For finishing the inside I use a 1" foam brush to apply whatever I am using - oil, poly, etc.
 
I usually try to get the bottom as smooth as I can with tools then sand down the opening as far as I can reach. Then I do the same as the others and pour the oil in it to coat it. Some folks I know paint the inside black. They say it gives it more depth. I have never done it but I may try it on the NE HF I just posted. The inside of that one it pretty rough. Maybe the paint will help hide it.
 
If I don't want people to see that I didn't finish or sand the inside, I just glue on a finial. :D
That works. :p

I'm working on a cremation urn and I had a debate with myself on sanding the inside, since it will have a glued-on lid. End the end, I went for a smooth interior. It's really kind of silly, but I figured it shows respect (in this case).
 
I suppose Vaughn, that it depends on wether the ashes are from a 'smooth' operator, or a rough kind of guy.:D I could imagine that some spouses might throw in some broken glass or thumb tacks to keep their deceased 'comfortable':rofl:
I saw a joke the other day about a miserly old coot that told his wife that when he died he wanted to take all his money with him. At the funeral, just before they closed the casket, the wife brought a nice box and placed it in the casket. A bystander said "surly you aren't putting all the money in there with him, are you?" She said, "yes I am, and if he can cash a check where he's going. he's welcome to it" :rofl:

Thanks for the replies, by the way.
 
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