Tupelo for turning

Chuck Rodekohr

In Memorium
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495
Location
NorCal, USA
I’m real new at this. I took a beginning wood turning class two Saturdays ago and turned a white oak vase, and a basic bowl turning class last weekend and turned a poplar bowl. I bought a block of spalted tupelo to practice on. From this, I will (try to) turn a bowl 4” X 8", a 6-8” tall vase and two short, stubby vases. For the bowl, I cut the blank to an 8"+ circle. While turning it round, it really felt like it was out of round, but it was just the gouge passing over the end grain that made it feel out of round. My question is, did I choose a poor type of wood to practice on, or is there a way to smooth the end grain. I used a skew chisel but the end grain is still very rough.
 
Chuck,
I've never turned tupelo but I got to aplaud you for trying to use a skew for shaping at this stage in your turning learning. Most turners find the skew to be one of the most difficult tools to use. Tear out and catches are common with this tool until you learn the proper technique. I'd suggest that you try a gouge or even a scrapper and graduate to the skew. JMHO.
 
Don,

I used a 3/4" roughing gouge to get it round, smoothed it up a bit with a 3/8" spindle gouge, and when I saw the very rough end gain, I used the 3/4" oval skew (all Soreby) to try to smooth it out.

I rally like the skew. On my practice stock, I found it a lot easier to cut beads with the skew rather than the spindle gouge, which is what the instructor had us use. I guess I might change my tune the first hard catch, but I marked ¼ up from the small end with a marker to remind me what part to cut with.

Do you think a scraper might smooth the end grain out?
 
Chuck, I suspect a scraper will be more likely to tear the end grain instead of cut it. My tool of choice would be a freshly sharpened bowl gouge presented in a shearing cut. A skew could do it too, but I'm more comfortable with a gouge. Is your skew as sharp as you can get it? That'd be the first thing I'd look into.
 
Don, I am using a screw chuck into the bowl end while I got the blank to round and cut a spigot for the four jaw chuck. My instructions call for a low speed, so am running it at 500 rpm. Perhaps I should mount it in the chuck and bring it up to 1500 rpm?

Vaughn, I am using the Wolverine system and have freshly sharpened tools.

Perhaps I’m trying for perfection on my first try. Instead, maybe I should use this as a learning experience and just practice, practice, practice.

Thank you.
 
High Chuck!

Good on your for getting right at the skew, I too very much love the skew, but it has to be sharp, like shave the hairs on your arm sharp :thumb:

I grind my skews on the slow speed grinder maybe 4 times a year, otherwise it is just the #600 diamond hone, then the power strop and it is shaving sharp and leaves a wonderful finish :thumb:
 
Congrats for jumping right in to the deep end of the pool. :D:thumb:
I have never used tupelo but understand it is very soft, on the order of basswood, and a favorite of some carvers.
Seems the problems you describe could almost be predicted. Go with wat Vaughn suggested.
 
Hi Chuck,
I've not used Tupelo either, but on some box elder, which is also a little soft and green, I get some roughness on the end grains... I've tried both the skew and the bowl gouge as Vaughn suggested... some success with both methods, but the tool must be really sharp. I've had catches with both tools that really frustrated me, but was able to work around them.
Fun thing with a catch on a skew when you're trying to cut end grain... it can shoot through your hands and across the room (DAMHIKT)... and in my case, always under something so I have to get down on my knees or belly to retrieve the tool.:(:eek:... but then seems like everything I drop winds up under a work bench, tool chest, or buried in the chips under the lathe. :(

A catch with the bowl gouge always winds up in a really big gouge where I don't want one.;)

Good luck... looking forward to you posting pictures of the end results...
 
Chuck maybe others will disagree with me but on a bowl I would use a bowl gouge. A spindle roughing gouge or a simple spindle gouge IMHO is just not the right tool for bowl turning. I agree with Vaughn that a sharp bowl gouge is also my choice and have used a scraper on the inside cutting at a 45* angle. I don't use a skew much on bowls but as Stu said it needs to be scary sharp as in shave your arm sharp.

Two DVD's that I would recommend are Bill Grumbine's Turned Bowls Made Easy and Mike Mahoney's From The Tree To The Table. Both are excellent. Both show you different ways to deal with endgrain, different cuts for different situations, sanding, etc.
 
Thank you all for the suggestions and information. I joined the local wood turners club and will check out their library for the books and DVD’s recommended.

Speaking of the local wood turners, Saturday, I went on a “field trip” with a bunch of members, where we cut down two California Bay Laurens, and cut the logs up into bowl blanks and quarter sawn. Ended up with four half rounds (the largest 15" in across) and two quarter sawn’s, all sealed. Yesterday I rough turned two of the blanks and bagged them. I’ll turn the other two Thursday. Got some good practice in with the bowl gouge.
 
"Laurens"????
Recently 'larch' was mentioned.
Seems there are lotsa American woods I'm not familiar with.
Dunno wat either of these are. Soft/hard, figured/plain? :dunno:

edit: p.s. Yes, I know about Google. But this place is more fun.
 
California Bay Laurel (Umbellularia Californica.), AKA Oregon Myrtle. The bay leaves of this tree are about 6 “ long and very aromatic. Much better that the dried “mini” leaves you get in a spice bottle.

“An evergreen shrub to tree. Its final height is 47' average (in 100+years). It grows only a few inches a year here along the coast it may grow a much as 4' or so each year. The leaves are aromatic like its cousin from Greece. Native to the mountains of Calif. and into Oregon. It likes sun in the mountains and along the coast where the rainfall is above 30 inches/year. Its leaves used as seasoning.”

These were easily over 40’.
 
"Laurens"????
Recently 'larch' was mentioned.
Seems there are lotsa American woods I'm not familiar with.
Dunno wat either of these are. Soft/hard, figured/plain? :dunno:

edit: p.s. Yes, I know about Google. But this place is more fun.

frank, larch is from the tamarack family it was used for fence build and barn siding alot..tuff stuff. its a tree that looks like a evergren but it looses its leaves in winter.
 
To answer my own question, NO, tupelo is not for turning, it is for carving. I spent some time using a very gentle shear cut to smooth out the end grain, but to no avail. It looks like the craters on the moon. This wood is definitely not for the spinningly challenged. I wanted to turn a bowl for a special occasion today so I’m going to run down to the local Woodcraft and buy a blank. Maybe I’ll try a hardwood . .Duh!
 
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