From Roots to Bowl

Vaughn McMillan

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Since "serial" posts seem to go over well here, I figured I'd start one here to chronicle one of my bowls. Since I wrote this all up for my website, forgive the fact that I'm describing some turning terms and tools in a pretty elementary manner. Some of my family and friends reading my websites are not up to speed on turning terms. (Then again, not all FW members might know what some of the terms mean either.) ;)

A while back, the Facilities Manager at my office had some long-overgrown shrubbery up-rooted and removed. Being a woodturner, I simply had to see what might be inside some of the bigger pieces of this soon-to-be mulch, so I got permission to take home as much of it as I wanted. Here's a nighttime shot of the truckload I brought home. I cut the wood up after dark at the office...it made it more exciting being able to see the sparks from the chain saw hitting dirt and rocks.

Dunno Wood 2 799T.jpg

Although my first inclination was that this was some type of Dunno wood, I later determined that it was likely Myoporum, an ornamental, yet invasive exotic shrub from New Zealand. Science lesson over, it was time to try some of this wood out. After several months of procrastination, I finally got one of the root balls cleaned up and ready to try turning. (Thank goodness for pressure washers.) Sorry for the snapshot nature of these pictures.

Myoporum Bowl 1- 01 800.jpg

When I "harvested" the wood, I painted the freshly-cut ends to seal them in hopes of preventing cracks from drying. That explains the white part in this shot...

Myoporum Bowl 1- 02 800.jpg

Since that hunk of wood obviously wasn't going to spin real well on my lathe, I did a little chainsaw refinement to get it to a bit more manageable size.

Myoporum Bowl 1- 03 800.jpg

And the white side, with the lathe faceplate attached. (You can see the Hoover Suck-O-Matic dust collector in the background. Click here to see that story.)

Myoporum Bowl 1- 04 800.jpg

For those of you unfamiliar with woodturning, the red faceplate allows the hunk of wood to be attached to the spindle of the lathe. It looks something like this once it's attached. For those of you who are familiar with turning, you'll note that I don't really have anything solid to turn down to a tenon on side the opposite the faceplate. This will be strictly a faceplate bowl...no chuck. I'll turn off the foot where the faceplate is later.

Myoporum Bowl 1- 06 800.jpg

It's quite a blur when it's spinning at 400 or so RPM...

Myoporum Bowl 1- 05 800.jpg

About 20 minutes of beating later, it was round-shaped and looking like this...

Myoporum Bowl 1- 07 800.jpg

That long black and silver tool is from Monster Tools, and they call it the Monster Indexer with Handle. I call it the Beatin' Stick. It's a very versatile tool, and by far the beefiest "chisel" I have for this type of work. It accepts a range of steel cutting bits. For roughing out this hunk of wood, I attached a 3/8" bit that originally came with my hollowing tools (also from Monster Tools).

Myoporum Bowl 1- 08 800.jpg

Continued...
 
From Roots to Bowl continued...

Another 20 minutes or so later, it's still rough, but it's starting to resemble the intended outside shape...

Myoporum Bowl 1- 09 800.jpg

Next, it was time to attack the inside. Let the beatings resume...

Myoporum Bowl 1- 10 800.jpg

That's about as deep as I cared to go using handheld cutting tools. It was time to break out the "captive" tool. a.k.a. the hollowing rig. This tool is designed to safely make hollow forms. It holds the cutting tool in such a way as to prevent it from being wrenched from your hands and hurtled at the ceiling (or your face) when the steel meets the spinning wood, now traveling at about 800 to 1,000 RPM. Although purists would argue that using a hollowing rig to make a bowl is a sacrilege, but I never really was one for rules, so I figure if I've got a tool to make something easier and safer, I'll use it.

Myoporum Bowl 1- 12 800.jpg

Although it's hard to make out the details with the cluttered background in the picture above, the hollowing rig consists of a "handle" that's captured by the rear tool rest to prevent it from twisting. Attached to the end of the handle is the cutting bit. Also attached to the handle is an adjustable laser pointer that is set to indicate (on the outside of the piece) exactly where the tip of the cutting tool is (on the inside of the piece). This is very useful when working blind while hollowing out a piece of wood. In the case of this bowl, the laser was not really necessary, but it did help me know how deep the inside of the bowl was in relation to the outside.

Myoporum Bowl 1- 11 800.jpg

By the time I took the previous two pictures, as well as the next one, I had progressed through a couple different cutting tools attached to the hollowing rig, ending up with a scraping tool to leave a relatively smooth finish. Also by now, some of the pieces of the root ball were loose and threatening to come flying off. (In fact, one piece was fully removable). As a self-preservation move, I wrapped the outside of the bowl with plastic stretch wrap, to contain any shrapnel.

Myoporum Bowl 1- 13 800.jpg

A little more cleanup on the inside, and it the "rough" turning was done. If you look closely, you can see some very promising swirly wood grain patterns. Until the wood dries, it's common to leave the walls pretty thick. Then, after the drying (and any warping) is done, the piece is mounted on the lathe again and turned to the final dimensions.

Myoporum Bowl 1- 15 800.jpg

This one will be a real challenge to finish up, but it should be pretty remarkable if it survives the ride.

Myoporum Bowl 1- 14 800.jpg

I'll show the final results (whatever they are) in a month or so after the wood is dried. First, a day or two of soaking in denatured alcohol, then about 3 weeks or so wrapped in newspaper. (With a lock of hair, a bleached chicken bone, and the ash from a burned comic book. We woodturners are an eccentric, superstitious bunch.) :D

Stay tuned!
 
I always put some cigar ash in and some nutmeg too :thumb:

man that is way cool looking wood, looks like you got just a bit of it too eh?

I've been banded from running powertools at night, as I ran the thickness planer, attached to the Cyclone, while on top of my worktable, which acted like a big drum and make it possible to hear the whole she-bang up on the 7th floor at 2 AM :eek: :rolleyes:

The lathe is one tool I can run, as it is totally isolated from the floor etc, but really, I've been trying to head to bed earlier and wake up earlier and then hit the Dungeon by 9 AM or so, so I am getting some turning time in.

I've got to get my hollow rig going, I did get some good tool steel bits for it, so we shall see.

Is that wood a hardwood Vaughn? I know that the best smoking pipes come from the roots of a shrub.

Great post!!
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Industrious and determined come to mind.
I'm astounded you spun that hunk at 400 rpm. How far off the foundation did it move your house? ;)
You will have something very unique at the end of this project.
I'm awed. :clap:
 
That is going to be a very cool bowl. You should print up that process into a small brochure to hand to people when they ask why that little bowl costs so much. Comic book ashes ain't cheap anymore!
 
Vaughan thanks for the pictures I would have never even thought of turning the root. I learned a lot from the pictures and am waiting like the rest for the final pictures.After soaking in dna I use brown grocery bags with the inside of the bowl cut out then place on a shelf for a couple of weeks.Now I see how you turn out such good howl bowls that is some set up.Great job and thanks for all the pictures.
Ken
 
Wonderful "tutorial" :thumb: . I am sure it will come handy for a lot of new (and older) turners who haven't tried something similar.

Looks very promising even at rough stage.

Good luck!!!
 
Vaughn,

Someday! Someday, I'll be able to do something like that! I swear. Until then, I can only admire your gumption, creativity, and skill!

Is there a good tutorial somewhere on the DNA method? When to use it, how to use it, limitations? I'm a long time from needing it, but I *am* curious...

Thanks,

Bill
 
Industrious and determined come to mind.
I'm astounded you spun that hunk at 400 rpm. How far off the foundation did it move your house?...
Unlike me, the wood was surprisingly well-balanced. :D 400 RPM is as slow as my lathe will go (Reeves drive, ya know). Considering the lathe is on a wooden stand (glorified sawhorse), on casters, on carpet, it was really pretty stable.

...Is there a good tutorial somewhere on the DNA method? When to use it, how to use it, limitations? I'm a long time from needing it, but I *am* curious...
I've seen a lot of minor variations to the basic scheme, but Dave Smith wrote a pretty good article on how he does it over on WoodCentral. The basic idea is that when green wood is soaked in denatured alcohol for a day or so, then it dries faster as a result. Wrapping in paper seems to lessen the potential for cracking.

Thanks for the comments, all -
 
Now that's a brave undertaking Vaughn. :thumb:
I can't wait to see the completed project.
You know how I love a story in pictures. :rofl:

DT
 
Vaughn, keep the pics coming and the basic terminology too for us beginners. :huh: I love the step by step process. :thumb: This is why this forum is so great.
 
Here's a tip Vaughn...

Hello Vaughn,

I've turned many pieces like your root ball and one thing that has really served me well, was to wrap the exterior with stretch/shrinkwrap before completing the interior. I use the 4" wide rolls that you can get at U-Haul and similar places.

It sticks to itself, but not the wood, so no residue to worry about. Several wraps on the exterior help to reinforce it will help prevent fragile sections from blowing off, due to the centrifugal force of the turning. It also makes it easier to sand because the exterior is "stiffened". I hope this helps you. Take care and all the best to you and yours!
 
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