my fifth first bowl!

I have been trying to turn a bowl. I'm pretty sure this is my fifth first bowl after the others suffered one unkind fate or another in turning. Those were some pretty difficult designs for a beginner and less than friendly woods. I got some soaking wet cherry that was a tree last week and decided that it was time to quit making excuses and make a bowl. Nothing fancy or super thin, just something round and hollow with a little luck. This is the result. A slight taper towards the top, not obvious in the photo. Fairly thick walls and the design is heavy and clunky looking. About five and a half inches wide, should finish about four inches tall. Ought to make a lid for it and make it my first lidded box, not a bad idea although a little late to match the grain. Whatever I do with it, I'll have to turn a lollipop in the morning to be able to hold it and clean up the bottom.

This is roughed in after it showed some signs of splitting. I'll see how round it is in the morning. Might slice and dice on it a little more if it held shape well, if not I'll sand some more. I was able to start with twelve grit sandpaper and have it smoothed down to sixty grit then I put a little mineral oil and followed that with the butcher block oil. I'm going to have to get something to finish with if any of this stuff starts looking like a finished bowl.

Here it is , hopefully!

Hu

 
For some reason the photo didn't upload correctly, Hu. :dunno:

On your sandpaper grits, are you sure you're not missing a couple of zeros? I suspect you meant you went from 120 grit to 600 grit instead of 12 to 60 grit. Also, not sure if you realize it, but many "butcher block oil" products are simply repackaged mineral oil with a higher price tag. ;)
 
Vaughn,

A bit tongue in cheek, twelve grit is the heaviest sandpaper I have ever seen, looks like it has gravel on it. Needing twelve grit and getting to sixty grit being an accomplishment was a slap at my turning skills. I was actually pleased with the outside surface quality after a few light shearing passes. Hope I have enough wood left and it is fairly round though, I like the inside of that bottom corner less every time I look at it and I don't like the outside much either. Lookout number five, you are getting on shaky ground!

This stuff claims to have some other things added but I suspect is mostly mineral oil, that is what it cleans up with. Twenty dollars a quart at home depot hurt my heart but somebody else's knives were getting ruined after they loaned me a fully furnished home after Hurricane Isaac. The knives came out well although the handles won't last long if they start going through the dishwasher or being left in standing water. Not knowing much about wood finishes I was concerned about them being food safe and I refinished the knives without asking. If somebody didn't like the oil a few trips through the dishwasher should take care of that!

Edit: I tried to create an album and put the image in there. It seemed to have worked, I don't know what happened. I haven't used site albums before.

Hu
 
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12 GRIT!!! That must be when you hold a lava rock up against a piece. Really interested to see the pictures. At this point, the 12 grit erased your work.
 
12 GRIT!!! That must be when you hold a lava rock up against a piece. Really interested to see the pictures. At this point, the 12 grit erased your work.


The humor was lost when the picture didn't work or went away. I thought they were supposed to stay if you used them within an hour, seems like they disappeared anyway.

The only time I have really seen 12 grit paper was back in the eighties when I had a body shop. My supplier had a box of 12 grit disks on the counter and I asked about them. He said that he had been special ordering them for a couple years for another body shop and they liked them. The really heavy stuff is used to cut the paint away and score deeply into the steel to be ready to put body filler on. I used 36 grit for this, very aggressive but it looked like 600 next to the twelve grit. That stuff would send fiberglass and plastic auto bodies like they use today into the air like confetti. I don't know if the superthin steel of today would survive much better.

I don't know how I can post a picture, just have it on my hard drive. The bowl did live and is on the shelf as my first ever. It is ugly but done is good enough. It was time to make the first and move on.

Hu
 
first bowlplaneview.jpgfirstbowliso.jpg
hu check your PM box i sent you instructions on how to post pics on here easily:)

Larry,

I appreciate it. For some reason I wasn't noticing anything but the option to post from an URL. Looking again my display is confusing, looks like the site has the option to post from the computer turned off. Should be in business now. Fixing to try to send you an e-mail to the second address in a little bit. Shoot me a PM if you don't get it.

These are the images of the completed bowl. Not much but the good thing is that it does leave me plenty of room to improve! It is about five and a half inches diameter by four or a bit more tall. Edit: Looks like I posted one image of the work in progress, I think both are now. Finished isn't much different except the tenon was removed and I rounded the bottom corner a bit more, still an ugly bowl.

Hu
 
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That's not bad at all, Hu. :thumb: Heck, I've see worse bowls, and not all of those were first attempts, either. Doing the square corner at the bottom is extra tough, even for experienced guys.

Keep 'em coming. :)
 
thanks guys! After the first fifth they all look good to me.:thumb: Figured it was time to get one on the shelf. Didn't get much time to work but I did get another one balanced and started to rough in this evening, more cherry but from the side this time. Should be a little easier, a shallower bowl with some small wings. I want to turn tomorrow but the grass is tall enough I can't find my cat. If I can find the dog maybe I'll turn. If I can't find either maybe it is time to mow grass . . . naah, need a taller dog anyway.

Hu
 
two/six

bowltwonaturaledge.jpgMy second (sixth) bowl went a wee bit smoother. After whittling out something simple last time I realized simple was good. Then moving right along I went out and turned this. A cracked tenon encouraged me to do a quick lick and prayer on the inside turning and sanding. The big piece of bark missing is thanks to the chain saw. The small piece was my thumb's fault. Well I might have borne some small part of the blame. Familiar song, my bowl tool rest is amongst the missing too. I was working deep inside off of my long tool rest stuck deep into the bowl when my thumb made contact with the bark on the natural edge. I do think opposable thumbs are overrated but I came with two and I'm attached to both of them. The thumb was withdrawn posty hasty along with the gouge I was using. Major catch with the gouge on the way out. Pretty sure this is when the tenon cracked too.

I am fairly pleased overall even though this ain't a thing of beauty. Most of the time I was piling up big fluffy three or four inch shavings, felt just like a wood turner!

Hu
 
Another one for the books, Hu. :thumb: Bowls can be like rabbits...they tend to multiply over time. ;)

Funny you should mention that multiplication thing. I have a big display case in the front room of this old farm house I am living in. Fourteen shelves total, I have one filled with two bowls and two crashes. I have been kinda cyphering on how long it would take me to fill the other thirteen shelves with bowls and hollow vessels. being able to grind my tools was huge. Now I'm working on a homemade jig. As I always say, no stepper for a hill, or something like that!

I'm planning to have every shelf filled by the time snow flies. Of course I have met ten year olds down here in Louisiana who have never seen snow. My friend in Vail just got four feet! I learned snow is fun for about two hours. After two days the thrill is starting to wear thin and after two weeks . . .

Hu
 
latest effort 5-9

I have been playing a bit more, here is my latest effort. I started getting some fine cracks around the rim from drying too fast along with one that kept running from the pith area every time I thought it had all been cut off so I elected to put a little 50% BLO on it and throw it on the shelf for a few days or so before trying to take the tenon off and maybe sand it all a little more. Assuming no last minute train wrecks probably as nice as anything I have made so far, maybe the nicest. Just over seven inches across, a little short of three inches high, between an eighth and three sixteenths thick, thicker bottom but not ridiculous, maybe a half inch once the tenon is gone.

Fired up my old computer and tried to do some global tweaking to improve image quality from the cell phone with debatable results. Resisted the temptation to do any bowl prettying up with Photoshop! No catches in the final product, no major owies in turning. The big ugly looking gouge in the interior looking at the image is just coloring in the wood.

Hu
plain bowl post tv.jpgplain bowl side view post 004.jpg
 
I agree with Steve...that's a great-looking bowl, Hu. Best one I've seen you do so far, for sure. :thumb: Pretty wood, and I really like the form.
 
Thank You Guys!

Thank You Stephen, Thank You Vaughn,

One thing with where I started out, I left myself plenty of room for improvement! :D Still a long ways to go but fortunately I'm patient.(believe that one about patience and I'll sell you some beautiful oceanfront property south of Grand Isle) Anyway, I am happy with the results the last few tries. Had to take a break to do a few other things and sometimes a break helps. Still not happy with my skills rounding the corner and going across the bottom but the last few projects were finished with a gouge. The goal is no bailouts with a scraper. Fine if someone wants to use a scraper and I am sure I will in the future. I have been having to use my home made one to bail me out of messes and that is what I find unacceptable.

Waiting on a few toys on order then I will post pictures of them and my new grinding fixture and jig. The ability to sharpen a gouge easily and sweep the wings back even a little has helped me a bunch, still a long ways to go but making headway! Sparing no expense it cost me almost fifteen dollars for my grinding set-up for my grinder with the main components being wood and pvc. The rock maple drove the price up or I could have snuck in under ten dollars I believe. Add a couple of bolts and viola(a tribute to an old friend, he knew what he was spelling too) a repeatable grind! I wonder if Oneway would object if I dubbed my rig a Beaverine? It serves the purpose of a Wolverine and appears to have been gnawed out by a beaver, a beaver with a broken tooth.

Hu
 
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