More darned candlesticks...

Roger Tulk

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Location
St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada
Here are three more candlesticks I made today, using dogwood that was on sale at LV, and the candlestick I am going to make tomorrow. Notice that all the sockets are perfectly centred, because I followed the advice I got here about centering the sockets. The dogwood turns to a smooth finish, but is almost as hard as maple, and whacks my tools.

The candlestick on the right is a mistake, from taking too much wood off the blocks while knocking off the corners. I'm going to glue it to a plate of some kind and use it at Christmas. The other three I am sending to a friend of mine in Hamburg, for her birthday. She is Muslim, so I don't think she'll use them at Christmas, although you never know.

dogwood candles.jpg

I used my roughing gouge (obviously,) my spindle gouge (for shaping,) my flat scraper (for taking off bumps and irregularities,) and the 1" skew (for further smoothing.) I finished with 220 and 320 sandpaper, and they will be coated with clear lacquer. The dogwood has subtle colouration, and will look good au naturel.

With practice, I am getting quite confident with the skew. I only got one small catch today, and actually made a bigger mistake with the spindle gouge, which left me with a spiral gouge to clean up.
 
Those are nice looking sticks, Roger. Your friend will like them. I like turning dogwood and have made several carving mallets from it. Some of it has a pinkish coloration, depending on where it's been growing. I snag all the free dogwood I can find.
 
Thank you. I haven't mastered the skew either, Paul, but I don't find it as intimidating as some people have intimated. The main things for smoothing cuts seem to be to keep the lower third of the skew on the wood, and maintain a 45º angle with the edge. I haven't got to using the point yet.
 
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