Walnut Natural Edge In Progress

Vaughn, you and Steve need to get one of >> These << honestly, you can turn all day and not feel beat up, unless you are into that sort of thing I guess ;) :D
Stu, I have something very similar, but I wouldn't want to try to cut a clean bark line with it. There was not so much a "beating" going on as it was just needing endurance to make it through that big of piece of wood. A certain amount of beating does come from turning an oval blank, though.

Someday I'll probably get the Ci1, but not to use on 19" oval NE bowls. ;)
 
Well, I have some big, like 16" (the max my DVR will do) blanks here that can become NE bowls, I guess once I get the lathe wired for 200V, I'll have to spin one to see how the Ci1 works on NE bowls, I think it will work better than your gouge :wave:
 
I'll be interested in hearing how it goes for that. This piece of walnut had loose enough bark that it was relatively easy to pull off by hand. I just can't picture a scraping cut that would not break the bark, no matter how sharp or hard the cutting edge is. Tight bark (like a piece of Bradford pear I turned a while back) maybe yes, but loose stuff, I dunno.
 
Stu
You mentiond that you can easily stall your lathe Does the lathe have the easy mode and the hard mode option? Do you possibly have it running in the easy mode where you stop the machine at different times like when you present the tool to the lathe improperly, or at a steep angle it goes off or stops? This prevents damage to the lathe. I have the XP and when I started it would stop mysteriously till I read the manual again.Mostly happened when doing the outside of ne bowls. I reset to hard mode and never happened again. I may be wrong but thought I would mention it in case the lathe isn't properly set up. Save you headaches.Mitch :dunno:
 
Vaughn
I never used the easy rougher before, but I ordered one today. I think Stu might be right and you are also right in saying which tool will cut cleaner on a ne bowl. If the bark is like on walnut don't cut from right to left, cut left to right if just for an inch or two to prevent knocking the bark loose. This cuts the bark cleaner. Same thing with the bowl gouge. I just cut that ne bowl 3/32" thick and if I tried cutting right to left it would of torn the bark completely off. It isn't a matter of which tool is better, it is a matter of correct technique. Hope you guys don't mind my offering my two cents worth on this matter? Mitch:thumb:
 
Mitch, since I have more time on the tool, I'm no longer stalling my lathe. :thumb:

Yes I do have it set on "Hard", but thanks for the reminder just the same.

The pieces of Shinko I got recently have really crumbly bark, you can brush it off with your hand in places, so I think this would be a good test.

I also agree with you Mitch, the right approach to the cut will make the difference between tearing the bark off and retaining it, I think this would apply to any tool used on a NE bowl.

I also think that even if Vaughn is right, you would still be able to do 95% of the roughing with the Ci1 which would help with the fatigue issue.

We SHALL see, and I'll take video! :D :wave:
 
Mitch, I also agree it's important how you approach the bark. "Left to right" changes depending on if you're on the inside or outside of the bowl. I always start the cut from the outside of the bark. That can be left -> right, or right -> left.

Here's what I used for some of the roughing on this bowl (away from the bark):

Monster Hex Bar and Handle 1.jpg Monster Hex Bar and Handle 2.jpg

It's a 24" Monster handle holding a prototype 5/8" hexagonal boring bar that Randy asked me to try out. It's a very beefy setup. For a cutting bit on this bowl, I used a 5/16" HSS cutter from my hollowing rig. The hex boring bar is really geared to hold Randy's carbide cutter (which is also on a hex shaft), and the set screws are set up in such a way as to allow a wide variety of presentation angles.

Monster Hex Bar Handle and Carbide Cutter - 05 800.jpg

Anyway, at about 33" long, there's not a lot of beating going on, and with the HSS bit in it, it pulls off 1/4" to 1/2" deep cuts when sharp.

As I mentioned, I also have some carbide tools similar to the Ci1, so I'm not completely unfamiliar with the concept. These are made by some guy in New Mexico. They have a 5/8" round shaft that fits into one of my Monster handles.

Carbide Chisel 2 800.jpg

They can cut very aggressively if pushed, or take fine finishing cuts if you present them lighter. Still, I have more fun shooting wet curlies off a sharp bowl gouge. :D It's not a race for me...I'm in it for the fun.
 
Vaughn Excellent array of tools you have there. Nothing should intimidate you when it comes to turning with that well rounded arsenal. Mitch BTW, I am impressed at how clean you keep that lathe.
 
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