May 19, 201214 yr I was introduced to the lathe wood art of Malcom Tibbetts in a very roundabout way... I don't do wood turning... but his name came up for something else. I went to his website and was fascinated by what he does. He generously offers a download of an article he wrote and I found a book at the library that he wrote on segmented woodturning. I was hooked, but I needed to figure out how to make this art without a lathe... my main tool is the scroll saw. Well I finally did figure it out and these pics show a basic 4-half bowl 'Orb', made with 3/4" thick pine. I later made a plywood prototype of a 'Wavy Ribbon' made from 6-half bowls, followed by another using nicer plywood. All were made using only the scroll saw...and a lot of sanding.  Tibbetts' method calls for making bowls on a lathe and then cutting them in half on a band saw. I have no lathe and my band saw's height capacity is inadequate. There are methods of bowl making for the scroll saw (eg. Carol Rothman's new book and Spielman and Rohl's book that preceded it, as well as the "band from a board" method commonly used with the band saw). The stumbling block for me was that the scroll saw's height capacity is even less than my benchtop band saw's, thus I couldn't make bowls and cut them in half. Sooooo.... being a scroller and interested in entering competitions that require use of the scroll saw. I made a "circle cutting jig" similar in principle to one used on a band saw... it consists of a fixed base and a sliding base that has a pivot... and I used my jig to make "half-bowls".  http://api.ning.com:80/files/LeYQB4OV-t0MSBfyD0fPbxNau8rLYvXcYn1QOW5-A40SySacEUCnulQSgna-Yk-NrkGiAqHS5I7MDQ-0AepURkXm2e-VJez6/6halfbowls_oneblankonthejigforcutting.jpg' target="_self">
May 19, 201214 yr Wow, that's neat.Gene'The true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him, but because he loves what is behind him.' G. K. Chesterton
May 20, 201214 yr Spence that is awesome. Thanks for sharing it with us and congratulations on the award.GregScroll Saw forum hosthttp://www.thesawdustfactoryga.com/
May 20, 201214 yr Awesome. Great job. Congrats on the award, well deserved.Wayne MahlerGod bless and protect our troops that serve so we can be free.
May 20, 201214 yr Wow that just blows my mind. You really thought out side the bowl there.I applaud you for going for it and getting there. Good, Better, Best never let it restTill your Good is Better and your Better is Best.
May 20, 201214 yr Author Thanks, everyone.Mark, I like that comment "thought outside the bowl"... cute!
June 1, 201214 yr Spence,Very interesting and unique piece you have created! Â Â Malcolm Tibbetts is certainly an amazing talent. Â SQHappiness is wood chips flying!
June 1, 201214 yr Author SQ, Thank you. The Wavy Ribbon and Orb are both Tibbetts' forms. (click the 2 files below the wavy ribbon pics to see attached pics of my Orb)) Both forms can be seen on his website and I fully credit him for the inspiration. Making them my way enables the wood to appear differently from Tibbetts' because he used stave construction of his bowls - his bowl parts are all joined perpendicular to the curves- while I used the 'bowl from a board' method and glued up half-rings- thus the plies of plywood are following the curves and only the joints between half-bowls are perpendicular to the curves. In the end, the forms look the same because the components are essentially the same.I agree that Malcom Tibbetts is an amazing talent and I look forward to figuring out how to do more with the method. He is also generous for publishing a magazine article and a book which helped me envision what I needed to do. I am currently planning a mobius strip construction, again striving to make something on the scroll saw that Tibbetts has done using table or miter saw, lathe and bandsaw.Spence
June 1, 201214 yr Wow!!!!! That' s ton of work Spence, and beautiful, and certainly deserving of the award. So, my big question, what made you go down this road with this? It is very unique and just awesome, who'd of thought!!!! John MorrisThe Patriot WoodworkerProud Supporter of Wounded Warrior Project and Homes For Our Troops
June 1, 201214 yr Author John, I went down that road because it is unique and awesome. I've been a little bored w/flat projects typical of scroll sawing. I got exposed to Malcom Tibbetts segmented lathe-work in a roundabout way, ie. I don't have a lathe so I don't look for lathe articles or books or projects. His book was brought up in a specific context that didn't have to do with the lathe. When I saw the pics on his website and what he was doing with what began as bowls, I thought I might be able to create similar works of art using a modification of the scroll saw method for making bowls. It is much more interesting than fretwork and other patterned works. (I don't do intarsia.) It is a lot of work, but it is worth it... SpenceÂ
June 1, 201214 yr Man and what a road it was Spence! That is some of the most unique work I have seen in awhile, I love it. Feel free to enter a lengthy blog on this if you ever have the time, we'd love to have it on here. Great work once again and good luck in your future endeavours.Spence Bloom said:John, I went down that road because it is unique and awesome. I've been a little bored w/flat projects typical of scroll sawing. I got exposed to Malcom Tibbetts segmented lathe-work in a roundabout way, ie. I don't have a lathe so I don't look for lathe articles or books or projects. His book was brought up in a specific context that didn't have to do with the lathe. When I saw the pics on his website and what he was doing with what began as bowls, I thought I might be able to create similar works of art using a modification of the scroll saw method for making bowls. It is much more interesting than fretwork and other patterned works. (I don't do intarsia.) It is a lot of work, but it is worth it... Spence John MorrisThe Patriot WoodworkerProud Supporter of Wounded Warrior Project and Homes For Our Troops
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