The bowl turning adventure continues…. And not unlike the old Gene Autry serial adventures- where we were left holding our breath until the next week’s episode- our hero (The Bowl) was snatched from the certain death at the last instant! 

OK, a little melodramatic but hey, I loved those old western serials and the spacemen, with capes, riding horses!

 Anyway, apparently I wasn’t thorough enough using the microwave technique in removing moisture. When I remounted the blank in the chuck and fired it up, well see for yourself..

The bowl warped slightly out of round. Not a big problem aesthetically but poses some challenges during sanding.

I started sanding the inside of the bowl using 3†wavy sanding discs working thru the grits from 80 to 220. Then switched over to Aberlon polishing discs from 360 to 4000. I have 6†Aberlon discs that I attached to my random orbital sander.

 While mounted in the chuck, I also sanded the outside of the bowl, getting as close to the foot area as possible. Working up thru all of the grits.

Now it was time to concentrate on the bottom/foot area. Recall I mentioned in the first installment we needed to think about how we would finish the bottom before we even began turning the initial shape. It is important to finish off the bottom of a turning. When you pick up and handle a turning, you naturally look at all surfaces. Leaving the bottom unfinished seems like there is something missing.

So far, we have used the TeknaTool chuck for all of the turning and sanding. In order to finish the bottom, we need to reverse bowl to expose the bottom/foot for finishing.

You can see the beginning of the foot and the material around the recess used by the chuck. This area needs addressing.  

The problem becomes how to hold the bowl. I made two types of “chucks†for these operations.

The simple radial holder-

And the Longworth chuck-

Either one of these holders can us a variety of clamping fixtures

For this bowl, I used the Longworth chuck. The white “holders†are rubber stoppers from the local wine/beer making store.

For extra holding power, I used fiber reinforced packing tape to help secure the bowl.

Now it is just a matter of cutting away the extra material and shaping the foot.

My tools of choice for finishing the bottom

Sanding up thru the grits

Ready for the finish-

Currently the finish is being applied and I'll post pix when it is dry.

Safe Turning!

 

 

 

Very nice Lew. Just as a question on the drying process. Have you tried the DNA method. I tried the microwave on a couple and got sorta what you got. One was not dry enough and the other I got a crack in the bottom when I tried to go further.

I have not tried the DNA myself. Been a while since I turned a bowl. But I think I am going to give it a try next time. Put the bowl completely submerged in a bucket of DNA. Twenty four hours and it is suppose to be ready.

Haven't tried it, either. Even at Lowes the stuff is pretty pricey and it would have probably taken more than a gallon for that bowl. Maybe if it could be put into some sort of vacuum bag so the air would be removed and the wood could come in contact with lots of the liquid. Drawing out some of the air and using atmospheric pressure might even force the liquid into the wood further/faster. Might  be a reason to invest in a vacuum clamping system.

John Moody said:

Very nice Lew. Just as a question on the drying process. Have you tried the DNA method. I tried the microwave on a couple and got sorta what you got. One was not dry enough and the other I got a crack in the bottom when I tried to go further.

I have not tried the DNA myself. Been a while since I turned a bowl. But I think I am going to give it a try next time. Put the bowl completely submerged in a bucket of DNA. Twenty four hours and it is suppose to be ready.