PostalTom

No worries. I, too, use Harbor Freight turning tools. Along with EWT, Robert Sorby, and some home made tools my Dad had. I guess everyone's experience is different. For me, yes, the traditional roughing gouge is best for turning large squares to round, but since I have mostly done pens and smaller bowls, I have found the EWT rougher to be better. I find I don't get as many catches with the EWT. I tend to go back and forth between the EWT tools and traditional tools on the same project. Partly because sometimes on a certain part of the project, the other tool seems more comfortable, and partly so that I can develop/maintain some degree of proficiency with both styles.

Good post Gene. Thank you. I agree with what he said. I have made some nice things, and I have made some expensive firewood. Except for maybe some frustration in a project not turning out like I wanted, I have enjoyed every minute of it. I am sometimes asked if I ever make anything to sell. My answer is always the same, that I have had two careers in my life, USAF and USPS, and I don't want another job. Making things with the intent of selling them would relegate my hobby to a job, and I don't want that. That being said, I do admire those of you who can deal with customer expectations, pricing, sourcing, tax forms, etc. That is just not for me. OK. Off my soapbox for now.

As long as the butcher block top is not tightly captured by some sort of surrounding frame, you should be just fine.

I was going to try and tint some epoxy and fill them, but after showing the bowl to my son, I decided to leave them alone. He commented that the hole added a bit of interest to the bowl, and when I thought about it, I agreed with him. There were a couple of holes that I thought were too big to ignore, so I got some acrylic paint from Hobby Lobby and mixed up some epoxy. I then proceeded to seriously over-tint the epoxy, even after throwing away the first batch and cutting way back on the amount of paint I was putting in the epoxy. I did fill those two holes, but I'm glad I left the others alone. I got two lessons from this: 1) Even a little can sometimes be too much, and 2) Don't trust the color swatches on tubes of paint. Unscrew the cap and look at the paint itself. The paint I got was much darker than the color swatch on the outside of the tube indicated.

Thanks Dave. That looks to be a wealth of information. I guess I have my work fun cut out for me.

Thanks Dave, I appreciate it.

OK. I know this is overdue, but I finally got a finish on that spalted something bowl I was asking about back in October. Two coats of sanding sealer and three coats of spray lacquer. We are using it in the kitchen to hold packets of sugar, sweetener, etc. Thanks for looking.

This is my first shot at "picking". Since I picked these up at the local Restore, it may not qualify as legitimate picking, but you get the idea. The brace was $10.00, and the saw was $5.00. The saw looked pretty good, needing only some cleaning. The website Common Woodworking has a guide on sharpening and setting the teeth, so I may be referring to that if needed. My main concern is with the knob on the brace. It spins freely enough, but seems to be very loose and wobbly. Is this normal, or are there some parts, bearings or such, that I need to be looking at? As for bits, if I start looking at used bits at yard sales, etc., once I get past the obvious defects like broken spurs, points, or bent shafts, what else should I be looking for? Any info would be welcome. Here are the pics of what I scored. The saw is 25 3/4" along the teeth.

Thank you Gene. I appreciate your response.

@MaDeuce, that is fantastic. Normally, I am not a fan of combining or overlaying our flag with other pieces of art. Normally, I feel the flag should remain proud and unblemished, all by itself. But this is not in that category. Your creation conveys respect, honor, and camaraderie. Not to be maudlin, but I would be both proud and humbled to receive something like that. Good for you!

Just got this in an email from Woodworker's Journal. Thought some of us might be interested. Woodworker’s Journal subscribers love our regular “Woodturning” department and the advice of our expert woodturner, Ernie Conover. But turning isn’t the focus of our “Weekly” newsletter, and with just six print issues per year, it’s hard to meet our readers’ requests for even more turning content. That’s why Woodworker’s Journal is thrilled to be partnering with the American Association of Woodturners (AAW) to bring you this new free monthly newsletter. The AAW is a nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing the art and craft of woodturning globally. It possesses the single largest collection of woodturning information anywhere and its award-winning journal, American Woodturner, is the foremost publication on the art and craft of woodturning in the world. Woodturning is one of the fastest growing areas of hobbyist woodworking, and once you’ve turned your first bowl, pen or furniture spindle, you’ll see why! A lathe can help you transform a chunk of firewood into a finished gift in just an hour or two, and woodturning doesn’t require a huge investment — even a benchtop lathe and a couple of gouges can get you up and running. For me, “turning” is as close as a woodworker can get to the kind of artistic freedom potters feel. And, it sure is fun to take a break from straight lines and hard measurements every now and then. So thanks for signing up! Be sure to tell your turning buddies to do the same. Then, by all means, let’s keep learning but even more importantly — doing! We hope our new monthly woodturning newsletter will encourage you to get out to the shop and, well, turn something! The rewards are rich, and the process is almost always a great time. Looks like there is a link on their home page.

Here's a thought. Maybe an inlay, similar to what John Morris was suggesting. There are different shapes of inlays available, and you could possibly use a contrasting wood. Then maybe pick two or three different places to insert an inlay. Although not needed, they would look like the original inlay, along with the additional ones, were an intentional design element instead of a repair.

Found wood is great, and you can't beat the price. Be aware, though, that it is a good way to introduce critters, such as bed bugs, into your house. Happened to me, and it took $7000 to get rid of them. Expensive lesson.

Same here. Huge improvement over the stock rip fence with my Delta contractors saw.

We should probably update the acronym page, because I honestly though that by BB, you meant Baltic Birch, as in the deck was constructed of Baltic Birch plywood. I assume PT is pressure treated, and I had never heard of pressure treated Baltic Birch plywood, but then I am not a contractor either.