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PatriotWoodturning

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Everything posted by PatriotWoodturning

  1. Wow that looks great! Now I want some crawfish.
  2. Thanks. Well initially, I was hired on as the Grounds/Pest Control Supervisor. I did that for about 2.5 years and then moved into the Engineering department. Now I'm an Engineering Technician, which is basically a Project Manager for construction projects at the facility. With my background in Civil Engineering, I manage mostly exterior improvement projects, but have several interior projects going on as well.
  3. Here are a few before and after photos of the landscaping improvements we made recently at the VA where I work. My guys did a great job! I sure do love running equipment. Before After Before After
  4. That will look awesome with the walnut and maple contrast!
  5. What's going on... Well I finally finished up my B.S degree. That only took 17 years! I'm still working at the VA hospital in Tampa, but thankfully the projects have slowed down a bit which gives me more family time. I also went home to visit my family in Indiana about a month ago. I guess I should visit them more than once every 5 years or so. While I was there, I stopped by the old sawmill where I used to work. Since I still have connections there, I was able to get some decent wood for future projects and it didn't cost a dime. Head saw and debarker. Gang Rip that my brother operates.
  6. A few years ago, my wife wanted a rustic farmhouse table for our dining room. Well after she told me how much they cost, I said, "I'll build you one dear." I didn't really have the time for much woodworking, as I was going to school full time and was managing a dozen construction projects at the hospital. Needless to say I wasn't home much, and when I was, I was too tired to do anything. So, I opted for a very simple construction using dimensional lumber. I didn't even bother to mill any of it, as I'm sure you can see. When it was all said and done however, the wife loved it! Happy wife happy life. Several months later she then asked me to build her a buffet table as well. Again, I went super simple and used dimensional lumber. Glad she likes the "rustic" look. lol
  7. I went with the AP 300S and the AL 300 Rapid battery charger. Go big or go home I always say! lol
  8. As a wood turner, cutting up logs into bowl blanks, is just part of the fun. As I mentioned in my introduction, I was a logger for nearly a decade, so using a chainsaw is second nature at this point. Now obviously I don’t use the Stihl 066 or MS 660 for cutting bowl blanks, but my MS 210 always worked well. However, a noisy gas powered saw isn’t always appreciated in my neighborhood or inside the garage. So, I went searching for an electric solution. Now I have to say, I was very skeptical about battery powered saws, but after much research I pulled the trigger on a Stihl MSA 220 C. This thing as exceeded all of my expectations thus far. Plenty of power, descent run time, and well its a Stihl. Great quality and robustly built. It wasn’t cheap, but what good tool ever is. Obviously, I’ll still use my 210 when it makes sense, but having this battery powered option is a real game changer for me. Let me also say that I am not posting this to have a debate over which chainsaw brand is better. I mean we all know it’s Stihl, so there really is no debate. 😂🤣
  9. Wow that seems like a lot. I was thinking like 2 diamond stones and a strop. 😂 Guess I need to step it up a notch or two.
  10. We were stationed at Eglin AFB, so Eastern time. Thank you so much for the kind words. These were finished turned green and I had zero warping or cracking. I must have gotten lucky. For gouges I use Benjamin’s Best turning tools. Never tried carbide, so I just stick with the traditional tools. My primary finish is just Minwax wipe on poly. For food safe finish I use walnut oil. I have used friction polish a little as well.
  11. What stone(s) do you use to sharpen your blades? I have 3 planes that I need to tune and sharpen, but have limited experience with hand planes.
  12. Welcome. I was also born in Indiana, but grew up all over and love woodturning. Thank you for your service.
  13. So I’m a newb to the whole hand plane thing and could use some help. I just bought a used Stanley No. 5, a Defiance No. 1244, and a Stanley No. 110 block plane. They were all in pretty good condition, but obviously the need to be tuned and sharpened. What stone(s) would you recommend for sharpening? I’m thinking diamond stones, but I also don’t want to spend a fortune either.
  14. Very nice. Birch is my favorite for bowls.
  15. Yeah that makes sense. Especially down here, it’s hot!
  16. Never heard of the soap method. Guess that makes sense though. Maybe I’ll give that one a try.
  17. Currently sharpening my gouges, then my chainsaw. Is it just me, or do others find it therapeutic to sharpen their tools?
  18. Thanks! I just upgraded from the Nova Comet II lathe to this one. This is actually the first bowl I turned on this lathe. This is a piece of Ambrosia Maple I got while visiting the old mill I used to work at in Indiana. I got 5 8" x 8" tie cutoffs, all Soft Maple.
  19. Yeah, I know a few tree services from my landscaping days that I could try. I have seen people use palm infused with epoxy to make turning blanks. However, I don't have a pressure pot or much experience with epoxy or resin.
  20. For all experienced turners this is nothing new, but proper drying is a skill that must be mastered in green wood turning. When I started out, I finished turned all my bowls. The result, lots of unwanted warping and cracking. While this can be desirable in some cases, most people prefer a round and crack free bowl. The first solution was to rough turn my blanks and then place them in fresh shavings. While this method worked well, I soon ran out of room and it just took too long for them to dry. Below is the box I made to hold the blanks and shavings. One day I was driving through my neighborhood on Elmendorf AFB, and ran across this old military cooler. Right away I knew this was going to make a great homemade kiln. So I loaded it up in my truck, which was not easy because this thing was heavy. I drilled a few holes on the top, put in a 100 watt light bulb, and a small fan. This kiln reduced the drying time to just under a week in most cases. Sadly, I had to leave this behind on my last move, but I am in the process of either making a new kiln, or I might try putting my rough turned bowls in the attic. I have heard other turners do this method successfully.
  21. The large salad bowl is Spruce, 4th picture. The last one is a Birch burl. That is what gave it the cool look. I haven’t had the pleasure of turning Cherry into a bowl yet, but I hope to.
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