Well, Im as happy as can be-the lathe is back in the shop. I can stop fretting and worrying about it and get back to work, which is exactly well do next.
The Coffee Wood BowlIve got a friend in St. Paul who asked me to make her a large bowl. We discussed it and she settled on the large block of coffee wood that I bought for my birthday and was saving for just a fun turn at some point:
DiscussionIve turned coffee wood before. These were several small pieces that I made into salt and pepper shakers last year and it very much reminded me of hickory in terms of hardness and grain pattern. Coffee wood however has a lovely pinkish-orange color and a strong open grain pattern reminiscent of red oak. So I was excited to get going on this and I decided this would be my first project as soon as the lathe came back from repair.
PlansSo, Im going to turn a bowl approximately 11" x 3" out of coffee wood and give it a salad bowl varnish finish.
The weather outside is cool and rainy today and its perfect turning weather so here we go:
Here is the block on the lathe but before I began turning it. Ive drilled a deep tenon on the back of it and Ive cut the corners off on the bandsaw. As this is a heavy piece Im going to turn it between centers and at about 400rpm until the piece is turned round and is balanced better and lighter in weight:
Ive stopped the turn and taken a picture just about 5 minutes into the turn. I like to true up large flat surfaces by cutting from the side. Im far less likely to get a catch this way and its easier on the end grain with less tearing and pitting the result. In the photo you can see two arrows. Ill true up the side of the blank by cutting to the left and shape the flat bottom by cutting to the right:
Here is the blank after about 30 minutes of cutting. Next Im going to shape the underside of the bowl and create a foot and a tenon:
Here is the bowl about 20 minutes later. You can clearly see the foot and tenon. Also note the grain pattern. This wood is really turning well-no chipping or tearing. And look at that grain. This is going to be a lovely bowl when its done:
Here is a side photo of the bowl. Im going to remove that squarish shoulder on the bowl and leave some extra wood for the rim:
And here is the bowl again without the shoulder:
Ive begun shaving down the surface here with a very sharp roughing gouge. This creates very fine shavings called angel hair shavings and it prepares the bowl for sanding:
This is the bowl after its been sanded down to 400 grit. Ive left the rim alone because Im going to cut it next:
This is a closeup shot of the rim. Ive turned two beads into the surface and prepared the wide area for smoothing. Ill finish the rim when I flip it over for hollowing in a little while:
Ive taken the bowl off the lathe and here is the underside of it completed:
Now to hollow it out:
Ive flattened the surface of the bowl and we can now see the color and grain pattern. Very pretty:
Now Im into serious hollowing here. I like to create the walls of bowls but leave the center thick and unturned while Im working. This helps to dampen the vibration that sets in whilst its spinning and you can see the center is still intact:
I put down the camera and continued to hollow out the bowl. Here is a photo after about 40 minutes of turning. It still needs the bottom flattened out and the whole surface shaved smooth:
And here is the bowl after the turning is finished. The sides are about 1/2" thick and I think this gives the bowl a good feel in the hand, and if its ever dropped its less likely to crack:
Here is a side view. Note the rim:
And here is a photo for the wood fairies:
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