The "Lathest" News
January 2012                     Issue #24
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In This Issue  

Brian and I would like to start this issue in wishing you all a Happy New Year and wish you good turning in 2012.  We would also like to thank you all for your input and support of our newsletter, we will continue to work hard to bring you articles we hope you will find interesting and that will provide you with techniques that you will be able to apply to your own work.

 

In this issue Brian shows you techniques in making natural edge vases using dry wood.  Brian shows this technique mounting the vase with a chuck to preserve more of the wood, and will be using the boring bar.

 

I will be writing the next couple of newsletters as my buddy is leaving to go "down under" to teach in Austrailia.  Brian has been asked to demo at "TurnFest" ( www.turnfest.com.au ).  As Brian will be away from the end of January to the beginning of April,  please contact me if you have any questions or comments.  I will do my best to help you. 

 

I also want to let you know Brian and I will be in Provo, Utah for the woodturning symposium ( www.uatahwoodturning.com ) where Brian will also be demonstrating.  We will also have a booth on the trade floor at the AAW symposium in San Jose, California ( www.woodturner.org/smy/sym2012/ ).  Brian has also been asked to demonstrate in San Jose.  We will have more information on the latter two symposiums in future newsletter.  If you are at any of the above symposiums be sure to drop by and say hello. 

  

 

Missed one of our old newsletters?

Click on the link below to access our archive home page:  

  

  

Deep Hollowing Natural Edge Burl with the Large Captive Boring Bar

by Brian McEvoy

 

In past newsletters and articles I've always hollowed green end grain timber, but occasionally I'm lucky enough to get my hands on burl of any species that is deep enough to turn vases with.  For deep hollowing burl I'd prefer to have burl that is dry and ready to finish.  Though as with any wood, green turning is much easier.  I find that green turned deep vessels are too difficult to re-turn once they are dry.  For this reason I try to use dry-ish timber; something I can turn, sand and finish in one go and by using the large captive boring bar, even dry wood isn't a problem.

 

The deepest natural edge burl vessel I've completed was 6.5 x 24 inches and was spectacular.  Maybe I'm just a sucker for burl but whatever size I turn I always find them to be outstanding. 

 

The process in this tutorial is similar to the one from our last newsletter, "Using a Laser to Measure Wall Thickness" but there are a few differences that should be helpful.

 

The finished piece is 8 x 9 inches and the inside depth is only eight inches.  I'm sure many experienced turners could complete something similar using conventional turning tools such as gouges or scrapers but this depth or deeper could be a challenge for most.  I'm using our six foot x 1 � inch captive boring bar because of its ease of use.  Even a relatively inexperienced turner could easily handle this rig.

 
   

 

 

 

 

Experienced or not safety is the number one concern.  Burl can be rather fickle to work considering you may have bark inclusions and weird grain patterns to contend with.  With this in mind I would recommend full face, head and lung protection.

 

 

 

Mark the centre on both top and bottom and choose the drive you are comfortable with.  I'll use the 2 � inch Elio Drive as I do for most of my turning.  This is a wonderful little tool that I believe every turner should have in their arsenal.  More information on the Elio Drives can be found at the end of this tutorial.  

Mount the blank between centers and secure the tailstock firmly in place. 

 

 

Using whatever tools you're comfortable with, true up your blank and start forming the shape.

 

 

 

I'll be remounting this piece using a 6 inch Vicmarc chuck available from Craft Supplies USA www.woodturnerscatalog.com  In past articles on deep hollowing I've always used a face plate to fasten the piece.  But because of the size and rarity of the timber I don't want to waste any material by screwing a face plate onto the block.  This piece started at 9 � inches deep and will end up at 9.  No waste...

.

 

At this point I'll turn a foot into the bottom for both esthetic reasons and to secure it into the chuck.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ready to remount into the chuck.

 

 

.

Reverse the vase and secure it tightly into the chuck.

 

On rough surfaces I like to flatten the center three or four inches so the saw tooth bit that I'll use to drill out a depth hole will enter the piece smoothly.

I drill out a three inch diameter hole to within one inch of my intended inside depth using a Saw Tooth HSS drill bit available through Lee Valley www.leevalley.com .

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

I've drilled to seven inches with intentions of an eight inch inside depth.

 

 

 

 

 

It's important to set up your boring bar level and true the cutter to the center of the mandrel.  Once this has been done to suit your lathe and floor, only periodic leveling should be necessary. 

 

With the boring bar set up you can start hollowing.  As with any natural edge burl, particularly hard jagged burl like this Big Leaf Maple piece, things will be rather rough and noisy until you've cleaned up the top and are working in solid wood.  I would recommend ear plugs when you're working with dry timber.  The noise can also be rather intimidating.  Other than the noise you'll be amazed at how easy the hollowing process is and it won't make any difference if you're hollowing 2 or 12 inches off the tool rest.  The 50 pound weight of the bar will dampen most vibration and make deep hollowing a breeze.


 

 I like to use my low voltage light to gauge the wall thickness on thin wall turning to easily see what's happening inside.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 I've made a good start on the entrance in a few minutes of turning.

Another beauty of these boring bars is the ease of sharpening the cutter.  The HSS cutter takes a second to remove and with the grinder rest set at the correct angle, one or two quick gentle passes on the wheel and you'll be back to work.

 

 

 

 

Work your way down the inside for an inch or two being careful not to remove too much wall thickness.

I'm using a laser measuring system to gauge the wall thickness.  Refer to our December 2011 newsletter for more info on this operation.

 

 

 Calipers are an easy option when working on these shallow depths.

I've now reached the seven inch depth that I drilled and will start to make the smooth curved transition between the side and the bottom using the extra inch of bottom thickness.

 

 

Finish up the inside bottom.  You might be surprised at how smooth a cut you can achieve even cutting nine or more inches off the tool rest.

 

 

 

 

With the lathe speed turned down, carefully sand the inside.  I start with 80 grit and work my way up to 500.  There is no problem sanding the inside walls of a wide opening piece such as this.  I would recommend hand sanding the bottom with the lathe off.

 

 
 
 
 
 
 
The inside is now finished and looking beautiful.

 

 

 

Use whatever method of reverse chucking you're comfortable with to finish turning the foot and sanding the outside.  In my case I've used a spigot type chuck to secure the inside while the tail stock keeps the pressure on the outside; it's very effective.

 

 

 

 

 

Clean up the foot.

 

 

 

 

 I've changed the live center to a point so I can turn off most of the � inch nub.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sand the outside including the foot.

 

 

 

 

 

 I use a palm sander to remove the small remaining nub off the bottom.

 
 
 
 
 
Completed piece ready for finishing. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These are a few other samples of natural edge pieces turned using the Large Captive Boring Bar.  Note the dark piece that has been stained, adding a whole new dimension to the burl.

I would like to emphasize the simplicity and versatility of the Large Captive Boring Bar; the possibilities are endless.  There are many hollowing tools on the market that have a limited amount of effectiveness but I've always had certain trepidation with safety when hollowing a long distance off the tool rest.  The small diameter bars won't even come close to giving you the range of depth that this 50 pounder will.  I can't imagine a safer method of deep hollowing: they are virtually foolproof.  To get you going we have a great instructional DVD available on Mastering the Large Captive Boring Bar.  With over 90 minutes of instructional footage it will walk you through the whole process from start to finish, plus an additional 20 minutes of bonus features including a photo gallery, tips on using the laser to gauge wall thickness, steady rests and extreme boring tools.

 

Check out this link on You Tube on how to use our Elio Drives. 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQQI_Zr7bC8 

 

I would also like to thank one of our readers who noticed that I used the words "mortise taper" instead of "*Morse taper" in the YouTube video; clearly my woodworking background came through.  Our Elio Drives have a #2 morse taper.  

*The "Morse Taper" was invented by Stephen A. Morse in the mid-1860's.  Since then it has evolved to encompass smaller and larger sizes.

 

 

TWO IN ONE SAFE DRIVE AND FACEPLATE

See a live demo on YouTube:

 

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQQI_Zr7bC8


 

Now available in three sizes and are black zinc coated.

 

 
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This is the ultimate tool kit for piercing your work. These pneumatic piercing systems are comfortable to use, the lightweight design and the 400,000 r.p.m. speed are ideal to embellish your work. The handpiece design allows for unwavering control of your cut. The carbide dental burs seem to last forever but when the need arises, take only seconds to replace.
 

The kit includes the handpiece kit, ball valve assembly, regulator, filter, hoses, aerosol oil, male and female quick connects, two burs. 

 

 
Available for immediate shipping at:
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Two Piece Hollow Form DVD
 
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Over 70 minutes of instructional footage.

 

Amateurs and professionals alike will learn Brian McEvoy's secrets to producing beautiful works of art using only basic woodturning tools.  Once you have mastered the two piece hollow form, you can let your imagination run wild and use this simple technique to turn out museum quality work.
 
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Deep Vessel Boring DVD

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Over 90 minutes of instructional footage plus 20 minutes of bonus features.

 

Join master woodturner Brian McEvoy who will show the process from raw wood to sanded piece in easy to follow steps.  Create amazing pieces quickly with these never-before-seen secrets from a master woodturner.

 

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