David Ellsworth positions a block of poplar between the drive and live center to optimize the wood grain to the anticipated bowl design.
Exterior roughing cut from bowl bottom to top quickly removes unwanted wood in preparation to shaping a bowl.
Roughed tenon for chuck.
Dropping the handle 20° to 30° allows a pulling slicing cut to form a second tenon defining the potential bowl bottom.
The chuck tenon is cleanly cut with a 3/8" spindle gouge.
Ribbons of wood are hogged away with a slicing cut to roughly form the bowl shape.
A spindle gouge reduces the diameter of the live center nub so it will fit inside the chuck center.
A pulling slicing cut flattens the face as the bowl bottom is held in a four-jaw chuck stabilized by the live tail stock.
More wood ribbons are sliced in leveling the face.
The outside surface before the final shear cut.
The bowl shape before the exterior shear cut.
"Angel hair" cuttings with a shear cut refines the exterior surface so one can begin sanding with 240 grit.
Shear cutting with the gouge bottom edge leaving only 1/8" to 1/16" of air space between the top edge and the wood.
Shear cutting.
Shearing cutting. Note David's hands position holding the black gouge handle at 45° to the floor against his leg.
Shear cutting with thumbs on the gouge metal anchored to the tool rest and the cutting edge gently "kissing" the wood.
With the lathe stopped, David points at the inverted cutting edge.
Wood dust may accumulate on the top non-cutting edge.
Practice holding the gouge in the shear cutting position with the lathe stopped.
The interior roughing cut begins with the gouge in this position.
Wood ribbons fly as the gouge cuts and rides its bevel to the bottom center of the bowl.
Hogging out the center waste wood.
The bowl gouge is parallel to the lathe ways.
Chips fly!
More chips!
Still more chips!
Note the gouge flute angle while cutting inside the bowl.
More chips.
One of the last interior roughing cuts as the optimum bowl wall thickness is approached.
David's handmade wall thickness gauge bent from a 30" length of 3/16" zinc plated drill rod.
Cleaning up the top edge from the outside toward the center.
Gently remove the sharp outside top edge.
Roll the gouge to cut from this edge in forming the top profile.
. . . like this!
. . . rolling to the inside edge.
. . . and down the edge with the interior finish cut riding the bevel and a very light slicing cut with the tip and no more than 1/8" to the left side of the tip with the flute up.
End grain at the bowl bottom can be cut cleanly with a bowl gouge bevel ground to 85° at the tip.
. . . right down to cleanly remove the center nib.
Another final pass with the 85° gouge.
One more pass blending side cuts with the bottom cut.
The roughed bowl sits on the headstock before finishing the exterior base. David points to his versitle hollow jam chuck.
Another shot of the homemade jam chuck.
Another shot of the jam chuck.
Wall thickness and inside depth must be measured before mounting the roughed bowl onto the jam chuck.
Make reference lines for (L to R) depth of the interior, desired bottom wall thickness, and finished foot bottom.
Mark the plane of the finished foot.
Removing excess wood from the base with a 3/8" spindle gouge.
Note the convex curve on the bottom and sides of the 3/8" spindle gouge (flute facing tail stock).
One of the final cuts to seperate the base from the center nib.
Finished bowl!
Homemade hollow jam chuck.
Bottom of David's 3/8" spindle gouge.
Side shot showing the profile of David's 3/8" spindle gouge.
Exterior slicing cut to shape a natural (bark) top edged bowl.
Hogging away more exterior wood.
Wet ribbons fly with this pulling slicing cut. Note position of hands and gouge held against tool rest and David's body.
Pulling slicing cut using the front 1/4 to 1/3 of the gouge tip -- not riding bevel -- cut depth controlled by heel of left hand following the tool rest profile as David's body weight shifts from his right to left leg.
Chuck and bottom tenons are roughed before establishing the exterior profile.
The roughed exterior poplar is mounted in the chuck ready for trueing with exterior sheer and scraping cuts before hollowing.
Planning details . . . here's what we are going to do and how we are going to do it.
Hollowing begins with the tail stock removed.
Unique 2" diameter spur drive that screws directly onto the headstock spindle -- expected to be on the market soon.
Another view of the adjustable 2" diameter spur drive.
. . . another view.
Vicmarc Chuck
How to make a sphere . . .
Exterior rough cutting away bark.
Exterior rough cutting bark.
Exterior rough cut in action.
Wood ribbons fly . . .
More ribbons fly.
Half of the sphere beginning to take shape.
Sphere begins to take shape.
Exterior shear cut.
More shear cutting.
The plan for hollowing using straight and bent tools.
Straight hollowing.
Opening the sphere.
Essentially hollowing blindfolded.
Bent hollowing tool in action.
Hollowing continues.
Raking out chips.
A view from the back row . . . David at the lathe and Fred Williamson behind the camera.
Hollowed sphere is positioned in the jam chuck in preparation for forming the base.
Hollowing tool is sharpened on the side of the grinder wheel.
The point is sharpened on the wheel face.
The right edge of the tool is sharpened on the left edge of the sharpening wheel.
26May2010 Tutoring: Don Voas, Tom Evans, Dick Miksad, Hank Marien, Instructor David Ellsworth, Jeff Fleisher
