It's been an ambition of mine to start turning bowls. I've been planning to build a bowl turning lathe but space and time have been against me recently. So I decided to have a go on my normal lathe. Luckily Robin Wood had just posted on the bodgers forum how to make a simple mandrel (the cylinder with the cord wrapped around it) by turning the end to be a tight fit into a 1 1/4inch hole drilled into the bowl blank.
If you haven't already been there you can find Robin Wood's excellent blog here at http://greenwood-carving.blogspot.com/Just making one bowl has shown me where a bowl lathe need to differ from a spindle lathe. For now I just 'bodged' the work rest. But I need a sturdier solution as any flex in the work rest magnifies the ability to dig into the wood. Likewise my goblet hook tools are a little thin for bowls and add to the flexing.
I found the outside of the bowl the hardest part to turn possibly because my tread is set for spindles and doesn't allow me to maximise power so the gouge is pulled into the wood rather than through it. I have a lot to learn, and need a lot more practice. It's not very pretty but it's a bowl. I think I will call the finish 'dug'
1 comment:
Hi Mark - like you I've been turning bowls on my ordinary bowl lathe, and had the same problems with the outside finish.
After a few experiments, I've discovered that cutting blanks and leaving them a few weeks makes life easier, and also your tools need to be sharper than ever.
Our house is full of dodgy bowls, but it is really satisfying.
Good luck!
Cheers
steve
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