Best method for securing larger blanks

[Randy Heinemann]

What is the best method for securing a 12" - 14" blank. The blanks are already approximately round, so not grossly out of balance. They are around 6" - 7" thick and, I suppose, some imbalance will be created by the shape of the outer edge of the blank. The wood I have right now is walnut, not completely dry, but at least halfway there. i currently own a standard 4-prong spur which came with my Powermatic 3520c, a woodworm screw for a Nova chuck/jaw set, and the faceplate that came with the Powermatic. I will, of course, support the blank on the tailstock side to start with.

If I use the faceplate, I would need to flatten a spot on the blank to secure the faceplate to the blank. Other than using a forstner bit, I'm not totally sure of the best way to do that either and I don't have a 3" + fornster bit.

Do faceplate rings offer any greater securing capability than any of the other 3 methods mentioned above?

 

[Kevin Jenness]

You can flatten the bottom with a hand plane or power plane, or you could make a flat on a drill press with overlapping holes using a smaller forstner bit.

I almost always start between centers for flexibility, but a woodworm screw used with tailstock support works well and will allow you to rough out the blank and form a tenon or recess to hold it in your chuck for hollowing.

A faceplate is arguably the most secure on sound wood, but the other methods work well also.

 

[Doug Freeman]

Whether a bowl, platter, hollow form, etc, I start most all projects between centers with either a 4 prong, steb center, or bowl cup drive. Depends on size and balance. For larger unbalanced pieces I prefer Nova’s 4 prong jumbo drive that threads onto the spindle. I found fretting type wear on the tapers of mt2 spindle taper drive centers. I do use mt2 4 prong, steb center, and bowl cup drives on smaller better balanced work.

The advantage of drive centers vs a chuck screw or faceplate is the ability to realign the blank during initial roughing. At some point I make a tenon and transfer to a chuck, just depends on the project. I have faceplates but rarely use them. I havent found vibration to be much of an issue with work properly mounted in a chuck, which is the primary argument for faceplates.

My lathe has outboard turning capability, and I use a faceplate if I want to turn something too large to fit over the bed.

Especially with wet wood ( doesnt matter how wet, and most blanks are not really dry) tighten the tailstock often to maintain compression on the wood.

 

[Mike Johnson]

Creating a flat surface on your blank is usually your first step in mounting it to your headstock attachment. You could use a bandsaw, chainsaw or handsaw to cut across one end of the wood blank which then gives you a clean flat surface to secure a face plate, face plate ring, woodworm screw etc. to the blank.

I have used several wood shims when mounting a fairly flat wood blank to a face plate that had several contact points needing a shim, I only used this long enough to create a second flat surface on the opposite end of the plank to secure a chuck or face plate to.

A large Forstner bit can provide a flat surface for a small diameter face plate or a bowl chuck if you use it in the expansion mode. You always want to use the tailstock for secondary support until you get a solid mount for the wood blank and it is balanced on the lathe.

 

[Spike Cornelius]

I would think that the woodworm screw would rely on the support of the rim of the chuck for security, which would mean that the blank would wobble as much as a faceplate mounted on a non-flat surface, resulting in a serious wobble of the blank. Thus you would need to do the same preparations as with the other mounting options. Once a flat is established, and with tailstock support, does the manner of mounting make any difference?

 

[robo hippy]

Well, I use a forstner bit to drill a recess, and expand my chuck into that. My Vicmark chuck has jaws that closed are slightly under 2 5/8 inch diameter, which is perfect to expand into. You can make a flat surface if you have a smaller forstner bit. I would set the depth stop first, then drill the center point first, then drill around it so there was enough room. This gives you a flat surface that is good enough for a secure mount for a ring to expand your chuck into, or for the wood worm screw. I just find the forstner bit recess more efficient because I don't have to mess with faceplate screws and screw gun. This method is good for bowls up to 16 inch diameter. Especially with the tailstock engaged, there is no risk of the blank flying off, and the chuck provides a better drive for the blank than the woodworm screw or spur centers do. Last time I used a faceplate, it was on a 22 inch diameter bowl blank.

robo hippy

 

[hockenbery]

9

What is the best method for securing a 12" - 14" blank. The blanks are already approximately round, so not grossly out of balance. They are around 6" - 7" thick

I use an inch diameter spur drive. And cup center with a pin for twice turned bowls.

for NE bowls I take the pin out of the cup and drill a shallow 1.15 diameter centered hole in through the bark to seat the center in.

To see my process go to the working with green wood thread an watch the first part of the “roughing a green bowl” video

Working with green wood

The August 2015 AAW JOURNAL has great article by David Ellsworth on working with green wood. This is followed by 11 marvelous ways turners turned cracks into features. One of David's themes is that the deck is stacked against newer woodturners successfully working with wet wood. Might be a nice...

www.aawforum.org

 

[Randy Anderson]

I always use a 1" spur drive and cup center with pin for all my rouging and turning. Never been a fan of face plates since I often reposition the piece while roughing it out and on a natural edge bowl creating a flat for it is not trivial to do. As others have said, tighten the tail stock a few times early on in the roughing process and be sure your spur drive hole is beyond the bark line and well into the wood. The only time I've lost one on a spur drive was when I didn't follow my own rule on depth. When I first started I did try a faceplate setup and found that often getting the screws out after they've sat in the wet sappy wood for a while was really tough. Had some strip or snap and then the fun really starts on how to get them out.

 

[Randy Heinemann]

Well, I use a forstner bit to drill a recess, and expand my chuck into that. My Vicmark chuck has jaws that closed are slightly under 2 5/8 inch diameter, which is perfect to expand into. You can make a flat surface if you have a smaller forstner bit. I would set the depth stop first, then drill the center point first, then drill around it so there was enough room. This gives you a flat surface that is good enough for a secure mount for a ring to expand your chuck into, or for the wood worm screw. I just find the forstner bit recess more efficient because I don't have to mess with faceplate screws and screw gun. This method is good for bowls up to 16 inch diameter. Especially with the tailstock engaged, there is no risk of the blank flying off, and the chuck provides a better drive for the blank than the woodworm screw or spur centers do. Last time I used a faceplate, it was on a 22 inch diameter bowl blank.

robo hippy

Will a 2 5/8" recess really be sufficient for a blank that is 14" (diameter) by 7" deep? Seems kind of small, but I'm certainly not the expert. One problem with this method for me is that the smallest jaws I have would need to be opened at least a 1/2" to get to even 2 1/2" which then makes them not exactly round. The next step up would be my larger jaws but they would need about a 4" recess for which I don't have a forstner bit and chewing away at at smaller hole wouldn't excatly give me a round recess.

 

[Allen Mattsen]

Reed- What's max bowl size for 4" Vicmarc dovetail jaws?

 

[Mark Jundanian]

@Randy Heinemann , there's a lot of good advice here and as already said there is no single way to mount such a piece of wood. It is going to depend to some degree what you are going to make, for example if grain alignment is an issue. As someone who uses a screw chuck frequently I just want to mention that I think that sounds like a pretty big piece of wood for a screw chuck. And as already pointed out, a screw chuck still needs a fairly flat surface for the jaws to rest on and the 5/16" hole needs to be perpendicular (it's not clear to me how irregular the surface of what you're turning is). If I had the landing space for a screw chuck and could be sure of keeping the tailstock engaged I might go for it if my ultimate design required it. If my design allowed, and the surfaces were irregular I would mount between centers, flatten the end and make a 50 mm tenon for your the Nova jaws, which you have. (Certainly if I had larger jaws available I could make a larger tenon).

A 3" Forstner, though, is problematic. Not only is it expensive, but it requires a lot of torque to drive. The problem is not the electric motors, but that the grip of the drill chuck on the bit is inadequate and the bit, or worse the Morse taper, will spin. Overlapping smaller Forstner bits works, I've done it. With a drill press this will make a fairly flat surface, but not a round recess.

 

[Randy Heinemann]

Thanks for all of the great responses. Since I already own the faceplate that came with my PM3520C, I decided to mount that on the blank. I've cut it round on the bandsaw and it is fairly well balanced (although not perfectly round/regular). One of my concerns was that the PM faceplate is 3 1/4" in diameter which initially seemed somewhat smaller than I thought was advisable. However, I was able to mount the faceplate with 6 - stainless wood screws that are into the wood over 1" each. While the side I mounted the faceplate on is not perfect in terms of a smooth, flat surface, it is relatively flat even though it was made by a chainsaw. The guy who cut this up for me was very good at making the surface fairly regular. Anyway, the faceplate is secured tight and level to the surface with the six screws and I will, of course, use the tailstock to support it. I'm sure it will be fine. I was just a little hesitant because this is a larger blank/bowl than I have done in the past.

 

[robo hippy]

The 2 5/8 forstner bit is just slightly bigger than my standard jaws on my Vic 150, or the medium sized Vicmark chuck. If you have smaller jaws, they probably would not work as well if you have to open them up considerably to get the grip. You could probably be safe and get enough drive from the chuck if the tailstock is engaged.

I don't know about any 4 inch forstner bits. I think you would need an industrial grade drill press to power one. A 3 inch bit can be handled by most home drill presses if you use the low speed ranges. I did find my 4 inch jaws sufficient to spin that big 22 inch madrone bowl in that video. If I made it a habit to turn bowls that size, I would most likely get one of the big Vicmark chucks and jaws a bit bigger than 4 inches. I have turned 16 inch bowls with my standard jaws, but that is about the limit of that smaller diameter. 12 to 14 inch bowls handle just fine, both for turning and for coring. As always, with larger pieces, I turn at slower speeds, and take smaller bites when turning. No real clue as to what speeds I turn at. Now that I have the Vicmark, which has rpm listed, I still don't look at it. Too many years of doing it by feel....

robo hippy

 

[Allen Mattsen]

Thanks for all of the great responses. Since I already own the faceplate that came with my PM3520C, I decided to mount that on the blank. I've cut it round on the bandsaw and it is fairly well balanced (although not perfectly round/regular). One of my concerns was that the PM faceplate is 3 1/4" in diameter which initially seemed somewhat smaller than I thought was advisable. However, I was able to mount the faceplate with 6 - stainless wood screws that are into the wood over 1" each. While the side I mounted the faceplate on is not perfect in terms of a smooth, flat surface, it is relatively flat even though it was made by a chainsaw. The guy who cut this up for me was very good at making the surface fairly regular. Anyway, the faceplate is secured tight and level to the surface with the six screws and I will, of course, use the tailstock to support it. I'm sure it will be fine. I was just a little hesitant because this is a larger blank/bowl than I have done in the past.View attachment 39908View attachment 39909

Strangely enough, I was thinking I probably need a larger faceplate or a faceplate ring. Vicmarc sells 6" ring but you need the 5" jaws to use it. The smaller one can be used w/ my existing jaw set(s).

Is a 4-3/4" faceplate ring sufficient or smarter to go 6"?

(Pictured is 20x6" Myrtle blank I roughed out yesterday)

 

[Doug Freeman]

A note on faceplate size and #/depth of screws. It is totally dependent on whether the faceplate will be used without TS support. If you plan to turn to completion, ie no TS at some point, a much stronger attachment is needed, ie larger plate, more and longer screws. If the faceplate is only for roughing and to make a tenon/mortise, ie it is only being used to hold one end in place and drive, it can be much smaller, fewer screws, at less depth.

 

[Randy Heinemann]

My intent was that, while roughing out and forming the outside of the bowl, the blank would be mounted with the faceplate and tailstock support. I can't see doing it any other way safely. When the bowl is turned around to hollow there would be a tenon to mount it in a chuck, probably 3 1/2" tenon. Generally I try to keep the bowl supported by the tailstock when turning off the tenon at the end but, of course, there is a final limit to that when the tenon gets small. In this case, I'm guessing that the blank still needs drying inside so I will likely dry it by one of the methods I use after rough turning, then remount with the tenon to finish turn it.

 

[hockenbery]

My intent was that, while roughing out and forming the outside of the bowl, the blank would be mounted with the faceplate and tailstock support. I can't see doing it any other way safely.

if you have a lathe with a decent tailstock. Mounting between centers is quite safe unless the wood is of poor quality and unsafe to turn.

using a faceplate works but it has many disadvantages.

I have taught at Least 200 beginners to turn bowls.
the first bowl is a disc mounted on a screw Chuck
the second is a half log rounded to 11” diameter on a bandsaw turned between centers Using a spur drive.

this is a reliable and safe method of holding bowl blanks.
you can see how it is done

View: https://youtu.be/Lo0bGSafZq4

 

[Allen Mattsen]

if you have a lathe with a decent tailstock. Mounting between centers is quite safe unless the wood is of poor quality and unsafe to turn.

using a faceplate works but it has many disadvantages.

I have taught at Least 200 beginners to turn bowls.
the first bowl is a disc mounted on a screw Chuck
the second is a half log rounded to 11” diameter on a bandsaw turned between centers Using a spur drive.

this is a reliable and safe method of holding bowl blanks.
you can see how it is done

View: https://youtu.be/Lo0bGSafZq4

I think for smaller bowls it makes sense to skip the faceplate and either just mount between centers or use a screw chuck but I don't feel comfortable mounting giant, heavy bowl blanks between centers only.

The method of (spur/btw centers) forming a tenon, chucking it, and forming another tenon is definitely a time saver I haven't yet been comfortable doing on larger, chainsaw-rounded blanks.

Hock- I always enjoy your videos and pick up new things every time, even a small detail if not a full concept or foundational technique sometimes.

Randy- I hadn't considered using a faceplate to turn to completion, only w/ tailstock support but that's a very good point.

 

[Doug Freeman]

Here is a 15” bowl blank mounted between centers. It was chainsaw “rounded”, then rounded some more with a grinder chainsaw wheel enough to get clearance. Haven’t had any issue with same dia longer blanks between centers. 16” swing lathe.

 

[Allen Mattsen]

Here is a 15” bowl blank mounted between centers. It was chainsaw “rounded”, then rounded some more with a grinder chainsaw wheel enough to get clearance. Haven’t had any issue with same dia longer blanks between centers. 16” swing lathe.

View attachment 39925

How large would you go if you had the capacity?

 

[Randy Heinemann]

Randy- I hadn't considered using a faceplate to turn to completion, only w/ tailstock support but that's a very good point.

Actually I must not have been clear. I haven't left the bowl mounted on the faceplate till completion; only until I get the outside shaped and most of the way there. I envisioned removing the faceplate once the outside is close to done and the tenon formed. Then I would reverse for hollowing and use a chuck/jaws on the tenon. Then, I'm not an expert. I'm learning every time I turn, having only turned about 3 years. I just got done rough turning the outside of the 14" walnut blank, but uncovered a check that goes all the way through so I will need to make smaller bowls out of this blank. However, the faceplate worked well along with tailstock support. No issues with support or the faceplate. I use #12 stainless wood screws sunk into the wood a little over 1" , so the faceplate was very solid.

 

[hockenbery]

The method of (spur/btw centers) forming a tenon, chucking it, and forming another tenon is definitely a time saver I haven't yet been comfortable doing on larger, chainsaw-rounded blanks.

it’s important to stay with your comfort zone.
your comfort zone is likely to grow
never do anything you feel is unsafe

How large would you go if you had the capacity?

The largest bowls I have done are 18” diameter rough turned so the blank is 19”+
for the ones over 16” I have a 2” diameter spur center and a ONEWAY big bit.
also i turned a lot of smaller pieces before doing large ones.

 

[Allen Mattsen]

Actually I must not have been clear. I haven't left the bowl mounted on the faceplate till completion; only until I get the outside shaped and most of the way there. I envisioned removing the faceplate once the outside is close to done and the tenon formed. Then I would reverse for hollowing and use a chuck/jaws on the tenon. Then, I'm not an expert. I'm learning every time I turn, having only turned about 3 years. I just got done rough turning the outside of the 14" walnut blank, but uncovered a check that goes all the way through so I will need to make smaller bowls out of this blank. However, the faceplate worked well along with tailstock support. No issues with support or the faceplate. I use #12 stainless wood screws sunk into the wood a little over 1" , so the faceplate was very solid.

This is how I do it, as well. If I were to get a faceplate ring for use w/ a VM120 chuck, I can't see a reason at this point to get a 6" vs a 4" other than and excuse in acquiring the required 5" jaw set.

The stock faceplate from my 2436 has had no issues and it seems tiny! The correct screws are key.

Right now, I have a smaller diameter but deeper blank on the lathe between centers, w/ the spur drive in my chuck. I think I need a better spur drive, perhaps a 2 bladed one for easier manipulation of live edge pieces.

That brings up another question and that's those spike plates I see people using. Any thoughts on those?

 

[Brian Gustin]

That brings up another question and that's those spike plates I see people using. Any thoughts on those?

I would say the point (pardon the pun) of those, especially the 2-spike ones, is to be able to re-adjust the position of the blank between centers as the bowl is turned - if you see some particular grain pattern uncovered during turning, that might make for a prettier or more solid bowl (or grain balancing, whatever) a faceplate limits your options but if you have it between centers, you can typically loosen your tailstock and re-position the blank , re-truing it to the form you want - either to eliminate some hidden checking/knots/holes, or to incorporate knots/defects/swirly grain into your bowl in a better way.. Assuming you mean the spike plates I am thinking you mean?

 

[Allen Mattsen]

I would say the point (pardon the pun) of those, especially the 2-spike ones, is to be able to re-adjust the position of the blank between centers as the bowl is turned - if you see some particular grain pattern uncovered during turning, that might make for a prettier or more solid bowl (or grain balancing, whatever) a faceplate limits your options but if you have it between centers, you can typically loosen your tailstock and re-position the blank , re-truing it to the form you want - either to eliminate some hidden checking/knots/holes, or to incorporate knots/defects/swirly grain into your bowl in a better way.. Assuming you mean the spike plates I am thinking you mean?

 

[Allen Mattsen]

Basically a faceplate w/out screws but instead: spikes! Perhaps more for production turners, but it's interesting.

The adjusting I think can be done w/ a better 2-prong drive center, the Oneway 'big bite', or others. My 4-pronger is fine but it's trickier to adjust like you said for grain or live edge pieces (like I've been working on today). Mine has a damaged prong so I'll need something soon unless I fix it acceptably.

 

[hockenbery]

Basically a faceplate w/out screws but instead: spikes! Perhaps more for production turners, but it's interesting.

The adjusting I think can be done w/ a better 2-prong drive center, the Oneway 'big bite', or others. My 4-pronger is fine but it's trickier to adjust like you said for grain or live edge pieces (like I've been working on today). Mine has a damaged prong so I'll need something soon unless I fix it acceptably.

A good 4 prong is what I use on NE bowls and hollowforms.
i sharpen mine on the grinding wheel every couple of years.
sharpening might rehab yours

i want teeth that can drive close to 1/2” and a good 1/4” at a minimum.

i set the blades at 45 degrees to the grain so that they drive in uniformly.

I like to adjust grain or rim height on Two axes. The 4 prongs are better for this as 2 or 3 will maintain their bite as the work is shifted.

the two prong only adjust well on the axis along the prongs.
adjusting a two prong perpendicular to the prongs will pull one prong out of the wood

the Big bite is a two prong but the width of the blade gives a good hold in 2 axis manipulation.

 

[Leo Van Der Loo]

I consider a faceplate the safest manner of holding large blanks, and I do the outside shaping while on the faceplate and if possible remove some of the inside wood at that time as well.

No tailstock to hold the blank, just the screws in the faceplate, I use 9 1" metal screws normally for bowls up to 20 inches in a 4" faceplate, larger than that I probably go and use a 6 inch faceplate and same number of screws or the other faceplate that can have as many as 18 screws in it if the wood is extra heavy.

Here is a 20 inch Sycamore I turned with the 4" faceplate and the 30 inch Maple that was held on the 6" faceplate.

 

[JeffSmith]

I typically start everything between centers. the biggest blank I've started was just shy of 24" - only once, just to see if I could...usually, 18" is my limit these days. Most pieces start with corners knocked off from the chainsaw, between centers using the Oneway Big Bite, rough to round and put a tenon on. From there I turn the blank, gripping the tenon, face off the rim and put a recess on before coring and finishing the roughout. If its going to be a covered bowl, the lid is parted off with the Macnaughton straight blade before coring.
I save my faceplates for hollow forms, but even those start between centers.

 

[Doug Freeman]

it’s important to stay with your comfort zone.
your comfort zone is likely to grow
never do anything you feel is unsafe



The largest bowls I have done are 18” diameter rough turned so the blank is 19”+
for the ones over 16” I have a 2” diameter spur center and a ONEWAY big bit.
also i turned a lot of smaller pieces before doing large ones.

I agree with @hockenbery, build comfort level. If I had 24” swing I would go that big. Notice in the photo I am using a Nova Jumbo Drive, 2” dia 4 prong design that threads on the spindle. I like a 4 prong for the same reasons hockenberry stated, and I like the thread on vs MT due to some fretting wear on the taper observed on an Olio spike type drive. The prongs and point are removable for sharpening/maintenance. I usually move the TS center to reposition a blank, but sometimes the HS end. Other methods of securing the HS drive end are too limiting, ie realignment of the blank, and I have built up my comfort level, with progressively larger blanks, to trust the Nova and Olio drives to hold.

It is extremely important to tighten the TS every few cuts with wet wood. I do it with the blank spinning, only takes seconds. I have had blanks come lose because I had not continuously tightened the TS, thankfully they were only 12” or so.

 

[robo hippy]

Hmm.... I have always wondered why people use the spur drives so they can change the mounting orientation to get the grain lined up where they want it, or to balance it out.... I take care of that when I prep my bowl blanks. I never buy blanks, just logs, which may allow me to be more picky when I cut them up. Never saw commercial blanks that were cut the way I would want. Most of the time, they seem to be cut with one of the bandsaw mills, then cut into bowl blanks. I would get too many knots and limbs that way when I can cut around them most of the time. True, some love those 'defects' in their bowls, but I do not, at least for the ones I want to see used daily. With proper lay out it isn't difficult to get the grain pretty well centered. I guess 'artistically' it may look better to have grain perfectly centered, but I have never found a customer to whom that seemed to be a deal killer. With proper lay out, the forstner bit is as simple as you can get.

robo hippy

 

[Randy Heinemann]

Being much less experienced than all of you, I always use methods and technique that I feel are the safest for me. With the current walnut 14" blanks I think a faceplate is a very safe and secure way to mount supported by the tailstock until the outside is formed. And that worked well for me, especially since my experience with blanks even that large is limited.
died
Since these walnut pieces are still a little damp inside, I will most likely need to turn to a thickness, then dry, and remount. Obviously a faceplate can't be used for remounting. I don't have a vacuum chuck and my cole jaws aren't large enough so my plan is to remount using the tenon in the jaws of my chuck. The tenon will be about 3 1/2" in diameter. While returning the outside I could use a Rubber Chucky I have on the tailstock side but not for the inside of course. Is there anything wrong with my plan?

 

[hockenbery]

have always wondered why people use the spur drives so they can change the mounting orientation to get the grain lined up where they want it, or to balance it out.... I take care of that when I prep my bowl blanks

I you are good with the sawing and you cut fairly symmetrical blanks you can get nice grain alignment.
I turn a lot of NE bowls that need no adjustment after initial mounting.

however with asymmetrical blanks, I often position the tail center to balance for weight Way off on the grain alignment.
after some roughing I do a grain/rim balance. as I get ready to make the tenon I do a final check of grain balance sand fine tuning if needed.

lining up sapwood almost always requires some tailstock adjustment.

 

[Doug Freeman]

Since these walnut pieces are still a little damp inside, I will most likely need to turn to a thickness, then dry, and remount. Obviously a faceplate can't be used for remounting. I don't have a vacuum chuck and my cole jaws aren't large enough so my plan is to remount using the tenon in the jaws of my chuck. The tenon will be about 3 1/2" in diameter. While returning the outside I could use a Rubber Chucky I have on the tailstock side but not for the inside of course. Is there anything wrong with my plan?

No, just some comments:

> you do have the option of turning to final t and letting them warp a bit. I tend to 2 turn rimmed bowls, though.

> both the ID and OD need returned, a vacuum chuck or cole jaws are not an option. Those are for turning the tenon off/dressing up the bottom.

> once dry, mount between centers, using the top of chuck jaws as a jam chuck in the bowl ID, can use a thin pad (prefer leather but not necessary, the bottom of the ID will need to be cut anyway), to true up the tenon, both the tenon wall and the “top” which is the bowl bottom - top of the jaws need a flat/slightly concave surface to register on. Always keep the tenon centerpoint so its easy to locate the TS point.

> the small rubber chucky tips really wont do much to stabilize the bowl vs using nothing. I have some jame chucks I made, up to ~ 8” OD, that I have used to help stabilize the bowl wall for OD cuts, but rarely.

 

[hockenbery]

don't have a vacuum chuck and my cole jaws aren't large enough so my plan is to remount using the tenon in the jaws of my chuck. The tenon will be about 3 1/2" in diameter. While returning the outside I could use a Rubber Chucky I have on the tailstock side but not for the inside of course. Is there anything wrong with my plan?

What @Doug Freeman said

when dry the tenon will be oval. when i start between centers I leave the center point and use it to jamb Chuck The bowl. If I don’t have center point, I mark the center point of the oval - 1/2 the long axis then 1/2 thr short axis at the midpoint of the long axis. Pit a divot with a scratch awl.
the rubber chuckie tips are not good for returning.
i use a cut center with a point To use in recentering.

this thread has a link to a demo in which I return a warped dried bowl.

Re-turning a dry bowl

In January 2017 I did a demo for tri-county Woodturner's about working with green wood. It had three parts: Overview of wood and tips for successful drying, Roughing a green bowl, and Re-turning the dry bowl. Special thanks to Jan Brown for excellent video work and to Carl Brown for Setting...

www.aawforum.org

 

[Lamar Wright]

I use different size face plates pending on the size of the bowl.

 

[Dean Center]

Since these walnut pieces are still a little damp inside, I will most likely need to turn to a thickness, then dry, and remount. Obviously a faceplate can't be used for remounting. I don't have a vacuum chuck and my cole jaws aren't large enough so my plan is to remount using the tenon in the jaws of my chuck.

There are a couple of alternatives to cole jaws and vacuum chucks that you might consider in your process.

For remounting a dried, rough turned blank, you could use Glenn Lucas' method. He takes a board, presumably mounted on a faceplate or a glue block with tenon, with 2 strips of wood, like 1X2s or 1X3s, mounted parallel on the surface of the board. Then he mounts the blank with the rim against the 1X2s, so that the pointy, raised end grain parts are between the 1X2s. This hopefully converts a non-uniform rim into a sufficiently uniform rim. He brings up the live center to hold the blank against the board, just as you would with any jam chuck, and returns the tenon. I haven't described this very well, so you may want to check out this video of Glenn showing how to do this. https://www.glennlucaswoodturning.com/tip-bowl-turning-using-faceplate-or-remounting-plate/ (the gadget has gotten a whole lot spiffier since I saw him demo this a few years ago)

To finish the bottom of the bowl, once you've got the rim done, you can make a rim jam chuck. Perfectly done, these can actually hold a bowl on without the live center support, though I personally wouldn't recommend doing so. You take a large piece of wood, often plywood, cut round on the band saw, about 2" larger in diameter than your bowl and mount on a face plate. Ideally there is a second layer of solid wood or MDF glued to the surface of plywood. You mount the jam chuck on the lathe, trimming the edge if it's way out of whack, and mark the diameter of the bowl rim on the surface of the jam chuck. Then you cut a groove into the surface smaller than this diameter, such that when you reach the mark, the groove will be wider than the rim of the bowl. Very carefully, you nibble a little bit off the outer edge of the groove, keeping the edge of the groove parallel to the lathe axis, until the rim just snuggly fits into the groove. This part is really hard--it's super easy to overshoot and the bowl won't be snug. Properly done, the bowl will stay on the face of the jam chuck (with the lathe off). Then you bring up the live center and turn off the tenon and finish the bottom. There are some rim styles that won't work with a jam on the outside edge of the rim, but can be stuck on the inside edge. Some rim styles just won't work either way. This is an old fashioned, technically challenging method, but it works if you don't have cole jaws or a vacuum. Once made, a rim jam chuck can be reused many times for bowls either larger or smaller than the first one. When the surface is no longer serviceable, it's possible to cut off the surface, sacrificial layer, and glue on a new one.

 

[Dean Center]

fat fingered the link, sorry

 

[Tim Tucker]

In general, I don't like faceplates...but they have their place. This is a 25-1/4" piece of camphor wood.

 

[Odie]

I consider a faceplate the safest manner of holding large blanks, and I do the outside shaping while on the faceplate and if possible remove some of the inside wood at that time as well.

No tailstock to hold the blank, just the screws in the faceplate, I use 9 1" metal screws normally for bowls up to 20 inches in a 4" faceplate, larger than that I probably go and use a 6 inch faceplate and same number of screws or the other faceplate that can have as many as 18 screws in it if the wood is extra heavy.

Here is a 20 inch Sycamore I turned with the 4" faceplate and the 30 inch Maple that was held on the 6" faceplate.

I use different size face plates pending on the size of the bowl.

Yes, as with Leo and Lamar in their posts above, I believe faceplates
are the way to go.

My procedures are as follows, but there are other ways to do it:

Rough bowls using a faceplate for exterior, and chuck and tenon
for the interior. For many bowls, tailstock is optional, depending on
how out of balance, or the depth of the bowl will produce vibration.

2nd turn bowls using waste block glued to a dry seasoned roughed
bowl and faceplate screwed to the waste block.
(The faceplate stays installed until the final turning is completed, so
having multiple faceplates are a necessity.)

I mostly use center screw faceplates, or screw chucks, as some people
call them. Standard faceplates with multiple screws are more secure. As
long as you don't have a catch, the screw center faceplate is fine. If you
have a catch, the bowl will tighten on the single screw, and likely will
interrupt the geometric integrity of the work performed prior to the catch.

After the final 2nd turning of interior and exterior is completed, the bowl
is parted from the waste block. The foot is done using the Oneway Jumbo,
or Mega Jumbo jaws installed on a Stronghold chuck.

-----odie-----