About 1990 I attended my first pro demo by Del Stubs after having recently joined the Minnesota Woodturners Association. The club provided Del with a freshly cut small cherry tree trunk that was about 2 1/2 to 3" in diameter. Del mounted the piece that was about 7" long in a 4 jaw chuck, he then turned most of the bark off but did no turn the outside contour. The majority of the blank was still at least 2 " diameter which provided stability to shape the inside of the cup. The next step included a shaded light shinning inside the cup and the room lights dimmed. The work on the outside begins at the bark at the lip and continues for a distance of about 3/4" using the light penetration to gauge the thickness and uniformity. The area cut is refined using shear scraping and subsequent following cuts especially any riges between steps. When the cup is completely formed gradually turn the stem and then turn the base. The under side of the base should be recessed to prevent cracking. Note: The cup portion of both goblet is .03 " or less in thickness and the black ash one took about 1/2 hour to complete. The piece on the left is the portion that was held by the chuck and is about 3" long to allow access to the under side.
