What’s on your lathe?

[John K Jordan]

Diospyros Blancoi...Mambolo. It is just one of many different types of Ebony

I found Mabolo.

All true ebonys are in the Diospyros genus, even the numerous persimmon trees growing on my property (American Ebony/White Ebony).
I love the fine grain, density, and the ability to polish the wood without adding finish. When turning black ebony wood (Gaboon, etc) I look for pieces with some brown streaks. Pure black ebony, when polished, looks exactly like plastic.

This is a TERRIBLE wood for you. Immediately pack up what's remaining and send it to me. I will dispose of it creatively.

BTW, I've read that every location and culture has some species they call "ironwood" in their language, a generic name basically meaning "hard wood".

JKJ

 

[Ric Taylor]

I found Mabolo.

All true ebonys are in the Diospyros genus, even the numerous persimmon trees growing on my property (American Ebony/White Ebony).

Yes, people are surprised when I tell them that Persimmon is a type of Ebony.

 

[Gary Beasley]

Playing with stave construction. Made a top and bottom ring from Cocobolo, stave wood is a mystery board I found in the shop that was dead flat and even and had some interesting inclusion streaks. Stuff is medium hard and a little splintery a bit like ash.

 

[Kevin Weir]

Currently turning a walnut hollow form. It was rough-turned about 9 months ago. I have final-turned the outside and will true up the inside tomorrow. I think it is strong enough to hold despite the bark inclusion. Will be wearing a face guard just in case. The shape reminds me of a Gemini space capsule.

 

[John K Jordan]

I think it is strong enough to hold despite the bark inclusion. Will be wearing a face guard just in case.

For a bit of extra security, could do like a friend does when hollowing big pieces with major voids - wraps the outside with a band or two of that strong, reinforced strapping tape. And STILL wears the face mask!!!

I like the form. I think the long, gently curved bevel at the top is perfect. (I had to twist the laptop around to get a better look!

 

[Sam Fleisher]

Lots of feathery shavings. Gotta love the old school Thompson bowl scraper.
I do like the way sycamore turns and sands as well. (I'd better, think I have 18 or so more blanks to get through...... is it October yet?)

And the other one I was tired of beading so I dyed it. I thought it might make the patterns stand out more but It didn't seem too. lesson learned.

 

[Isaac Litster]

I found Mabolo.

All true ebonys are in the Diospyros genus, even the numerous persimmon trees growing on my property (American Ebony/White Ebony).
I love the fine grain, density, and the ability to polish the wood without adding finish. When turning black ebony wood (Gaboon, etc) I look for pieces with some brown streaks. Pure black ebony, when polished, looks exactly like plastic.

This is a TERRIBLE wood for you. Immediately pack up what's remaining and send it to me. I will dispose of it creatively.

BTW, I've read that every location and culture has some species they call "ironwood" in their language, a generic name basically meaning "hard wood".

JKJ

I looked it up as well, and the names include mabolo, kamagong, or velvet apple. It is interesting to remember that we talk about the wood from trees, which are often known for other reasons, such as their fruit or ornamental purposes. Mabolo is primarily known for its fruit from what I can see.

 

[Phil Hamel]

Simple walnut bowl. 9 x 3. One coat of walnut oil.

 

[Dan Wiggin]

A piece of Gaboon Ebony that washed up on the beach at the little island we live on in the summer. It wasn’t much fun turning. I kept the grinder and the lathe both running at the same time.It was back and forth constantly. I was afraid it was going to split hence the resin. Best I could do!

 

[Don Wattenhofer]

At the last meeting of the "MN Lakes Woodturners" I got a small piece of wood in the wood rafal and was told that it was red dogwood or cardinal. The piece was about 3" diameter down to 1 1/2" so I grabbed it just because I had never tried it or seen it in this neck of the woods.
On the 14th I turned a goblet form, weighed it and put it aside, then on the 15th I weighed it again, saw that it had lost 3 grams and turned the only other piece that was usable into another goblet form.

These photos show the sequence required to turn the outside of the cup. The first is the first stage, the second is shear scraping the transition area between stage 1 & 2, and pictures 3 & 4 are stages 3 & 4.

 

[Don Wattenhofer]

Goblet continued.

The 5th picture is undercutting the base and the 6th is the 2 goblets finished with the drying record.

 

[Aaron Harris]

Simple walnut bowl. 9 x 3. One coat of walnut oil.
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I love this, Phil-Sometimes you just have to let the wood speak in a simple form.

 

[Kevin Weir]

This is a piece of figured walnut that has been hollowed about 9 months ago. It is dried now and ready for final turning. Trying to decide whether it should be an urn or a vase. Your thoughts?

 

[Steve Gray]

This is a piece of figured walnut that has been hollowed about 9 months ago. It is dried now and ready for final turning. Trying to decide whether it should be an urn or a vase. Your thoughts?View attachment 78572

It screams vase to me with top at headstock with similar proportions to current state but narrower neck (and urns sometimes end up buried, which is one thing that makes me sad).

 

[Tim Pollock]

A set of quarter sawn walnut and resin plates. Just recently started experimenting a little bit with resin casting. I've only turned a few plates so I'm still figuring out what I like and don't like about my design choices.

 

[Tim Pollock]

A small walnut breakfast bowl.

 

[David Wyke]

Working on my hollow log hollow form and came to an indecisive moment, stopped and put it on the bench. I then remembered I had bagged a couple maple blanks and a piece of walnut last weekend. So green turned two maples and started another walnut HF today.

 

[Phil Hamel]

This is a piece of figured walnut that has been hollowed about 9 months ago. It is dried now and ready for final turning. Trying to decide whether it should be an urn or a vase. Your thoughts?View attachment 78572

If the hole is already on the right side I would go urn.

 

[Ted Pelfrey]

Working on my hollow log hollow form and came to an indecisive moment, stopped and put it on the bench. I then remembered I had bagged a couple maple blanks and a piece of walnut last weekend. So green turned two maples and started another walnut HF today.

View attachment 78590

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Is that HF pith to pith?

 

[David Wyke]

Is that HF pith to pith?

Yes, thinking about trying a spiral on this one….just thinking right now

 

[Ted Pelfrey]

Yes, thinking about trying a spiral on this one….just thinking right now

How do you treat the HF to prevent cracking? J Paul has a CA glue technique that I’ve used that works well. Just curious what you do.

 

[David Wyke]

How do you treat the HF to prevent cracking? J Paul has a CA glue technique that I’ve used that works well. Just curious what you do.

I use thin CA on the pith

 

[Terry Brown]

This is a piece of figured walnut that has been hollowed about 9 months ago. It is dried now and ready for final turning. Trying to decide whether it should be an urn or a vase. Your thoughts?View attachment 78572

 

[Terry Brown]

Definitely a "vozz". A "vozz" will fetch a much higher price than a vase.

 

[Norm Marentette]

This is a piece of figured walnut that has been hollowed about 9 months ago. It is dried now and ready for final turning. Trying to decide whether it should be an urn or a vase. Your thoughts?View attachment 78572

Would cut and part it at its largest diameter and make 2 hollow formed vessels, with both ends representing the bottoms of each Just my opinion. Walnut always looks awesome.

 

[Kent Reisdorph]

A piece of Gaboon Ebony that washed up on the beach at the little island we live on in the summer. It wasn’t much fun turning. I kept the grinder and the lathe both running at the same time.It was back and forth constantly. I was afraid it was going to split hence the resin. Best I could do!

That's one hell of a piece of found wood. Oh, to know the journey that piece took to arrive on your shore.

 

[Kent Reisdorph]

Yes, thinking about trying a spiral on this one….just thinking right now

Now the wheels are turning in my noggin'. I don't know how you go about making a spiral. Does it have to do with angling the blank rather than going straight down the endgrain?

 

[Kent Reisdorph]

I'm not a fan of red oak. I was visiting the Amish community near here and saw some boys milling oak. They had a pile of cutoffs. 50 cents a piece. I couldn't help myself. The cracks are appearing as fast as I can fix them. The opening blew apart once, and now I'm trying to fix the cracks I made putting too much stress on the rim while hollowing. I'm not sure I can get this hollowed, but I'll give it a go once the glue on this last fix is dried. I didn't have the foresight to leave enough material hollow it from the bottom. In hindsight, perhaps an end-grain orientation isn't the best for red oak.

 

[John K Jordan]

In hindsight, perhaps an end-grain orientation isn't the best for red oak.

Actually, end grain is the way I turn most of the red oak (white oak, etc) I have. None of them crack. The difference? You didn't say, but perhaps you are turning green, cracks can form, widen, and deepen as the ends dry. What's worse, red oak, unlike white, has open pores which REALLY let the wood dry rapidly, and potentially unevenly. (The tyloses clogging the white oak pores really slows down drying from the end grain. What's even worse is Southern Red oak has a T/R ratio of 2.4 and a volumetric shrinkage of over 16%!! (compare to some other common species.)

What I do is not quick - I use the bandsaw to process green wood in to blanks, seal well and dry. This might take months or years depending, but by that time any volumetric and directional shrinkage is over, the wood stable - I'd have to work hard to make the wood crack!

If I skip the controlled drying, red oak makes really great firewood!

JKJ

 

[David Wyke]

Now the wheels are turning in my noggin'. I don't know how you go about making a spiral. Does it have to do with angling the blank rather than going straight down the endgrain?

It has to do with the layout. Index straight lines and spacing around the HF to form a grid. Connect the corners of the grid and carve. Basically the same way I did the finial on this box.

 

[David Wyke]

I'm not a fan of red oak. I was visiting the Amish community near here and saw some boys milling oak. They had a pile of cutoffs. 50 cents a piece. I couldn't help myself. The cracks are appearing as fast as I can fix them. The opening blew apart once, and now I'm trying to fix the cracks I made putting too much stress on the rim while hollowing. I'm not sure I can get this hollowed, but I'll give it a go once the glue on this last fix is dried. I didn't have the foresight to leave enough material hollow it from the bottom. In hindsight, perhaps an end-grain orientation isn't the best for red oak.

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I’m not a big fan of turning red oak either. May turn a natural edge every once in a while. I have several red oaks down on my property from the hurricane that will become firewood.

 

[Scott Luallin]

Yesterday I started on a honey locust birds-beak w/natural edge bowl:

 

[Sam Fleisher]

Still trying to keep my sister busy with some beadwork.

I'm not happy with the way the top half of the form turned out. I wanted some more curve to it but since it was twice turned and had warped quite a bit it would have ended up too short.

White oak