Another bowl, turned from wet Birch Burl. ( Be Kind)

[renderer01]

Hello All,
Birch burl felled a year ago and cut into 4 sections 2 months ago.
This is the best of the 3 I have turned so far. I find birch such a forgiving wood, regarding cracking. I used the turn it a little every other day method with internal and external tenons. Apart from a re polish in a month its complete and will bring it into the house in the spring.

Rend.

 

[Tazmaniandevil]

Interesting grain and a nice shiny finish. Much nicer than the birch I got a couple of years ago. How did you find the smell when turning it green? The stuff I got had a rather peculiar honk. Not unpleasant really, just strange.
Very nice bowl.

 

[renderer01]

Hello Taz,
Have never ever noticed any smell from birch other than the pungent and not unpleasant odour of the spalting. This wood I allowed to spalt and its a section from a full crown or doughnut burl i.e. it encompassed completely the diameter of the tree. I see your in Stirling and you have some nice stuff on your site mate.

Regards.

Rend.

 

[winemaker]

nice finish =D>

 

[KimG]

I pretty much like the whole thing, from the pics at least the inside seems to fairly match the outside indicating a reasonably constant wall thickness which gives it a nice balance, I like the rim which is a bit different from the norm, the finish looks very good indeed. The only aspect that is a small question mark is the internal dovetail, I think a foot looks better on a bowl and it doesn't interfere with the flow of the inside like a internal dovetail does (because the wall is so much thinner there, you tend to have a thicker base to avoid the issue of cutting through the bottom) Plus a foot will give a bowl a nice lift in profile.

All in all though a super effort and a cracking bowl, Well done!! =D> =D>

 

[Paul.J]

Thats a lovely bowl Rend showing the wood off to its best

 

[renderer01]

Hi Kim and thanks,
Im not sure how I would go about a large enough external tenon that was going to be stable usable and finishable to a good standard on a wet 15 inchx 5 inch birch bowl.
I have researched and dont wish to go down the root of buying large cole jaws as they limit work in other ways ie the rim and the work its possible to do and still achieve purchase.
How would you advise this was done? Always on the lookout for different ways to do better.
Thanks again in advance.
Rend.

 

[KimG]

Well, what I do is to turn a tenon on the base and slightly larger, a small dovetail which will form the foot later, most important, square the end of the tenon and then make a very neat and well defined centre mark at the base of the tenon.

Finish the outside down to the foot rim, turn the bowl, mount the tenon in the chuck and complete the interior.

I then use a simple jam chuck system, which consists of a large circle of 3/4 ply which has an internal dovetail like your bowl that I mount into the chuck, a few sheets of kitchen towel form a scratch barrier and the upper part of the bowl is placed against the ply, the tailstock is now brought up to the tenon and the revolving centre (a hollow type with a central pin is even better) and located into that precise mark you remembered to make, tighten it up so the bowl is held firmly, but do not overdo it, it won't be perfectly central, but that will not be a problem. Set the lathe to the slowest speed if you do not have a variable speed, then with small cuts, to avoid overstressing the friction on the bowl, turn off the tenon and tidy up the base of the foot, try to leave it slightly concave so that it sits well. remove material until you have about a 3/8 stub, then remove the bowl, cut the stub off with a chisel (with care, don't hold the bowl, put it on a bench with a good stop behind it or you may end up with a chisel through your other hand!)
I then put a jacobs type chuck into the headstock with a sanding pad and fish the base off like that, you could do the same or improvise.

That's how I do it anyway.

 

[renderer01]

Cheers Kim,
I will give that a go have used a very similar method but not with anything as large as this bowl, this lathe is brand new to me and as yet don't have a lot of additional kit for it. Had a Cl3 which is no1mt this is a brand new AX AT1628 which although I love it to bits is a very serious and still slightly scary beastie of a lathe no2mt so no jacobs no long hole borer and no mandrel. Will all come with time effort and most of all money, thanks for the input.
Glad I asked the question.

Regards.

Rend.

 

[Robbo3]

Having the same lathe I bought a couple of MT2-1 sleeves from Arc Euro Trade for less than £10 inc p&p
- http://www.arceurotrade.co.uk/Catalogue ... rs-Sleeves

These allow me to use all my old MT1 drives & centres, even those with long tangs.

 

[renderer01]

Stupid of me I should have realised such things would be available, however Robbo thanks a lot for that. I have the phone number now in Leicester will contact them today.

Rend.

 

[nicguthrie]

That's very nice. I've looked at it a few times now without commenting, and it's only just now that I noticed the Biro pen sitting next to it. Wow, that makes the bowl pretty big, and all the more impressive a finish for it. Lovely wood and nice form. Well done!

Nice tip there from Kim too. I had no idea how to do that, I've been somewhat scared to venture into jam-chuck territory.

Nic.

 

[Robbo3]

Stupid of me I should have realised such things would be available Rend.

Not stupid at all. Most things are easy when you have the knowledge.

Reverse turning only needs a wooden disc larger than the work. This can be screwed to a faceplate or have a spigot glued on the back to be mounted in the chuck. The work is held against the disc by tailstock pressure only & driven by friction. Some form of padding between the work & plate will prevent marking should the work slip.

 

[boysie39]

I have looked at your bowl a few times now and can't find anything I would change ,shape and finish are personal and people will always differ if is not how they see it .

There are some very good tips posted which may make it easier for you should you wish to try them .Good luck with whatever you do , keep posting your work I get pleasure from seeing it .

 

[renderer01]

Thanks all,
Comments are encouraging and tips are useful. Boysie you are spot on in my experience the likes and dislikes and preferences of individuals are diverse in the extreme, this is not any kind of exageration. Some work I complete I don't feel quite content with it, doesn't just sit right in my minds eye although technically its well made, my wife comes home and thinks its the bees knees. I would never be able to bet which items will sell first or fastest in my wildest dreams.

Merry Christmas all.

Rend.

 

[Sheptonphil]

Lovely finish and I like the shape and patternation as well. I do like Kim's tip for jamming the reverse finish as well.

I don't want to deflect the thread away from critique, but Rend and Robbo

I'm visiting Axminster next Friday to see about my next lathe and have been eyeing the AT1628 for a couple or three months now. I have the budget to get it, but are you both pleased with the kit.

It's a fair bit of cash for me to spend, which I don't mind if its spent wisely. I have m38 chucks already and all mt2 kit, so it's an ideal upgrade from my AT1416.

The AT1416 is a superb piece of kit but I just want a bit more capacity in power, diameter and length.

Your thoughts appreciated.

Phil

 

[renderer01]

Hello Sheptonphil,

The lathe Ax AT1628 V/S well what can I say.

Bad points first.

Have not found any bad points as yet, some little foibles but have got round them all easily examples of which are thus. I would prefer the magnets in control box to be a little stronger mine lands on the floor a little to often and only a bed of shavings to land on saves it from potential damage. Attached an elastic band as catch me strap.

The airflow from the motor passes directly behind the headstock heading for the tailstock disrupting dust extraction considerably, so I made a thin plywood baffle to redirect this airflow it works fine no more problems.

I find the Ax tech spec quotes low gear min speed as very much lower than the 66Rpm I can achieve or the motor gets very stuttory.

The (As someone else pointed out) Digital speed read out covering is very very easily scratched by dust. I cover it with cling film now and its no problem.
The toolrest supplied with the lathe for me and the type of work I do it was way too long. I had an engineering mate construct me 2 new toolrests one 5 inch and another 8.5 inch, so no more problem.

Good points are too many to list realisticaly but will give it a go.

Superb smooth power and loads of it and fantastic torque even at lowest possible speeds in both ratios.

Its also utterly brutal!!
Further explanation needed here.

I still find it a little scary, I was used to a CL3 which I am now learning was quite a forgiving little machinre.
I am getting used to it and I love it a little more each day, I have in places quite radicaly had to alter the way I work with the lathe to achieve best results, these best results now exceed my capabilites on the record any I wouldnt dream of going back.
I think its a superb machine I have already clocked 70 plus hours and completed much work including some 15 inch birch bowls. I find gladly each day that my capabilities get a tiny bit closer to matching the machines capabilities and one day I may be its equal.

Im off on a whimsy I know but you did ask.

Cant think of anything else to say (Thank the lord say you) Lol.

Take care.posting.php?mode=reply&f=6&t=75781#

All best. Rend.

 

[Robbo3]

I'm not sure that I can add much to what I have previously said. The lathe does what a lathe of this calibre should.
- axminster-1628-v-s-woodlathe-t74016.html

I had two main considerations when choosing a new lathe:

Space
- anything too long would mean a major re-shuffle or something having to go. As I have never had the need to turn anything longer than 18" (450mm) the 28" (710mm) capacity of the AT1628VS was more than adequate.

Capability
- I wanted sufficient capacity & weight so as to not need to have to upgrade again in the future. With the addition of the 18" (460mm) bed extension the capacity increases to 34" (870mm) diameter.

So far I am more than pleased with my choice.

I've added a clear tablet protector to the electronic display & this has stopped most of the static dust attraction as well as adding a layer of protection.

Not had Rend's problem with the magnets but agree about the dust direction & toolrest.

Luckily I had additional toolrests from my previous lathe which only required a stem change for an exact fit but could have been used without, the new stems being 25mm & the old 1". Edit: got them the wrong way round - that's why I needed new stems.

Edit: APTC advertise the Jet 6" toolrest (£22.30 when in stock) as being suitable if you are willing to shorten the stem.
If you buy 10 you can get them for £20.60 each & save 11%. :roll: :roll: :roll:

 

[Sheptonphil]

Rend and Robbo, many thanks for your honest comments.

it's nice you have both listed little niggles rather than just gushing praise as many do when they have paid good money and try to hide any negatives. As you both have no regrets, I shall nip down to Devon on Friday and pop one in the boot.

SWMBO has traded this for a new range cooker, so I can probably add the leg set as well. :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:

Looking forward to it already.

Phil

 

[Robbo3]

Good luck Phil. I'm sure you'll enjoy it.

My lathe came boxed on a pallet & the legs just boxed - unless the pallet had been removed. You will probably need at least an estate car, preferably a van.