Turning xmas baubles

[rob39]

Hi all
would love to have a go at turning some xmas baubles. But how do you get the near perfect sphere time after time????

 

[stevenw1963]

Why do spheres Rob, that's what you can buy in the shops.
Make your Christmas ornaments unique so that on-one else has them.

 

[Dalboy]

I agree with Steven make a unique shape still use the card as a template

Draw half of the shape on a piece of card then cut it back a bit and use that as a guide as in the diagram, Just design some nice shapes for them.

 

[ianedge]

Are you going to hollow them to reduce weight, I have been playing with a few and using finials to close up the ends

 

[woodfarmer]

Perhaps turn fruit with hoops to hang them by ??

been turning some myself this last couple of days, first turning really since the spring.

 

[rob39]

Wanted to turn spheres as it would look better with a personalised picture on them for family.
Yea planning on trying to hollow them out to make them lighter though I'm only a beginner

 

[Tazmaniandevil]

Make a template as Dalboy suggested using card or stiff plastic. You will get better at the shape the more you do. I generally do them in 2 halves then glue them together and finish the outside. Make a small groove (or several grooves) with the point of a skew at the join and burn with a wire or a bit of old circuit board to disguise the join.
No-one will notice if they're not 100% spherical, by the time you get a finial type part on top & bottom.
Best of all, the hollowing needn't be too brilliant, because it will never be seen.

 

[Dalboy]

Just to show that the template works I had never turned a sphere, but by using the template I managed to turn the one below just keep offering it up to the piece after a while you will be getting pretty close to one without it

 

[Richard Findley]

Best way is a combination of templates and then using a pair of soft wooden cups in the chuck and on/over the live centre.

By holding the ball inbetween cups you can skim it lightly, rotate it, skim it, rotate it repeat. Then sand, rotate repeat. With this technique you cant help but end up with an almost perfect sphere.

HTH

Richard