29 December 2010
Mini Maple Bat
I made this 12" long for my year old nephew. I wonder how long it will take him to figure out how to whack the dogs and furniture and walls with it....
27 December 2010
Christmas Peppermills
As Christmas gifts I made peppermills for everyone this year. I made four sets of salt and pepper mills from cocobolo, katalox, guapanillo, and bocote. Plus one extra pepper mill from bloodwood. I had planned on five sets, but stuck the bit in the Indian Rosewood. Forgive me for the lack of pics, I did not want to spoil the gifts and was not finished with them until about one hour before I needed to leave for Dallas.
Lessons learned from this project include chucking, drilling and finishing. With this project I learned very quickly how valuable multiple chucks and multiple jaws for those chucks can be. I used the #2 jaws on my Oneway Stronghold and the long nose pin jaws on my SuperNova2. I also try to minimize the amount of rechucking that I do. As far as drilling goes, I believe that a pilot hole drilled on the lathe then finished out on the drill press. I feel like the drilling is easier and results are more accurate. And yes you can really can drill a bit stuck... so stuck that you have to turn the waste wood away to recover it. I also discovered that oil finishes do not dry in a cold shop with dense woods. The finished stayed very sticky using Danish oil. Then I tried Teak oil, still sticky, Tung oil and was still sticky. I cleaned all the previous finishes with mineral spirits and alcohol. Polyurethane would not even work. Finally I used some blonde shellac to get a clean glossy finish.
I have been working on cleaning up the shop lately, with the help of my father-in-law. We got a fair bit accomplished today.
To relax this evening I turned a 12" maple baseball bat for my 13 month old nephew. I wonder how long it will take for him to learn how to whop the dog with it.... Pictures to come.
Lessons learned from this project include chucking, drilling and finishing. With this project I learned very quickly how valuable multiple chucks and multiple jaws for those chucks can be. I used the #2 jaws on my Oneway Stronghold and the long nose pin jaws on my SuperNova2. I also try to minimize the amount of rechucking that I do. As far as drilling goes, I believe that a pilot hole drilled on the lathe then finished out on the drill press. I feel like the drilling is easier and results are more accurate. And yes you can really can drill a bit stuck... so stuck that you have to turn the waste wood away to recover it. I also discovered that oil finishes do not dry in a cold shop with dense woods. The finished stayed very sticky using Danish oil. Then I tried Teak oil, still sticky, Tung oil and was still sticky. I cleaned all the previous finishes with mineral spirits and alcohol. Polyurethane would not even work. Finally I used some blonde shellac to get a clean glossy finish.
I have been working on cleaning up the shop lately, with the help of my father-in-law. We got a fair bit accomplished today.
To relax this evening I turned a 12" maple baseball bat for my 13 month old nephew. I wonder how long it will take for him to learn how to whop the dog with it.... Pictures to come.
04 December 2010
Christmas is coming.... 21 days left.
I have been busy working on Christmas gifts and other related projects. This weekend I finished a bowl/platter made of another unknown bargain bin wood, three votive candle holders, and several more tree ornaments.
This bowl/platter is another one of my bargain bin mystery woods from Woodcraft in OKC. It is a fairly hard wood that turned well. I sanded it up to 400 grit, then finished it with Watco Danish Oil. I still have a few more coats of oil and some buffing to finish it up. It is by far the best feeling and looking creation to date, in my opinion.
The first two candle holders are made from a persimmon branch and are shaped like small goblets. The persimmon wood has some unique coloring and black spots. The third candle holder is made from Arizona Cypress. It is reversible and can hold a candle on either end. All have been finished with danish oil.
The Christmas Tree ornaments are made from ebony, mesquite, zebra wood, and a mystery wood. These have been finished with polyurethane gloss. There are four more ornaments still in the shop allowing the polyurethane to dry overnight.
I will be in OKC Sunday through Tuesday and plan on making at least one run by Woodcraft. I am going to get a SuperNova2 chuck to hold some of the larger heavier bowls and well as long, heavy spindles. I will also look in their bargain bin for some more good deals.
This bowl/platter is another one of my bargain bin mystery woods from Woodcraft in OKC. It is a fairly hard wood that turned well. I sanded it up to 400 grit, then finished it with Watco Danish Oil. I still have a few more coats of oil and some buffing to finish it up. It is by far the best feeling and looking creation to date, in my opinion.
The first two candle holders are made from a persimmon branch and are shaped like small goblets. The persimmon wood has some unique coloring and black spots. The third candle holder is made from Arizona Cypress. It is reversible and can hold a candle on either end. All have been finished with danish oil.
The Christmas Tree ornaments are made from ebony, mesquite, zebra wood, and a mystery wood. These have been finished with polyurethane gloss. There are four more ornaments still in the shop allowing the polyurethane to dry overnight.
I will be in OKC Sunday through Tuesday and plan on making at least one run by Woodcraft. I am going to get a SuperNova2 chuck to hold some of the larger heavier bowls and well as long, heavy spindles. I will also look in their bargain bin for some more good deals.
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