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Shelf

PostPosted: 06 May 2021, 17:11
by Chris152
_MG_0259.jpg
(91.95 KiB)

Apple, beech, apple, spalted beech, beech, birch.
I'm enjoying this shape for the moment :-)

Re: Shelf

PostPosted: 06 May 2021, 17:28
by Dr.Al
Chris152 wrote:
_MG_0259.jpg

Apple, beech, apple, spalted beech, beech, birch.
I'm enjoying this shape for the moment :-)


Lovely

Re: Shelf

PostPosted: 06 May 2021, 17:40
by Malc2098
Nice.

Re: Shelf

PostPosted: 07 May 2021, 07:13
by Chris152
Thanks chaps.

Re: Shelf

PostPosted: 07 May 2021, 07:51
by NickM
“Collection of stunning wooden bowls” would be a better title than “shelf” I think!

Re: Shelf

PostPosted: 07 May 2021, 08:02
by Andyp
NickM wrote:“Collection of stunning wooden bowls” would be a better title than “shelf” I think!


Indeed.

Re: Shelf

PostPosted: 07 May 2021, 08:07
by novocaine
NickM wrote:“Collection of stunning wooden bowls” would be a better title than “shelf” I think!


oh goodness, there are bowls on it, I was only interested in the shelf. I love a bit of nice flat ply. :D

Re: Shelf

PostPosted: 07 May 2021, 08:24
by sunnybob
I was waiting for the other half of the picture to appear. they are so flat across I thought the pic had been sliced. :o 8-)

Re: Shelf

PostPosted: 08 May 2021, 07:03
by Chris152
Thanks, Nick and Andy. It's a really simple bowl shape, quite minimal and common, but that means you focus more clearly on the wood itself, especially as the curve is constantly changing direction exposing the patterns in the wood. I think it's something woodturning has over most furniture etc.

Novocaine - yes, nice bit of ply but I'm now thinking to repurpose it for a new project I stumbled on recently. :-)

And you're right, SB - you can see the pic as a slice through the bowls, in fact I can't stop seeing it that way now! :eusa-think:

Re: Shelf

PostPosted: 08 May 2021, 08:36
by sunnybob
Its your own fault for being enigmatic with the title. :eusa-naughty:
I was so busy looking for the catch that I couldnt see the wood for the trees :lol:
Nice trees by the way. 8-)

Re: Shelf

PostPosted: 08 May 2021, 09:04
by Chris152
Just for you, Sunnybob! You may note an addition...
_MG_0274.jpg
(64.26 KiB)

Re: Shelf

PostPosted: 08 May 2021, 09:25
by sunnybob
Now youre just showing your OCD tendencies. :lol:
My mrs arranges her garden that way. 8-)

Re: Shelf

PostPosted: 08 May 2021, 09:50
by Chris101
Lovely Chris.
You should get that printed as a full size canvas. Then hang it above the actual shelf. ;)

Re: Shelf

PostPosted: 08 May 2021, 14:30
by AJB Temple
This is very nice work.

What puzzles me about turning (I do have a lathe) is unless you are making bowls etc to sell, don't you just run out of things to do with them? I bought a lathe, then tools, then went on a short turning course at Axminster (which made me realise I should have bought a different lathe), turned some bowls and they became presents for family, and....then what. My wife made it clear that she had enough bowls, egg cups, candle stick holders etc and this took about 3 weeks.

It was last used at Christmas to make a few components for a chair. Perhaps I need inspiration (and a shorter to do list).

Re: Shelf

PostPosted: 08 May 2021, 14:42
by sunnybob
:text-+1:

A good friend showed me how to turn a pen when I first mentioned I wanted to get involved with wood.
I did it, but just did not push any buttons for me, wheras a bandsaw box appealed to my customising side.
My friend does make a lot of stuff though, and goes to shows and fairs in England, and makes a small profit on the hobby. :eusa-clap:

Re: Shelf

PostPosted: 08 May 2021, 15:35
by Trevanion
Lovely stuff Chris, that big bowl made from very spalted Beech must've been a nightmare to turn!

AJB Temple wrote:What puzzles me about turning (I do have a lathe) is unless you are making bowls etc to sell, don't you just run out of things to do with them?


I used to turn a lot but largely fell out of love with it for pretty much that reason, no real need to do anything more than I had already done in the past, I used to enjoy it and it was therapeutic to a degree and I used to enter local shows (easy to win too, being the only participant!), but I've got countless bowls, goblets, pots, and random trinkets and I don't really see any reason to make any more :lol:

These two were the last bits of "artistic" turning I did, well over a couple of years ago now:

Image

Image

I haven't picked up a turning tool in a long time, and I think the last time I did was to just make a small plug for something really mundane, also a broken chair spindle replacement and the very occasional piece for a staircase in the last couple of years but that's about it. The last couple of times I did anything on the lathe that wasn't a part of something else (IE, just a standalone bowl) I had this constant nagging in my head saying "You should really be doing something else with your time".

Re: Shelf

PostPosted: 08 May 2021, 15:43
by Chris152
Excellent idea Chris - in fact, I could simply replace the shelf with a pic of the shelf and use the plywood for the surfboard!

Adrian - I think it's a really good question for woodturners. One answer is they're easier to stack and store than the coffee tables I was trying to make when I started working with wood a few years ago - I still have five cluttering a spare room upstairs, one day I guess they'll become firewood.
Another option is to sell, which I did some of but it gets boring I find if you (as I was) keep doing the same things, plain wood, over and over. Like Sunnybob's friend, I did well enough at craft fairs and on-line, but I now have the lathe at home which means I can't operate as any kind of business without potentially affecting insurance, and anyway my attitude's changed and I'm trying to focus much more on process than outcomes.
Another seems to be developing skills to produce more and more challenging pieces, things way above my skills level and that thankfully don't really interest me. ('Thankfully' in the sense I don't think I'd be up to it.)
So, for me now, it's about getting back into turning after a year off, focus on the process of producing simple forms hopefully from nice wood, and I'm wanting to explore how the forms distort, split etc if they dry too quickly after green turning. Not everyone's cup of tea, but it interests me.
Sorry that went on a bit.

Re: Shelf

PostPosted: 08 May 2021, 15:46
by Chris152
Love that goblet, Trevanion!

Re: Shelf

PostPosted: 08 May 2021, 16:13
by Mike G
AJB Temple wrote:.....What puzzles me about turning (I do have a lathe) is unless you are making bowls etc to sell, don't you just run out of things to do with them?......


One of the reasons I've never had a lathe.

Re: Shelf

PostPosted: 08 May 2021, 17:04
by Andyp
Mike G wrote:
AJB Temple wrote:.....What puzzles me about turning (I do have a lathe) is unless you are making bowls etc to sell, don't you just run out of things to do with them?......


One of the reasons I've never had a lathe.


Chair legs, Table legs, Stair spindles, tool handles, Pens, garden dibbers ;)

What you can do with it is surely only limited by one’s imagination.

Re: Shelf

PostPosted: 08 May 2021, 17:40
by Woodbloke
AJB Temple wrote:This is very nice work.

What puzzles me about turning (I do have a lathe) is unless you are making bowls etc to sell, don't you just run out of things to do with them? I bought a lathe, then tools, then went on a short turning course at Axminster (which made me realise I should have bought a different lathe), turned some bowls and they became presents for family, and....then what. My wife made it clear that she had enough bowls, egg cups, candle stick holders etc and this took about 3 weeks.

It was last used at Christmas to make a few components for a chair. Perhaps I need inspiration (and a shorter to do list).


Agreed. How many bowels and stuff do you/I actually need? Once I've made a few decent enough bowls for the house, there really isn't much point in the lathe. I have a around twenty or so blanks of various sorts awaiting final turning, but what do I do with them then?
I tend to keep all the odd's n'ends of off cuts which are too good to throw away and make small stuff (bowls, platters, light pulls, goblets, mushrooms etc) which I've then tried to sell at a Boot Fair in town with very limited success (although a pitch costs me the princely sum of £2)
As SWIMBO is now working full time at our local hospital, I'll probably end up giving the whole lot to their charity shop so at least I know whatever they sell them for will be going to a good cause.

However, that said, I wouldn't get rid of the lathe. When I have a 'turning day' I find it therapeutic and relaxing; the time seems to go past at warp speed! It's also very useful for the odds n'sods of stuff that I need for various projects, mostly tiny turned drawer or door pulls but there's other things that need to be turned as well, such as a small screwdriver for No.1 son to enable him to service his Gaggia coffee machine.

The next task on the lathe 'tuit' list is to master screw cutting which is a lot harder than it looks - Rob

Re: Shelf

PostPosted: 08 May 2021, 17:48
by Andyp
Woodbloke wrote:
Agreed. How many bowels and stuff do you/I actually need?


Ooh Rob, never seen one of those turned on the lathe. :)

Re: Shelf

PostPosted: 08 May 2021, 21:37
by Woodbloke
Andyp wrote:
Woodbloke wrote:
Agreed. How many bowels and stuff do you/I actually need?


Ooh Rob, never seen one of those turned on the lathe. :)


You know me Andy, deliberate mis-spelling. Nice to see somebody's up to speed :lol: :lol: - Rob