| September 1, 2024
To everything (turn, turn, turn)
There is a season (turn, turn, turn)
And a time to every purpose under heaven
The Byrds, Turn! Turn! Turn!
I’m not sure why I’m drawn to the lathe and turning. Maybe it’s a super-chill way to make something. Maybe because projects can often be made in a single session. I’m not sure. I do like how when I am riding the bevel that time slows down and I see the project unfolding to what the grain reveals. I do like the rhythm of standing and watching the piece evolve in front of me. Anyways, The Byrds came to mind because of the turn repetition and the message in their lyrics reminds me that not all comes at once and patience brings.
This bowl was turned in the fall of 2024. By the time it was turned, it had reached a good dryness, so there was only a single turning needing to complete it. However, I did remount it because it had a lot of grooves in it and it was faster to finish sanding that way.
This bowl started from a cherry tree that fell in 2018 during Hurricane Michael. This was from the upper section, so maybe I started with a 12" diameter log. It hadn’t been stored that well so there was some exterior rot. It was cut down the pith with a chainsaw to about 18" length and then the rot was cleaned away using a Kutzall disc on a Dewalt 20v angle grinder. From there the bowl blank was trimmed using a bandsaw into its general shape. The wood was dry and it was a bit difficult getting the shape started on it, but once started, it started peeling away fairly evenly. There are a few places that had stress cracks in the wood, which were tightened with some CA glue and then the turning was completed.
This bowl was pretty early in my lathe experience, so I was still learning the how to “ride the bevel” with the bowl gouge, which left some wavy spots. I worked it over with some sanding, quite a bit since this was early in my learning, to a 400 grit and then sealed it with Odie’s Oil. You can notice there’s an indentation in the middle of the bowl where I had the center point holding the bowl. It was turned with a tenon and then put into a Nova chuck. After finishing, the bottom was flattened and then a slight concave added to it so it would sit flat.
It’s about 6" across and has fairly thick sides, quite solid. I like this one for the grains that show on the sides. Even with the rot removed, there was still some sapwood left, so the bowl has both a lighter tint to it with the sapwood and the darker shading with the heartwood. There is no marking on the bottom indicating that I turned this.
It was donated to Arlington Goodwill. So far, many things made have been given to friends and family, but there’s others that instead of holding onto them and maybe selling or giving to someone I know, I just let loose into the wild, quite often to either at the Arlington Goodwill or Alexandria ReStore, just for kicks.