Trying out the Simon Hope end grain hollower.

[Les Symonds]

Last week I borrowed a Simon Hope end-grain hollower, so I tried it out today on a couple of dry branchwood sections that I had in stock. The tool was great to use, certainly easier than my big bowl gouge, and for a first attempt, I kept the opening of the vessel big enough to be able to see how it cut and what the finish was like.
The wood was a dream to work with a bowl gouge on the outside, and the hollowing tool (which is square section shaft with a sheer-scraper cutter) on the inside, but I'm not sure what the wood is. I suspect that it's spalted sycamore, but any suggestions will be welcome.

Here's the bowl, with just a quick coat of sanding sealer and wax, but yet to be buffed...


and here's the under-side...


...a couple of pieces of the branchwood, the bark has mostly fallen away, but there is a little left intact and appears to a slightly silvery look to it, which made me think of birch at first, but then I compared it with both birch and sycamore that I've got in stock and I must admit that I favour sycamore.



any suggestions welcome....Les

[bodrighywood]

I do a lot of goblets and mainly use a ring tool or a square sectioned tool like Simon Hopes to do the inside. They are both faster and leave a better finish than any other tool I have tried.

Pete

[TWiG]

It looks a bit like Elm to me , but hard to tell really . What is the finish like on the inside , especially the end grain in the bottom because that is usually the hardest to not get tear out and awkward to sand ...fun experimenting isn't it !  Are you going to buy the tool now then ?

[Les Symonds]

Hi TWiG....definitely not elm, that's one thing I can be sure of. I was getting tear-out at first on the end grain, but learnt to be a little lighter and got better results for it.
I already have a Sorby 'Sovereign' handle, so I'll see if it fits into one of my collets, that would help to keep the price down, but I'd certainly like to have one and Christmas is a bit too far away, so Looks like I'll have to bite the bullet and buy one myself.

[woodndesign]

Having seen Simon work his magic with the tool, even the small bar carbide cutters I've liked the look of them.

Should I not have treated myself to his sanding system at Woodworks@Daventry .. (this system is brilliant, I refinished the Nature Edge piece effortlessly with it) ..  would have sported a tool or two, I like the simplicity of his collet handles.. if I'd not had a box of tools already ..  ..

Could you have a piece of Apple of some sort.

Cheers   Dewi

[Graham]

I brought the 6mm hollower of him at Daventry a couple of weeks ago and I am having a bit of a love / hate relationship with it. It is undoubtedly down to my inexperience but good as it is at hollowing out end grain I am having a devil of a job getting straight sides on small pots. They look like ploughed fields. 
Simon said there would be a bit of a learning curve.........

[edbanger]

Les I like the pot

I'm using the Crown Revolution hollowing system and I've been doing the same, turning vases so I can see what is happening with the cutter, I've found cutting at around the 8 o'clock mark gives me the best results and like Graham at first the sides looked like a plough field but I think that I'm getting there now hence the large forms.

Good luck with your new tool

Ed