Author Topic: roughouts with colour...  (Read 8331 times)

Andy Coates

  • Guest
roughouts with colour...
« on: February 02, 2011, 08:31:22 PM »
I was having a tidy up on Sunday (don't faint, Roger) and got tired of moving a large lump of recently felled cherry from A to B and back again. So I thought I'd cut it up and rough it out as cherry is notoriously prone to splitting when in small section.

Here are a few of the roughed bowls( pic 1) (like I need any more bowls)...the oxidation causes glorious colour. What a pity we can't fix it at this stage...

And I also found the two at the back on the right...oak...and they reminded me why i didn't need any more roughed out bowls...

they were roughed in June 2009 and I STILL  hadn't finish turned them. And there are loads more in the store room.

So...feeling guily I turned the two oak bowls into something else...when completed I'll post a picture....

does anybody else rough out bowls purely so the wood doesn't waste?


Offline Philip Greenwood

  • bronze
  • ***
  • Posts: 191
  • Professional Woodturner. North Yorkshire
    • Woodturning into Art
Re: rough outs with colour...
« Reply #1 on: February 02, 2011, 08:42:28 PM »
Hi Andy

I spend a lot of the winter months roughing out, i can control the size and shape better then buying planks.

I could not say how many i have ready for turning i keep looking at them but other jobs in the workshop come up.

Phil

Offline woodndesign

  • platinum
  • *****
  • Posts: 2211
  • Cannock Staffordshire
Re: roughouts with colour...
« Reply #2 on: February 02, 2011, 09:18:01 PM »
Andy.

 Thats some nice stock there, I've mainly got small branches still in the round, should I ever get power into the shop, other than running extentions out, I may get to convert them.
On the size you have there, what thickness do you work too and do you do anything else regards leaving them to dry.

David
"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times,"  By Dickens ''''

Andy Coates

  • Guest
Re: roughouts with colour...
« Reply #3 on: February 02, 2011, 09:51:14 PM »
I don't actually measure the thickness, but then after you've turned hundreds of them you don't need to. The general rule of thumb is that you leave a wall of 10% of the overall diameter. The problem with this ratio is you are restricted to producing set thickenss bowls. When you gain some experience of various woods, you often find you can leave them thicker than 10%, which leaves some lattitude for the eventual shape, wall thickenss Etc., etc.

I usually just coat the endgrain areas with PVA and stack them somewhere dry and out of draughts. The success rate is very good, and I don't lose many at all.

Offline woodndesign

  • platinum
  • *****
  • Posts: 2211
  • Cannock Staffordshire
Re: roughouts with colour...
« Reply #4 on: February 03, 2011, 12:50:11 AM »

Thanks on that Andy, I've come across some differing views over the coarse of time, so ideal to catch up as to how you store.

David
"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times,"  By Dickens ''''

Offline Philip Greenwood

  • bronze
  • ***
  • Posts: 191
  • Professional Woodturner. North Yorkshire
    • Woodturning into Art
Re: roughouts with colour...
« Reply #5 on: February 03, 2011, 08:05:30 AM »
Hello David

Well after i turn my wet bowls i place them into bin liners to control how much moister they lose, just turn the bag inside out every week until there are dry, then in a cool place be for my workshop to finish drying.

This is how i do mine, but as Andy does them a diffident way lets see how many more ways they are.

Phil

Offline woodndesign

  • platinum
  • *****
  • Posts: 2211
  • Cannock Staffordshire
Re: roughouts with colour...
« Reply #6 on: February 03, 2011, 04:02:29 PM »

Hi Phil, 

Thank you for your ways of storing from wet, at first as you said you use bin bags, you took to spalt all your work, I see if you remember to turn the bag weekly it's not the case, do you ever forget, or what if your away on holiday, luck given such time..   ;D...

Will watch for more replys.           David
"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times,"  By Dickens ''''

Andy Coates

  • Guest
Re: roughouts with colour...
« Reply #7 on: February 03, 2011, 04:25:52 PM »
I used to store mine in plastic bags until I did forget (for weeks!) to turn them inside out and ended up with dozens and dozens of spalted holly roughed bowls. And not attractive spalting either.

I noticed that Robin Wood simply stacks his on a shelf at the back of the barn where he works (and his are finish turned but still green), so I thought I'd try the same. And it works just fine. I would estimate that out of the last two hundred I've lost half a dozen to cracks, and one VERY notable large olive ash bowl (which I still have) that warped so badly that even with an 1 1/2" of wall thickness It was so bad that you couldn't recover it.

If I was roughing a couple of thousand bowls a year for repeat orders then I might take a less carefree approach to roughing and drying, but the system I use works for me so I stick to it.

If you're a hobby turner just wanting to rough out some bowls to save on the expense of buying kiln-dried blanks, then if you can get hold of green wood of a suitable size I'd say just go for it. If you win 50% you're ahead. And the repetition of turning bowl after bowl will teach you more about tool control and shape than you would normally learn in a couple of years of bowl turning.

The only real difficulty is anticipating what shapes you might want in twelve months time. So my advoce is..keep them simple and leave enough material for a few design changes.

Offline BrianH

  • gold
  • ****
  • Posts: 427
Re: roughouts with colour...
« Reply #8 on: February 18, 2011, 05:02:20 PM »
Over the years I have used all the methods mentioned. I have also forgotten to turn plastic bags far too often so I now always use paper bags. Being slighly porous the paper allows a small amount of moisture to pass through which slows but not stops water loss. No bag turning for me.
All the best
Brian

Andy Coates

  • Guest
Re: roughouts with colour...
« Reply #9 on: February 18, 2011, 07:33:19 PM »
Good to see you back, Brian.

I've never got round to trying paper bags but the idea makes perfect sense. I'll give it a try one of these days.

Offline BrianH

  • gold
  • ****
  • Posts: 427
Re: roughouts with colour...
« Reply #10 on: February 19, 2011, 02:58:53 PM »
I'm flattered that you missed me, Andy...now please put the rifle down!;D
With so many shops going green these days the old fashioned paper carrier bag is making a comeback, playing right into our hands. I would think with your kind of throughput any bagging would be unnecessary, with any extra lossage being outweighed by the time and hassle saved, whereas to 'half-dozen-at-a-time' merchants, like me, it is probably worth considering.
All the best
Brian

Offline Martin Lawrence

  • Global Moderator
  • gold
  • *****
  • Posts: 334
  • Kidderminster Worcestershire
Re: roughouts with colour...
« Reply #11 on: February 21, 2011, 04:19:37 PM »
  I always use plastic bags, as has been said you dont have to use anything but the advantage of a bag is that it protects the wood from any drafts and lets the piece dry consistently all the way round, the reason I use plastic over paper is that the plastic are re usable and dont go soggy.

Cheers Martin.
Martin Lawrence

Andy Coates

  • Guest
Re: roughouts with colour...
« Reply #12 on: February 21, 2011, 06:55:34 PM »
Looking for another picture I found this one of some roughed holly bowls that had been in plastic and I'd forgotten to change over...

Offline Martin Lawrence

  • Global Moderator
  • gold
  • *****
  • Posts: 334
  • Kidderminster Worcestershire
Re: roughouts with colour...
« Reply #13 on: February 22, 2011, 09:34:44 AM »
Hi Andy,

 When finish turned these could well look good not often you get spalted holly as long as its not gone punky.

  I turn my bags once a week. first job Monday morning.

Cheers Martin.
Martin Lawrence