What a scorcher #1 - Oak Vase

[Les Symonds]

As if it wasn't hot enough recently, I decided to do a bit of scorching.
This first one is an oak vase, 22cm tall x12.5cm diameter. My usual scorch, scour and lime wax, but with the added extra of a few 2cm yew bottons, just for fun. The base is left quite heavy (4cm thick) to give bottom-weight and there's a bigger than usual foot on it, for stability, as this will be used to display dried or artificial flowers and grasses.

C&C Always welcome....Les

[bodrighywood]

Like the shape of this and the yew cabochons. Makes a nice change from metal or glass ones. Bet you've been sweating a lot making these last few. Time for a cool drink I should think.

Pete

[Les Symonds]

...Time for a cool drink I should think.

Pete

....a medicinal beer was administered!

[Bryan Milham]

Neatly done Les, great shape and I like the Oysters.

[edbanger]

The simple Yew buttons really set this piece off Les

All the best

Ed

[fuzzyturns]

Very nice, and excellent overall shape. Now I've got a question for you, Les: how do you create the recesses for the buttons?
I've used a milling bit for that, but that limits me to 20mm (biggest bit I've got). I am afraid that with a Forstner bit the central thorn would go through. Or do you actually drill all the way through and then fit the buttons at the end and make sure they have the right thickness?

[Les Symonds]

Hi Fuzzy.....the wall thickness is 5mm and my set of forstner bits each has a spur which projects about 1.5mm beyond the cutter, so I drill a recess about 2mm deep (the tip of the spur will then be 3.5mm deep).

I was very fortunate to be in the Axminster shop in Cardiff, shortly after it opened, when they were selling off oddments of stock that didn't make it onto the shelf. Amongst the bin of odds and ends, was a boxed set of Forstner bits, from 6mm up to 50mm, which they were asking £20 for. A case of right-place-at-right-time!

Les

[fuzzyturns]

Hmm, OK, that was good luck. However, this really only works on larger diameter work pieces with comparatively small buttons, as otherwise the curvature of the work piece has a significant impact on the depth of the recess.

[Les Symonds]

Precisely.....although I have considered having two same-size forstner bits, start the hole with one, then swap to a second bit with the spur ground out. For shallow holes of a few mm it might work, but on really small diameter pieces, it would surely have to be a drill-through, glue in and re-turn to a finish....but I like my cabochons to stand proud.
Les

[bodrighywood]

This is a problem I found putting the 10 and 8mm cabochons on the medieval goblets. In the end I found the best way was using a metal drill as opposed to a wood one. Trying to make larger recesses like these on your vase I have drilled a pilot hole initially in the centre then used a forstner bit with the cenrtal spur ground down to the depth of the cutting edges.

pete

[fuzzyturns]

The central spur is really only needed when either starting to drill the hole, or when going through grain that is very badly aligned with the drill. The starting problem cannot be completely avoided, but Pete definitely has a point there. I have found that once I have a decent start to a recess, I can use my 20mm milling  bit to get really nice sharp sides and a proper flat bottom, with the obvious drawbacks as listed above.

[Derek]

Very nice Les at first I thought that you had just drilled holes with a forstner bit until I enlarged it and saw the yew inserts.

Love the shape and contrast