Turnings From The Wood Pile

[William Young]

Spotted a couple pieces in the firewood pile after lunch today that looked like they might be able to be "turned" into something .
First was a piece of juniper that I made a small vase with . Picture does not do it justice because it has some nice natural blue markings as well as red and white ..
5" tall, 2.75" wide , 1.5" hole from top to bottom inside.



Next two pieces were "turned" out of one 16" long piece of elm.

First one is a natural edge pot or cup or whatever name seems to be suitable .
4" tall, 4.5" wide at widest part of bark at top , 3" inside hole that goes to within 1/4" of bottom.



and one large natural edge vase which is 7" tall by 4" at widest part of bark top with 2" hole from top to inside of bottom.



Only took a couple hours to turn all three of them but the finish took longer than the turning. They have three coats of Deft WB lacquer on them.
W.Y.

[thecopperfish]

Those are so cool!!!
Chris

[oops99]

Hey Bill,

Beautiful work as usual, you are driving me closer and closer to getting a lathe
I have been watching the local Craig's list, which is like an online classified ad site, I saw someone selling a Rigid lathe 12X36 for $200, but I couldn't find any real reviews on it. Next time I see one would you mind if I ask for your opinion on it?
Once again, Great job on those pieces.

Tom

[William Young]

Sure Tom, any time.
I am not familiar with the Rigid lathe . There are a lot of brand names of lathes out there and some of the newer ones have lots of nice features that some of the older ones didn't have so it pays to ask about those things.
W.Y.

[bigEd_H]

You do some beautiful turnings, there Bill. I'm like Tom, you are inspiring me to invest in a lathe. I'll have to keep an eye open for one around here. First, though, I have to work it into my budget.

[PuzzledMoose]

Very nice, Bill. I like the markings on that first one in particular and I like the shape of the third natural edge vase.

[bearfretworks]

Good stuff Bill!

I do the opposite, my "turnings" usually end up as firewood

[William Young]

It took me a few years to get my head around the fact that natural edge and odd shaped turnings looked nice because to me they didn't. . I always shyed away from trying them because in my own mind I always preferred smooth flowing lines with symetrical curves and no knots or blemishes.
Then I finally saw the light at a few craft sales when I had experimented with some of this type of turnings . I found out that they were the first ones on the table to sell and that I could also get double the price for them.
Best of all, they are the easiest type to turn. Don't have to strive for perfection .
People looking for craft items apparently prefer unique and unusual pieces compared to ordinary every day shapes . With these type of turnings they know they truly have a one of a kind item to display in their house .
The possibilites of unique gifts to make on a lathe are endless.
W.Y.