Crown Midi Revolution giveaway worth £1005

Bob Chapman Richard Findley

shows how to turn
looks at birch perfect spheres
and turns a
birch-faced ply
hollow vessel Colwin Way
explores long-hole
boring by making
We talk to Nelson Cassinger two lamps
about his segmented work

Richard Raffan The AAW

discusses setting A 30-year journey
up a workshop
 See the full range at the
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002_WTUR_289.indd 2 1/4/16 1:55 PM


On a mission...
PHOTOGRAPH BY MARK BAKER
Practice makes perfect, what will you make this year?
W
e are now in the
colder months
of the year in the
UK and I know many of
us are very active in our
workshops. As soon as
spring and summer are
here it seems there is a shift to the gardens
and holidays, which all seems very logical
to me. I have been talking to a lot of turners
about buying and workshop habits. It
seems, that in the UK – other countries will
no doubt experience similar trends, but
at different times – most turners are very
active in the workshop, and also say they buy
the most items for their workshop needs,
between September and April/May. Outside
of this time period workshop use seems to
decline and so does their workshop spend.
The ‘peak’ times of workshop activity seem
also to correlate to when the most shows are
staged too.
Woodworkers Institute website (www.woodworkersinstitute.com) is thriving.
It would be great if you took a look and participated in the various discussions
and competitions in our community, or see us on Facebook & Twitter.
WT_289_3_LEADER.JRmbS.indd 3
FROM THE EDITOR COMMUNITY
The clubs and other related organisations
however, carry on throughout the year
and events are planned to suit their needs.
When talking to people, many say they are
not as busy in their workshops during the
warmer months and acknowledge that they
are not getting the practice in at these times.
When they eventually do increase their
activities again, they struggle to remember
some techniques and processes, having lost
momentum and, of course, the more frequent
use of them earlier in the year. One person
told me that he gets so frustrated with himself
about forgetting things he has done before that
he broke a tool when he selected the wrong one
for the project he was working on. That sounds
extreme, but I am sure his frustration at not
remembering something, is echoed by many.
I don’t have a solution to the dilemmas of
lack of workshop time other than trying to
make sure we do allow, and also get time, for
such things. Like many hobbys, crafts and
pastimes, we often read about them more than
have time to do them. I buy loads of magazines
to read, but do not get the time to put all into
practice. That is sad, but it is a fact and one
that only we can do something about. It is a
truism that practice makes perfect. If we don’t
practise we don’t progress.
I am on a mission this year to get more
people in the workshop and making. Even a
small increase in the time spent at the lathe or
practising your hobbies will have huge benefits
in your confidence, sense of achievement and
development of skills. Let me know what you
end up making in your workshop.
Have fun,
Mark
markb@thegmcgroup.com
Woodturning 289 3
06/01/2016 11:27
 Contents
Issue 289 February 2016
Features
51 AAW: transforming
woodturning in the US
The AAW looks back over the last
30 years

65 Nelson Cassinger in profile

This month Chris Publow tells us
more about the life and work of
Nelson Cassinger
COVER IMAGE BY
Jared Seger. 83 In the workshop with…
See page 65 for our Larry Wise
Nelson Cassinger profile. We go in the workshop with
Larry Wise

Projects Technical 104 Featured Artist

We look at Kimberly Winkle’s
21 A home-built vacuum 15 Get set to turn ‘Binary’, turned for the AAW’s
chamber Richard Raffan gives guidance on Creativity in Construction:
Walter Hall makes his own vacuum kit to start turning A Collaboration in Materials
chamber for stabilising pen blanks
27 How to turn a perfect sphere
33 Long hole bored lamps Richard Findley continues his new
Colwin Way uses the long hole boring series by sharing a simple technique
technique to make two lamp designs for turning a perfect sphere

38 Birch 57 The world beyond wood

Bob Chapman turns hollow forms Kurt Hertzog on turning materials
in birch ply other than wood

45 Hidden box earring stand 75 A cylindrical chess set

Andy Coates uses up some offcuts To end his series on chess sets, Mike
by turning this earring stand Darlow turns a set based on cylinders

87 Candelabra

38 Philip Greenwood turns an

elegant candelabra from three
pieces of timber

45
NEWS, LATEST PRODUCTS, MAGAZINE UPLOADS & EVENTS Subscribers!
can all be found on www.woodworkersinstitute.com. These all appear on the magazine Turn to page 92 for
homepage and you can see a bigger selection by scrolling down the page and clicking subscription special offers
on the individual stories. We also have an extensive online archive for you to browse and you could save 30%!

4 www.woodworkersinstitute.com

WT_289_4_5_CONTENTS.JRmb.indd 4 22/12/2015 09:33

 CONTENTS

Conversion chart
Community
33
2mm (5/64in)
3mm (1/8in)
4mm (5/32in)
3 Leader 6mm (1/4in)
Mark Baker introduces you to this 7mm (9/32in)
month’s issue and considers how the 8mm (5/16in)
seasons affect workshop activity 9mm (11/32in)
10mm (3/8in)
11mm ( 7/16in)
7 Round & about 12mm (1/2in)
We bring you the latest news from 13mm (1/2in)
the world of woodturning as well 14mm (9/16in)
as letters from the Woodworkers 15mm (9/16in)
Institute forum and important 16mm (5/8in)
dates for your diary from the 17mm (11/16in)
18mm (23/32in)
woodturning community
19mm (3/4in)
20mm (3/4in)
12 Giveaway 21mm (13/16in)
To celebrate 25 years of Woodturning, 22mm ( 7/8in)
a string of the industry’s leading 23mm (29/32in)
names are giving away top items from 24mm (15/16in)
their product ranges. This month, 25mm (1in)
30mm (11/8in)
Crown have 15 Midi Revolution
32mm (11/4in)
hollowing tools to give away 35mm (13/8in)
38mm (11/2in)
80 Next issue 40mm (15/8in)
Find out what’s in store 45mm (13/4in)
for next month 50mm (2in)
55mm (21/8 -21/4in)
60mm (23/8in)

Kit & Tools 63mm (2½in)

65mm (25/8in)
70mm (23/4in)
95 Kit & tools 75mm (3in)
A mixture of press releases 80mm (31/8in)
showing the latest tools and 85mm (31/4in)
90mm (31/2in)
products on the market
93mm (32/3in)
95mm (33/4in)
100mm (4in)
105mm (41/8in)
110mm (41/4-43/8in)
115mm (4½in)
120mm (43/4in)
125mm (5in)
130mm (51/8in)
135mm (51/4in)
140mm (51/2in)
145mm (53/4in)
150mm (6in)
155mm (61/8in)
160mm (61/4in)
165mm (61/2in)
170mm (63/4in)
178mm (67/8in)

87 180mm (7in)
185mm (71/4in)
190mm (7½in)
195mm (73/4in)
200mm (8in)
305mm (12in)

33
405mm (16in)
510mm (20in)
610mm (24in)
710mm (28in)
815mm (32in)
915mm (36in)
HEALTH AND SAFETY
1015mm (40in)
1120mm (44in)
Woodturning is an inherently dangerous pursuit. Readers should not attempt the procedures 1220mm (48in)
described herein without seeking training and information on the safe use of tools and machines. 1320mm (52in)
All readers should observe current safety legislation. 1420mm (56in)
1525mm (60in)

Woodturning 289 5

WT_289_4_5_CONTENTS.JRmb.indd 5 22/12/2015 09:34

006_WTUR_289.indd 6 1/11/16 9:34 AM

Round & about
We bring you the latest news from the world of woodturning as well as letters from the
Woodworkers Institute forum and important dates for your diary from the woodturning community
A sneak peek at the AAW’s new services
T
he American Association of Woodturners
(AAW) has played a crucial role in
the development of contemporary
woodturning and has led a dramatic
transformation of the craft since it was
established in 1986. At its 30th annual
international symposium in Atlanta,
Georgia, 9–12 June, 2016, AAW will gather
woodturners from around the world to
celebrate this important milestone while
enjoying three-and-a-half days of classroom-
type woodturning demonstrations and panel
discussions. Attendees will also have the
opportunity to hear about the new ways the
AAW is enhancing its educational offerings
to better meet the needs of woodturners of
all skill levels. Here is a sneak peek at two
of AAW’s new learning services that will be
launched at the event.
New AAW symposium hands-on
woodturning experiences
During the 2016 symposium in Atlanta,
AAW’s Women in Turning (WIT) committee
will offer seven hands-on educational
woodturning experiences and two discussion
rotations, which are open to all registered
symposium attendees. The sessions will be
focused on skill-building and will be managed
by accomplished and renowned women in the
field of woodturning.
Sally Ault, a 2016 WIT hands-on room instructor,
turns a bowl
WT_289_7_9_ROUND_&_ABOUT.JRmb.indd 7
These new hands-on sessions will
complement the AAW’s traditional
classroom style demonstrations
and lectures. Like other experiential
learning opportunities, these
foundational hands-on sessions
are expected to boost both
comprehension and retention,
as well as help attendees build
strong basic woodturning techniques
and implement appropriate
safety practices.
The proposed hands-on sessions and
discussion rotations include: Making A
Tool & Free-Hand Sharpening; End Grain
Cutting; Multi-Axis/Offset Turning; Green
Wood Natural Edge Bowls; Woodturning
Joinery; Equipment: Bandsaws, Sharpening
With Jigs, Chucks & Faceplates; Embellishing:
Pyrography, Texturing, Colouring; Ask an
Expert/Become an Expert! (Panel Discussion);
and, Identity & Personal Expression in Turned
Artwork (Panel Discussion).
Registration for the hands-on sessions will
be limited and determined on a first come, first
served basis. Registered symposium attendees
who are interested in participating in any of
the rotations, must pre-register on the form
at the bottom of the AAW’s WIT Hands-On
Room webpage at tiny.cc/WITHandsOn. Once
the symposium schedule is finalised, attendees
will receive an email inviting them to officially
register for specific rotations. Depending on
response, individuals may be limited to a
specified number of rotations.
New AAW video channel for premium
woodturning videos
Websites like YouTube and Vimeo can be
valuable resources for learning on a wide range
of topics including woodturning. However,
users may sometimes feel overwhelmed when
performing a topic search. For example, a
recent YouTube search for ‘Woodturning a
Segmented Bowl’ displayed more than 23,800
results. How do you know which videos to
watch? Some are poorly produced, others are
not very informative and some even illustrate
improper and dangerous methods.
To help resolve this issue, AAW will
introduce its new specialised video channel,
AAWVideoSource.org, at the 2016 symposium
NEWS COMMUNITY
The AAW is launching a new video channel
in Atlanta. The channel will showcase and
link to high-quality woodturning videos that
have been pre-screened for quality content,
production value and safety techniques. A
robust search engine will feature keyword
selection to help users effectively choose
desired videos, and search results will display
the turner/author’s name, a short description
of the video and total running time. Focusing
on quality vs quantity, AAW anticipates that
AAWVideoSource.org will become the ‘go to’
resource for excellent woodturning education
videos. Woodturners of all skill levels will learn
faster and have more time to spend turning by
avoiding junk videos and extra clutter.
In addition to introducing new services,
AAW’s 30th annual international symposium
in Atlanta, Georgia, 9–12 June, 2016, will
offer something for woodturners of all skill
levels. Attendees may select from a broad
range of demonstrations and panel discussions
to focus on sessions that will enhance their
woodturning experience the most. Symposium
registration is open and early bird rates are
effective through 1 May, 2016. To learn more
about the AAW’s
30th annual
international
symposium,
visit tiny.cc/
AAW2016Atlanta.
For more about
the AAW, visit
woodturner.org
The AAW’s 30th
annual symposium
will be held in
Atlanta in June
Woodturning 289 7
22/12/2015 09:43
 In response to your Leader...
South Downs Woodturners
Hi Mark,
I just read your December Leader about clubs
and thought I should respond. Regarding the
number of members attending South Downs
Woodturners – it’s random. We keep an eye
on total attendance to see if we are achieving
our target as we are a new-ish club – just
when I think I have spotted a pattern, I check
the previous year only to find there isn’t one.
Our attendance, on the first Thursday each
month, is generally pretty good at between 56
and 89%, with an average of 71%. Attendance
at all-day Saturday demos is, however, less
good at 40–48%.
Competitions are interesting, as I have
spoken to many members at different
clubs, and the most common reason for
not entering has been negative comments
by judges. I have also heard gripes about
restrictive stipulations and, at one club,
moving goalposts. At South Downs
Woodturners we tried to maximise entries
by providing broad topics with few, if
any, restrictions, and giving judges some
guidance. However, it’s very difficult because
Weston Woodturning Circle
Dear Mark,
Further to your Leader, I thought I would
drop you a few lines about our club, Weston
Woodturning Circle, based in Weston-super-
Mare. It is regrettable that some clubs are
suffering when it comes to ‘show and tell’. We
too have had our moments but over the past year
or so we have seen an increase in participation.
There have been reasons why we still get the
odd night when things could be better, some
being holidays, lack of opportunity to get into
the workshop, other priorities or even the
subject matter. For example, one month the
theme was ‘thread chasing’, which followed on
from the previous month’s professional demo.
FROM THE FORUM
‘Winter Songs’ pot in ash (Fraxinus
excelsior) by Andrea Zanini
8 www.woodworkersinstitute.com
WT_289_7_9_ROUND_&_ABOUT.JRmb.indd 8
one minute we are asking judges to decide
between pieces of work, where inevitably
you have to pick out the faults, and then
provide comment to members in a positive
way. We have asked our judges to refrain
from any public comments on the work,
just announcing the results for each of the
groups. We do, however, offer individual
feedback to anyone who would like it. We
have four competitions each year, one of
which is ‘Freestyle’, i.e. open to any turning.
At our Freestyle competition we ask all
members to vote for their preferred item,
which works quite well.
We have other methods of trying to get
people to bring in their work, such as a Tools ’n’
Turnings table where we encourage members
to bring in completed items, works in progress,
tools, etc. This works reasonably well if we
prime someone to put something out, then
others seem to put things they have brought
there also. Without priming, however, it’s been
less successful.
I have recently introduced a Chairman’s
Challenge. The concept is to give a brief one
This takes specialist tools and only two of our
members had them – lesson learnt.
The turnout for our ‘show and tell’ is very
good and I put this down to several things:
• We encourage everyone to take part, from
those who have just started to those who have
been turning for years.
• We never criticise or put anyone down.
• We will give constructive opinions if asked,
and many do.
• Everyone takes an interest when items
are being presented and it has become an
important part of our evening.
• And finally, a good round of applause and
thanks at the end to all.
Burr elm (Ulmus procera) ball form by Bob Chapman
month in advance and encourage broad
interpretation. The first month was ‘Branch’,
and much to my surprise we had a good
number of entries, 19 (about the same as
a competition), and a significant range of
items. I select one or more item, make a
brief positive comment and give the owner a
small token for participating. I have made it
clear it’s not a competition, and I highlight
elements that I find interesting rather than
simply picking the best piece.
And, of course, we run hands-on evenings
where we encourage participation, though
I see that as more of a precursor to full
member demonstrations.
If you know of any other way of
encouraging members to show their work at
meetings, I would be interested to hear them.
Regards
Chris Grace
Chairman, South Downs Woodturners
01273 464 518
P.S. Our 89% attendance was
when you demonstrated!
By doing it this way we have found that
everyone, especially those who have been
turning for a short time, build up the confidence
to stand up in front of the group and know they
will get plenty of support and encouragement.
We are a small club with just over 40 members
who go along to our monthly meetings to enjoy
ourselves and have fun. Knowing everyone is
made welcome and made to feel part of the club
makes it enjoyable for all. This is how I believe
club nights should be.
Kindest regards
Greg Keenan
Secretary, Weston Woodturning Circle
CHJ’s lidded box in oak (Quercus robur)
and walnut (Juglans regia)
22/12/2015 09:43
 NEWS COMMUNITY

25 years of Woodturning Woodworking

from a Dutch perspective Shows 2016
The Midlands Woodworking
Hello Mark, and Power Tool Show
I have been a subscriber to Woodturning When: 18–19 March, 2016
since the beginning and have copies of Where: Newark Showground, Nottingham, UK
all the issues. I have been turning since Web: www.nelton.co.uk
1992 and have been on multiple courses in
Great Britain, I think it was around 1992 Turnfest
that I went to the NEC woodworking show When: 18–20 March, 2016
in Birmingham where I became hooked Where: Seaworld Resort and Water Park, Australia
on going to woodworking/turning shows Web: www.turnfest.com.au
in Great Britain. I remember buying the
Arbortec carver prototype at the end of Yandles Woodworking Show
one show. That started my carving on When: 8–9 April, 2016
turning, which at first other turners said was Where: Hurst Works, Hurst, Martock,
butchering wood, but eventually it won me Somerset, UK
some prizes at other shows! ‘Lighthouse Rays,’ plain elm (Ulmus procera) inspired Web: www.yandles.co.uk
Woodturning magazine has always been by Marcel’s lighthouse
an inspiration for me and I suppose many Utah Woodturning Symposium
others. GMC Publications used to have magazines. I always gave them one or to of When: 12–14 May, 2016
leftover magazines at the end of shows those leftovers from the shows. I hope many Where: UCCU Events Center, Orem, Utah, USA
and I was able to take a great number of of them took out a subscription. When I Web: www.utahwoodturning.com
them home. It is always nice to meet or visit my local chapter of our woodturning
see demos by the turners that write for the club I take the magazines. The beauty is that Weird and Wonderful Wood
magazine or are being written about at the magazine brings woodturners together When: Mid May 2016
shows or symposiums like the AWGB. I around the world. It is an exhibition of Where: Haughley Park, Wetherden, Suffolk, UK
also love reading the tips and tricks and woodturning passion, professionalism, Web: www.weirdandwonderfulwood.co.uk
trying them out. Remember the days before hobby, and art and craft manship. Please
Google search? If you wanted information continue for many more years. American Association of
you needed a magazine like Woodturning. Marcel van Berkel Woodturners Symposium
In those years I had hundreds of visitors to Terschelling,
g, the Netherlands When: 9–12 June, 2016
my workshop/gallery that came to read the Where: Atlanta Convention Center at
AmericasMart, Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Web: www.woodturner.org
Woodturning 284 25th
UK & Ireland Woodturning Symposium
Anniversary Nova When: 18–19 June, 2016
Giveaway prize Where: Hilton Hotel, Coventry, UK
Web: www.ukiws.co.uk
In issue 284 – celebrating 25 years of
Woodturning magazine – we kicked off the West’s Wood Fair,
anniversary celebrations by featuring a Nova When: 25–26 June, 2016
Comet midi lathe and accessories giveaway. Where: East Dean, Nr Chichester, West Sussex, UK
We are pleased to announce that the winner is:: Web: westswoodfair.co.uk
BRIAN MASTERS FROM THE TH ISLE OF WIGHT.
Yandles Woodworking Show
When: 9–10 September, 2016
Where: Hurst Works, Hurst, Martock,
Somerset, UK
Web: www.yandles.co.uk

North of England Woodworking

and Power Tool Show
When: 18–20 November, 2016
Where: Great Yorkshire Showground,
Harrogate, Yorkshire, UK
Web: www.skpromotions.co.uk
Pair of candlesticks in sapele
(Entandrophragma cylindricum) Pouredd bowl
b l in
i maplel (Acer
( campestre
campestre)
e) SSpalted
l d alder
ld (Alnus
(
(Al spp.)) NB: We have done our best to ensure we are providing accurate
information, but things can change so please check the dates
by Dalboy and acrylic by Jason the Turner vase by edbanger
and times of each event before setting off on your journey.

Woodturning 289 9

WT_289_7_9_ROUND_&_ABOUT.JRmb.indd 9 22/12/2015 09:43

 CLK3 LEG STAND KIT FOR
• Dust extraction CTS10D - £29.99 INC VAT.
facility FROM ONLY
LEG STAND KIT FOR .98
4" BELT/
• 4" x 36" belt TABLE CTS11 - £27.59 INC VAT
£
69EX.VAT

6" DISC
tilts & locks
0-90° SAWS
£
83.98
INC.VAT

SANDER • 225mm x CTS10D

CS4-6D 160mm
NOW
table, tilts 0-90°
• 370w, 230v
motor SUPERSTORES
NATIONWIDE
£
84.99
EX.VAT
£
101.99
INC.VAT

WHERE QUALITY INCLUDES LEFT

& RIGHT TABLE
COSTS LESS *Moulded base EXTENSION
MODEL MOTOR BLADE EXC.VAT INC.VAT
CTS800B 600w 200mm £69.98 £83.98
RANDOM ORBITAL Top Quality Bandsaws - ideal for professional workshop use. Strong
CTS11* 1500w 254mm £139.98 £167.98
SANDER steel body with solid cast iron table featuring induction motors
6" BELT/ BANDSAWS • Table tilts 45° • Adjustable blade guide • Supplied with 4 TPI wood cutting CTS10D 1500w 254mm £159.98 £191.98
9" DISC £
29EX.VAT
.98 CROS1 blade, rip fence, mitre guide and push stick
SANDER £ NEW TABLE SAW WITH
35INC.VAT
.98
• Includes stand
• 1 Hp/ 230v/
RANGE BLADE TENSIONING
CONTROL CTS14
EXTENSION
• For sanding MAGNIFIED TABLES (250mm)
1ph motor & polishing MITRE
GUIDE Ideal for cross cutting,
CS6-9C • 125mm ripping, angle and
£ diameter
209EXC.VAT
.00
sanding discs
mitre cutting
Easy release
£
250.80
INC.VAT • 4000-11000 opm /locking mechanism
INC 5 DISCS for table extensions
0-45° tilting blade
CS4-8 Cutting depth:
FLEXIBLE
NEW ELECTRIC
LED £
119EXC.VAT
.98
72mm at 90° /
65mm at 45°
4" BELT/ SOLID WORKLIGHT £ 230V/50Hz,
8" DISC SANDER POWER GROUND 143INC.VAT
.98
Motor: 1800W,
• Includes two FILE CAST Shown with
tables • 550w IRON optional leg kit
230v motor. CBS300 TABLE
CLK5 £22.99 exc.VAT
£27.59 inc.VAT
QUICK
• Variable FROM ONLY RELEASE
£
£
139.98
EXC.VAT
belt speed
• Tilting head
44EXC.VAT
.99
FENCE
£
£
167.98
INC.VAT
CPF13
53INC.VAT
.99

*Black & Decker MULTI- DRIVE-BELT 255mm

STEP DUST TENSIONING MULTI-
MODEL MOTOR EXC.VAT INC.VAT
DISC SANDER EXTRACTION
CPF13 400W/230V £44.99 £53.99 OUTLET CBS350 PURPOSE
(305MM) KA900E* 350W/230V £49.98 £59.98 TABLE
Powerful, bench mounted ONLY SAWS
disc sander 900W
No load £
FROM ONLY
47EX.VAT
.99
£
349EXC.VAT
.98
FROM ONLY
disc speed:
1490rpm WET
£
57INC.VAT
.59
£
419INC.VAT
.98 £
£
149EXC.VAT
.98

305mm REMOVABLE 179INC.VAT

.98

Disc Dia. (1 x & DRY DUST TRAY

60 grit sanding VACUUM MODEL THROAT MAX CUT MAX CUT ONLY MODEL MAX TABLE EXC. INC.
disc included) CLEANERS DEPTH 90° 45° EXC.VAT INC.VAT £
449EXC.VAT
.00 DEPTH CUT SIZE (mm) VAT VAT
Dimensions CBS300 305mm/12" 165mm 115mm £349.98 £419.98 45° 90°
(LWH):
£
• Compact, high
performance
CBS350 340mm/14" 225mm 160mm £449.00 £538.80 £
538INC.VAT
.80 FURY5* 54mm 73mm 625x444 £149.98£179.98
440x437
x386mm CDS300B
119.98
EXC.VAT wet & dry
RAGE5‡ 55mm 79mm 868x444 £269.00£322.80
£
143.98
INC.VAT vacuum STATIC PHASE *FURY power: 1500w (110V available)
cleaners for use FROM ONLY ‡RAGE power: 1800w/230V (110V available)
£ CONVERTERS table extensions included
around the home, STAPLE/ 19EXC.VAT
.98
• Run big 3 phase PC60
workshop, garage NAIL GUNS £
etc. All models include
23INC.VAT
.98
woodworking CIRCULAR SAWS
SHEET * SS = Stainless Steel nail/staple pack machines FROM ONLY
from 1 phase Great range of DIY £
SANDERS CAPACITY EXC. INC. and tough moulded
supply and professional 34EXC.VAT
.99
case £
CON300 FROM ONLY MODEL MOTOR WET/DRY VAT VAT • Variable saws Ideal 41INC.VAT
.99
£ CVAC20P 1250W 16/12ltr £47.99 £57.59 output power for bevel
13EXC.VAT
.99
CVAC20SS* 1400W 16/12ltr £59.98 £71.98 to match HP cutting
£
*110V in stock 16INC.VAT
.79
CVAC25SS* 1400W 19/17ltr £64.99 £77.99 CONSN118LI of motor to (0-45°)
MODEL SHEET SIZE MOTOR EXC.VAT INC.VAT CVAC30SSR*1400W 24/21ltr £86.99 £104.39 be run PRICE CUT
COS200 190X90mm 150W £13.99 £16.79 NOW FROM
ROTARY £
C0N300 230X115mm 330W £32.99 £39.59 ELECTRIC SPARE NAILS / PHASE 209EXC.VAT .00 CON185
Makita 112X102mm 200W £54.99 £65.99 HEATERS STAPLES IN STOCK CONVERTERS £
250 .80
INC.VAT
BO455* ALSO AVAILABLE WAS £382.80 inc.VAT
Huge range of quality electric models – ELECTRIC AND CORDLESS
QUALITY CAST From DIY, trade to Industrial MODELS IN STOCK CONVERT 230V ‡# was £274.80 inc.VAT
was £322.80 inc.VAT *Includes
IRON STOVES FROM ONLY CZ-2104 STAPLE/NAIL EXC. INC. 1PH TO 400V 3PH † was £382.80 inc.VAT laser guide
£
39EXC.VAT
.98 MODEL TYPE GAUGE VAT VAT
LARGE & XL MODELS CESNG1 Electric 22/18 £19.98 £23.98 MODEL MAX. FUSE EXC.VAT INC.VAT MODEL MOTOR MAX CUT
£
OVER 20 GREAT
STYLES IN STOCK
IN STOCK 47INC.VAT
.98
CCT48 Cordless MOTOR HP 90/45
£ 4.8v Ni-MH 22/18 £29.98 £35.98 PC20‡ 2HP 10Amps £209.00 £250.80 (mm) EXC.VAT INC.VAT
11.8kW
89EXC.VAT
.98
CESNG2 Electric 18/18 £39.98 £47.98 PC40# 3.5HP 20Amps £249.00 £298.80 CCS185B 1200W 65/44 £34.99 £41.99
£
107.98
INC.VAT CONSN18Li Cordless PC60 † 5.5HP 32Amps £299.00 £358.80 CON185*# 1600W 60/40 £56.99 £68.39
18v Lithium-Ion 18/18 £109.98 £131.98 CCS2 1300W 60/45 £59.98 £71.98
6.9kW POWER # was £71.98 inc.VAT
BELT PLANERS
POT
BELLY SANDERS MULTI FUNCTION
• Ideal for surface removal,
TOOL WITH
sanding and finishing FROM ONLY ACCESSORY KIT
DEVIL7003 £ • Great for sawing, cutting, sanding, polishing,
ABRASIVE SANDING 23EXC.VAT
.99
chiselling & much more
BELTS IN STOCK £
BARREL
MODEL VOLTAGE HEAT EXC.VAT INC.VAT
.79
28INC.VAT • 250w motor
£
OUTPUT KW • Variable speed
209EXC.VAT
.00
6kW
CZ-2104 230v 2.5 £39.98 £47.98 • 82mm
£ DEVIL 6002 230V 0.7-2 £39.98 £47.98 cutting
250INC.VAT
.80
DEVIL 6003 230V 1.5-3 £49.98 £59.98 width
£
36EXC.VAT
.99
£
£
249EXC.VAT
.00
DEVIL 7003 230V 3 £54.99 £65.99
FROM ONLY
.98 44INC.VAT
.39

£
298INC.VAT
.80 DEVIL 6005 400V 2.5-5 £74.99 £89.99
£
29EX.VAT CEP1
DEVIL 7005 400V 5 £79.98 £95.98 BS1 £
35.98
INC.VAT MODEL INPUT DEPTH EXC.VAT INC.VAT
FLUES, COWLS & DEVIL 6009* 400V 4.5-9 £119.00 £142.80 POWER OF CUT
ACCESSORIES IN STOCK DEVIL 7009 400V 9 £137.99 £165.59 MODEL WATT M/MIN EXC.VAT INC.VAT
Clarke BS1 900W 380 £29.98 £35.98 Clarke CEP1 650W 2mm £23.99 £28.79
DEVIL 6015‡ 400V 5-10-15 £179.00 £214.80 Einhell RT-PL82 850W 3mm £49.98 £59.98
Clarke CBS2 1200W 480 £69.98 £83.98 CMFT250
BUCKINGHAM *was £155.98 inc.VAT ‡was £227.98 inc.VAT Makita 9911 650W 75-270 £94.99 £113.99 B&D KW750K - GB 750W 2mm £57.99 £69.59
OSCILLATING
BOLTLESS • Simple fast assembly FROM ONLY
SAVE CPT800 BOBBIN SANDER
Provides exceptional finishes for deep

10%
.98
SHELVING BENCHES in minutes using only a £
29EX.VAT PLANERS & & wide work pieces, front
hammer £
35.98
INC.VAT THICKNESSERS edges & narrow inner curves COBS1
WHEN YOU BUY • Ideal for • Dust collection port
ANY MIX OF 5 • Inc. 5 sanding
FROM THIS RANGE DIY &
SAVE AT LEAST Hobby use sleeves/ bobbins
£17.99 INC.VAT • Dual purpose, • 330mm table
CHOICE OF 5 COLOURS for both finishing FROM ONLY
height
& sizing of £
169EXC.VAT
.98
ONLY
timber £
RED, BLUE, BLACK,
SILVER & GALVANISED
£ .98
203INC.VAT 119EXC.VAT
.98
£
(evenly (evenly STEEL MODEL MOTOR MAX THICK. EXC. INC. 143INC.VAT
.98

350
ALSO CAPACITY VAT VAT
distributed) distributed) EXTRA WIDE MODEL DIMS
Strong 9mm Strong 12 mm INDUSTRIAL CPT600 1250W 120mm £169.98 £203.98
NEW
KG WxDxH(mm) EXC.VAT INC.VAT
fibreboard fibreboard UNITS 150kg 800x300x1500 £29.98 £35.98 CPT800 1250W 120mm £199.98 £239.98
PER SHELF shelves PER SHELF shelves AVAILABLE 350kg 900x400x1800 £49.98 £59.98 CPT1000 NEW 1500W 120mm £269.98 £323.98
24664LH

070_071_WTUR_289.indd 70 1/4/16 4:25 PM

 £
149EXC.VAT
.98 FOR OVER GET
MORTISING £179INC.VAT
MACHINE
.98

CBM1B
Accurately creates deep square
recesses Table size 150 x 340mm
Maximum chisel cap.76mm Robust
15 ,000 FREE CATALOGUE
500
PAGE
YOUR
FREE
cast iron base & column ensures
stability & accuracy 95mm depth
PRODUCTS COPY
of cut
NOW!
“It is fast and accurate with a
good solid feel...Excellent value for
money, I’m really pleased with it.”
See www.machinemart.co.uk
INCLUDING
NEW 1100 PRICE CUTS &
• IN-STORE
• ONLINE
CHISELS AVAILABLE FROM WOODWORKING MACHINES NEW PRODUCTS • PHONE
£6.99 EX VAT £8.39 INC VAT
visit machinemart.co.uk 0844 880 1265

WOODWORKING 10" SLIDING MITRE SAWS DUST EXTRACTOR/ CORDLESS

VICES COMPOUND CHIP COLLECTORS DRILL/ DRIVERS
FROM ONLY
• For fast, accurate MITRE SAW
cross, bevel & £ METABO
£ .49
13EX.VAT mitre cutting in
129.98
EXC.VAT ALSO
£
£
16.19
INC.VAT most hard & soft 155.98
INC.VAT AVAILABLE
woods
• 1800W FROM ONLY
WV7 £
motor 56EXC.VAT
.99

MODEL MOUNTING JAW • Laser guide £

68INC.VAT
.39
PSR18
(WIDTH/OPENING £ CON18Li
/DEPTH)mm EXC.VAT INC.VAT 129EXC.VAT
.98

Clarke Bolted 150/152/61 £13.49 £16.19 £ TH-SM 2534 • Powerful

CHT152
155INC.VAT
.98
750W motor
• Quality Range of Mitre saws and blades available
Stanley Clamped 72/60/40 £16.99 £20.39 CMS10S2 • 56 litre bag capacity
MODEL BLADE DIA MAX CUT EXC. INC. • Flow rate of 850M3/h
Multi Angle BORE (mm) DEPTH/CROSS VAT VAT
Record V75B Clamped 75/50/32 £19.98 £23.98 MITRE SAW Einhell 210/30 55/120mm £56.99 £68.39 FROM ONLY
Clarke WV7 Bolted 180/205/78 £24.99 £29.99 STAND FLOW BAG £
TH-MS 2112
Fury 3 210/25.4 60/220mm£119.98 £143.98 MODEL MOTOR RATE CAP. EXC.VAT INC.VAT 36EXC.VAT
.99

TURBO AIR CFMSS1 £

Einhell 250/30 75/340mm£159.98 £191.98 CDE35B 750W 850 M3/h 56Ltrs £129.98 £155.98 * was £77.99 inc.VAT 44INC.VAT
.39

COMPRESSORS TH-SM2534 CDE7B 750W 850 M3/h 114Ltrs £149.98 £179.98 MODEL VOLTS BATTS EXC. VAT INC.VAT
£ Makita 260/30 95/130mm£199.98 £239.98 CCD180 18V 1 £36.99 £44.39
• Suitable for most 64EXC.VAT
.99
LS1040 5PCE FORSTNER CDD240 24V 1 £39.98 £47.98
£
FROM ONLY
sizes/makes of saw 77INC.VAT
.99
ROTARY TOOL BIT SET Bosch PSR18 18V
CON18Ni*
1 £54.99 £65.99
18V 2 x Ni-Cd £59.98 £71.98
• Inc. outriggers & rollers Contains 15, 20, 25, 30 &
£
79EXC.VAT
.98 KIT 35mm bits Titanium CON18Li 18V 2 x Li-Ion £84.99 £101.99
£ NEW FOLDING MITRE SAW
95INC.VAT
.98
STAND IN STOCK – CONMW1 CRT40
nitride coated for
PORTABLE
ONLY £119.98 INC VAT improved
£
8/250
29EX.VAT
.98
cutting finish THICKNESSER
£
35INC.VAT
.98
9EXC.VAT
£ .98 • Max thickness
DOVETAIL JIG Kit includes: £
11INC.VAT
.98 capacity 130mm
• Height adjustable stand with clamp • Rotary tool CHT365 • Planing depths
HUGE • Simple, easy to set up & use for producing adjustable
RANGE OF a variety of joints • Cuts work pieces with a • 1m flexible drive • 40x accessories/consumables
from 0-2.5mm
AIR TOOLS thickness of 8-32mm • Includes a 1/2" comb
IN STOCK template guide & holes for bench mounting 6" BENCH GRINDER BENCH GRINDERS • Powerful
WITH SANDING BELT & STANDS 1250W motor
PRICE CUT
£ • For sanding/shaping • Stands come • 8000rpm
49EXC.VAT
.98
wood, plastic £
49.98
EX.VAT complete with
6" & 8" no-load speed
• Superb £ AVAILABLE
range ideal for DIY,
59 .98
INC.VAT
WAS £65.99 inc.VAT
& metal £
59.98
INC.VAT
bolt mountings WITH LIGHT £
189EXC.VAT
.98
hobby & semi-professional use * V-Twin and feet £
MODEL MOTOR CFM TANK EXC.VAT INC.VAT
CBG6SB anchor holes
STAND AVAILABLE FROM
.98
227INC.VAT CPT250
Tiger 8/250 2HP 7.5 24ltr £79.98 £95.98 CDTJ12 • Supplied FROM ONLY ONLY £39.98 EX.VAT
Tiger 7/250 2 HP 7 24ltr £89.98 £107.98 Router not with coarse
£
29EX.VAT
.98
£47.98 INC.VAT HARDWOOD
Tiger 11/250 2.5HP 9.5 24ltr £119.98 £143.98 included grinding £
35INC.VAT
.98 WORKBENCH
Tiger 8/510 2HP 7.5 50ltr £129.98 £155.98 wheel Includes bench dogs and guide holes for
Tiger 11/510 2.5HP 9.5 50ltr £149.98 £179.98 & sanding belt variable work positioning 2 Heavy Duty Vices
Tiger 16/510* 3 HP 14.5 50ltr £219.98 £263.98 SCROLL SAWS Large storage draw Sunken tool trough
CBG8W LxWxH 1520x620x855mm
Tiger 16/1010* 3 HP 14.5 100ltr £269.98 £323.98 features
FROM ONLY 8" whetstone &
£ 6"drystone.
69EXC.VAT
.98
CR2 ROUTER # With sanding belt
£
83INC.VAT
.98

•120w, 230v
£
109.98
EX.VAT MODEL DUTY WHEEL
£
131.98 DIA. EXC.VAT INC.VAT CHB1500
JIGSAWS motor • 50mm INC.VAT
CBG6RP DIY 150mm £29.98 £35.98
FROM ONLY max cut thickness • Powerful heavy CBG6RZ PRO 150mm £39.98 £47.98
£ • 400-1,700rpm variable duty machine
12EXC.VAT
.99
speed • Air-blower removes ideal for
CBG6RSC HD 150mm £49.98 £59.98
£
15INC.VAT
.59
CSS16V CBG6SB# PRO 150mm £49.98 £59.98
dust from cutting area trade use CBG6RWC HD 150mm £54.99 £65.99
*DIY #Professional SPEED EXC. INC. • Variable CBG8W (wet) HD 150/200mm £55.99 £67.19 £
CJS380 MODEL MOTOR RPM VAT VAT speed control from 129EXC.VAT
.98

‡ was £59.98 inc.VAT CSS400B 85W 1450 £69.98 £83.98 7,400-21, 600 rpm • 2100W motor • 0-60mm £
155INC.VAT
.98
MODEL POWER DEPTH CSS16V 120W 400-1700 £79.98 £95.98 plunge depth.
(W) OF CUT EXC. INC CSS400C* 90W 550-1600 £99.98 £119.98
(WOOD/STEEL) VAT VAT * Includes flexible drive kit for grinding/polishing/sanding INCLUDES 15
13" MINI
Clarke CJS380* 420W 55/6mm £12.99 £15.59 PIECE SET WORTH
DRILL WOOD LATHE
Clarke CON750# 750W 80/10mm £24.99 £29.99 ROUTERS OVER £20 PRESSES
£
Bosch PST700E*‡ 500W 70/4mm £44.99 £53.99 CR1C 134EX.VAT
.99
B & D KSTR8K-GB# 600W 85/5mm £66.99 £80.39 CDS3 £
161INC.VAT
.99

BISCUIT JOINTER FROM ONLY ROUTER TABLE

.98
860W Motor
£
39EX.VAT CRT-1
Router not
CDP5EB
11000rpm Operating Speed £
47.98
INC.VAT included DRILL
14mm Cutting Depth
ACCESSORIES
STANDS
IN STOCK ONLY
£
19EX.VAT
.98
£ CWL325V
*DIY 23INC.VAT
.98

£
£
MODEL MOTOR PLUNGE EXC.VAT INC.VAT 59EX.VAT
.98
ONLY • Ideal for enthusiasts/
49EXC.VAT
.98 (W)
CR1C* 1200
(mm)
0-50 £39.98 £47.98
• Converts your router
into a stationary router
£
71INC.VAT
.98
59EX.VAT
£ .98
Drill not
hobbyists with small workshops
£
59INC.VAT
.98
£ • 325mm distance between centres • 200mm
BJ900 Bosch 1400 0-55 £79.98 £95.98 table • Suitable for most 71INC.VAT
.98
included max. turning capacity (dia) • 0.2HP motor
POF1400ACE routers (up to 155mm dia. Base plate)
V OPEN MON-FRI 8.30-6.00,
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DONCASTER Wheatley Hall Road
01332 290 931
01302 245 999
MANCHESTER ALTRINCHAM 71 Manchester Rd. Altrincham 0161 9412 666
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WARRINGTON Unit 3, Hawley’s Trade Pk.
WIGAN 2 Harrison Street, WN5 9AU
01925 630 937
01942 323 785 CLICK &
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01382 225 140
0131 659 5919
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WORCESTER 48a Upper Tything. WR1 1JZ
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070_071_WTUR_289.indd 71 1/4/16 4:25 PM

 25th anniversary giveaway
Crown Midi Revolution hollowing tools
To celebrate 25 years of Woodturning magazine, a string of the
WORTH
industry’s top names are giving away items from their product ranges. £1 ,00 5 !
This month, Crown has 15 Midi Revolution hollowing tools to give away

C
rown has pioneered the way for Cryogenic Hollowing tools.
The Midi Revolution Hollowing tool is the perfect tool for
those who wish to turn hollow forms and semi-enclosed
vessels. The articulated head design allows you to adjust the
cutting tip position for optimum control and reach into those
undercut shoulders on your work. It can also be used easily on
open-faced work.
The Midi Revolution comes with a Super Ring cutter designed
for end grain turning and a ‘Bullet-Shaped Scraper’ for both
end and cross grain turning. Its unique micro-adjustable
shield enables the user to make controlled large bulk
removal cuts as well as small refining cuts. The
Scraper cutter is a great finishing tool.
There are many tips and optional to provide superior
extras available for the Revolution wear resistance. Honing
Hollowing Tool range. All the the cutters with a diamond
tips are cryogenically treated maintains peak performance.
The Revolution range is also available
in two Full Size Systems (13mm and 16mm)
with solid brass fi xings and an adjustable
ergonomic handle giving the user the ultimate in
comfort and stability. The Miniature 13mm version,
which is perfect for smaller projects, comes with a 216mm
black ash handle.
The Midi Revolution has a 16mm diameter x 220mm long shaft,
and the total length inclusive of handle and cutter is 590mm. It is
designed to hollow to a depth of approximately 180mm.
Crown’s Midi Revolution hollowing tools have a suggested selling
price (SSP) of £67 each.
PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF CROWN

FURTHER INFORMATION an email to karensc@thegmcgroup.com. and no correspondence can be entered into.

For more information and to see
other products from Crown, visit
www.crownhandtools.ltd.uk.
How to enter
Send your details on a postcard with the
title ‘25th anniversary giveaway 289’ to
Woodturning Reader Giveaway, 86 High
Street, Lewes, East Sussex BN7 1XN or send
The closing date for the competition is
17 February, 2016.
Competition rules
The competition is open to everyone. Only
completed entries received by the closing date
will be eligible. No entries received after that
date will be considered. No cash alternatives
will be offered. The judges’ decision is final
The winner will be expected to be in possession
of a copy of this issue of Woodturning magazine.
Only one entry per household. Employees
of GMC Publications, their associated
companies and families are not eligible to
enter. By entering the competition, winners
agree to their names being used in future
marketing by GMC Publications, unless you
mark your entry otherwise.

12 www.woodworkersinstitute.com

WT_289_12_GIVEAWAY_JRmbcrown.indd 12 06/01/2016 11:28

013_WTUR_289.indd 13 1/8/16 9:30 AM
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014_WTUR_289.indd 14 1/8/16 10:01 AM


PHOTOGRAPHS BY RICHARD RAFFAN
Get set to turn
Richard Raffan gives guidance on kit to start turning
RICHARD RAFFAN
R
Richard Raffan is a highly
rrespected and well known
woodturner and is best
w living up to expectations raised by images
kknown for his turned bowls
aand boxes. He is a teacher,
ddemonstrator and author of a
number of classic woodturning
w books and DVDs.
www.richardraffan.com
T
hroughout my 35 years of teaching
I’ve encountered a lot of novice
woodturners who nearly abandoned the
craft thinking they’d never get the hang of it,
when in fact their problem was not so much
with themselves but their lathe and the way
it was set up, and the tools they were using.
And that’s before we get to how they were
using the tools.
You can purchase the cheapest new motor
vehicle secure in the knowledge that it’ll get
WT_289_15_18_RICHARD_RAFFAN_JRmbrr.indd 15
SETTING UP A LATHE TECHNICAL
you from A to B in the dry and at a reasonable
speed. It might not be as comfortable as the
12-litre supercharged midlife crisis you’d like,
but it will do the job – unlike a cheap lathe.
Cheap lathes are a total waste of money, never
on the box of large bowls, long spindles or
tabletops. Such images are optimistic to
fraudulent as many of these very cheap lathes
are barely up to even basic spindle turning, let
alone anything else. So here’s some advice on
what you need to get into woodturning and
how to set up a lathe.
Choosing a lathe
Many embryo turners try not to spend too
much on their first lathe in case they don’t
like the craft. Back in 1970 that was me who,
despite advice that I’d be wasting my money,
purchased a Coronet Major with a saw-bench
and sander accessories. Within a couple of
weeks I realised my error and ordered a new
Harrison Graduate Short Bed. It took three
months to arrive, but was worth the wait.
I was seduced into buying the Coronet by an
image on the brochure of a guy in a shop-coat
purportedly turning a tabletop 4ft diameter.
As an aspiring professional turner I’d been
thinking in terms of small boxes, but suddenly
tables seemed a good idea too. The Coronet
was adequate for centrework, but the bearings
couldn’t cope with the strain of turning bowls,
endgrain hollowing, or my ineptitude. I went
through three lots of bearings in as many
months and broke several rests and faceplates.
The Harrison Graduate introduced me to
the joys of a decent lathe, and I have never
looked back. I used it hard for 25 years and
never needed to replace the bearings, motor
or rests. Twenty-five years later I sold it cheap
for six times what I paid for it. Second-rate
lathes are unlikely to hold their value like
that. A good lathe won’t lose value and if
you don’t take to the craft you’ll likely sell
it for at least what you gave for it. Names to
look for include Jet, Vicmarc, Powermatic,
Robust, Steinert, Laguna, Record, Axminster,
Oneway and many more. But do your
research before you buy.
Woodturning 289 15
22/12/2015 09:46
 Know what you want to turn
When you decide to purchase a lathe, it helps to know
roughly what you want to make, because no single lathe I used this lathe for long
can do everything you might want to do. Unless you spindles for several years
want to work only large scale, it’s best to start with a and it now belongs
good midi lathe of a style and capacity similar to the to my local ACT
one shown at the beginning of this article, and learn Woodcraft Guild
the basics on that. A lathe with about 300–405mm
faceplate capacity and about 460–600mm between
centres capacity allows you to turn a family-sized salad
bowl or table lamp as well as most of what I’ve made over
45 years as a professional woodturner. Working small
scale means you waste less material, and when things go
wrong it’s less dangerous. If you want to turn only long
spindles, a small lathe with a bed extension is all you need.
Seek advice from a good turner and indeed your club
members. They will be able to offer help with what they
know about the lathes they have. Buy wisely and it will
save you money in the long run.

What to look for in a lathe The headstock

New or second-hand, a lathe should spin
the wood at a steady speed with minimal
vibration. Consequently a lathe needs to be
sturdily built and as heavy as possible with a
reasonably powerful motor. The headstock,
tailstock, bed and toolrest assembly should
be cast-iron to dampen vibration. You
don’t want anything that flexes or vibrates.
My midi lathe weighs 62kg. My stand is
constructed of recycled boards 20mm thick
screwed to 75mm pine (Pinus spp.) legs,
and this offers better support than many
commercial stands I’ve encountered for this
size lathe.
Manufactured bases or stands should be
cast-iron or steel at least 5mm thick. Avoid
any lathe cast in aluminium or constructed
of thin sheet steel. If a lathe is easy to lift, it’s
probably not worth having… even if it’s free.
The headstock houses the drive shaft so remove a chuck. This can involve a pin, a rod
has to be well constructed. It’s essential or a wrench. Some lathes come with in built
that there is no play in the bearings. indexing. This is very handy.
Look for a drive spindle at least 25mm
diameter – 30mm is better – mounted
in roller bearings. Look for a hollow
drive shaft machined to accept a Morse
taper spur drive.
Headstocks constructed of thin sheet
steel on cheap lathes with the spindle
bearings simply clamped to the steel
without any additional support cannot
possibly support any chuck without
rattling, so may be dangerous to use.
A hand-wheel on the outboard (left)
side of the headstock is useful as it
enables you to bring the lathe to a rapid
halt, or rotate a job by hand. You must
be able to lock the driveshaft so you can The knurled wheel on this lathe locks the drive shaft

The tailstock and rest toolrest with its hardened edge, so a tool
can pivot on the top edge. There are many
The tailstock and rest assemblies also need designs, but the rests need to be strong so
to be heavily constructed, with cam action they don’t flex, and allow you to hold the tools
levers that can lock them quickly and easily well. Flat-topped rests are greatly improved
in position. Using wrenches to lock these by welding on a 10mm hardened steel rod to
components is very tedious by comparison. the top.
The tailstock spindle needs a decent sized
wheel to operate smoothly and easily. A
tailcentre should wind forward at least 50mm.
The rest must provide absolutely solid
support: any play or vibration is magnified by
the time it reaches the cutting edge, and this
leads to loss of tool control and catches. If you
can flex the rest by hand even slightly, choose
another lathe.
The toolrest post that slots into the banjo
(the bit that sits on the lathe bed) needs to be
at least 20mm diameter, and preferably 25mm
on all but the smallest lathes. Ideally, the top The tailstock and rest assemblies need to be heavily The sloping rest on this lathe means a tool can pivot
of a toolrest should slope, like this Robust constructed to minimise flex and vibration on the top edge

16 www.woodworkersinstitute.com

WT_289_15_18_RICHARD_RAFFAN_JRmbrr.indd 16 22/12/2015 09:46

 SETTING UP A LATHE TECHNICAL

Motors and speeds

Until quite recently on most lathes you adjusted
the speed by moving the drive belt from one
pair of step pulleys to another, and you’ll still
find this arrangement on the simplest and least
expensive models. It is very effective and to
change the speed you turn the lathe off and
adjust the drive belts by hand. So on these
machines, convenient access to the drive belt
and pulleys is a must, as is a simple means of
locking the motor platform in its new position.
If you can’t lock the motor in position it will
bounce and this reverberates through the
lathe. Fortunately most modern lathes offer
Electronic Variable Speed (EVS), which enables
you to adjust speed by turning a knob. You
might still have a pulley arrangement too, to Convenient access to the drive belt and
offer different speeds ranges and torque. A pulleys is essential on lathes without EVS
speed range of 150–2,500rpm is a good range.

Chucks
A self-centring four-jaw woodturning chuck is now regarded as
an essential lathe accessory unless you turn only spindles between
centres. A chuck is typically sold with a set of jaws, with others
available as extras. A chuck is bought either directly threaded or with
an insert to fit your lathe’s drive shaft.
The chuck I use has jaw rims that enable me to grip jobs without
marking the wood. A good screw chuck is a must too. Many chucks
have screw thread accessories – some are excellent and others not so
good. You might find that a dedicated screw chuck might be superior
to any screw accessory supplied with a standard chuck. I use Shark
Jaws (shown on the left of this photo) for endgrain work like boxes,
spinning tops or drawer knobs, and my Step Jaws (shown on the right
of the photo) make turning bowls a lot easier.
Everyone works slightly differently and there are many good chucks
available: Oneway, Record Power, Robert Sorby, Nova, Axminster
and no doubt more. Ask fellow turners or club members and do your
research. Each chuck manufacturer has different jaws designs. With
most brands you cannot cross fit jaws from other makes, but there are
a few where this is possible, which helps you to pick and mix. I use these Vicmarc chucks all the time

Turning tools
First up: NEVER purchase a very cheap set
of turning tools unless you particularly want
the box they come in: even those claiming
to be High Speed Steel (HSS) never hold an
edge for more than a few seconds. Likewise,
if you hope to cut wood cleanly, avoid cheap
sets of scrapers with replaceable tips claiming
to make turning easy – although if you enjoy
hours of sanding, they could be just what You can turn almost anything with just a basic set of tools
you want. Having said that, there are some
scrapers with replaceable tips and some which platters; to the right are tools for spindles and skew chisel, a parting tool, a 19mm square-
are able to swivel or have shanks that are endgrain work like boxes and goblets. In the end scraper and 19mm round-nose scraper
articulated that are very helpful and work well. centre is a 13mm spindle gouge, the tool to for hollowing endgrain but also useful for
Most novice turners purchase tools they have if you can only afford one. To the left of facework. Names to look for are Sorby, Henry
will never use, so unless you’re a serious that is a 9mm spindle gouge, my preferred Taylor, Hamlet, D-Way, Crown handtools,
tool junky, purchase tools as you need them. tool for cutting beads, coves and finials on Thompson and P&N. There are more, but
A basic set of tools is all you need to turn both face- and centrework. Next left are 9mm check with friends to see what they are using
almost anything. In the photo above right, to and 13mm bowl gouges, then a bowl scraper. too. Buy good quality tools and you only buy
the left are tools for facework like bowls and To the right of the spindle gouges are a 19mm once, not twice.

Woodturning 289 17

WT_289_15_18_RICHARD_RAFFAN_JRmbrr.indd 17 06/01/2016 11:29

 Sharpening
A simple rise and tilt table is a
There are no ‘absolute grinds and angles’ for turning tools, although great start, but also consider a
some will claim there are, but there are some common shapes that sharpening jig to create swept
will help. Few tools come from manufacturers fully sharp. However, back grinds on gouges. Both
many manufacturers provide tools with a ‘functional grind’ but not will save time and effort
all. Invariably you are likely to shape the cutting edges to your own
preferences when you’re more proficient with tool use.
Turning tools shift a lot of wood and need sharpening often, so a
grinder with both fine and coarse wheels is essential. CBN wheels
might be expensive, but are the way to go in my opinion as they grind
cooler than friable wheels and never change shape so you never have
to reset a grinding jig. But, there are very good aluminium oxide
wheels at a far cheaper price that do a good job too. You need a 36 grit
wheel for reshaping tools and a finer 80 grit or so for sharpening tools.
To make sharpening easier, invest in a grinding jig and platform rest.

Ancillary stuff Tuition

You can measure and layout
using only a ruler and pencil,
but a few pairs of callipers
and dividers will make life a
lot easier. In the photo below
you can see my collection of
measuring tools. The silver
double-ended and black callipers
help ascertain the thickness of a
bowl wall; the dividers are ideal
for marking circles and laying
out diameters for chucks.
As well as good overall
lighting, it’s handy to have a
bright spotlight that can be
adjusted all around the lathe.
Strong light casts shadows that
help you discern the smoothness
of curves.
Whatever type of work you
do, spare eyes are still in short
supply, so eye protection is
absolutely essential. Safety
glasses come in all shapes
and types, so you should be able
to find something to suit you.
However, an even better
option is to use an impact
resistant face-shield. No matter
how careful you are and how
many precautions you take, one
day wood will fly off the lathe
and you could sustain serious
injuries. In my 45 years of
turning I’ve needed stitches on
at least five occasions. It pays to
minimise the risk.
Dust is a major health and
fire hazard in the workshop: you
should do all you can to limit
your exposure to it. A small dust
extractor can remove most fine
dust coming off the job if you
have intakes both sides of the
headstock. Heavier shavings
are best shovelled into a bag
for removal
or vacuumed up. If you go on to make bigger items a lathe with a swing of 450–600mm diameter
In addition to faceplate capacity and with tailstock support that accepts around 700mm between
at-source extraction, centres is ideal. Some lathes now allow the tailstock to be swung clear when not
you should wear required and have moveable on/off switches, or in this case a red bar, that enables
a dust mask, even you to turn the lathe off even when both hands are occupied
when clearing up.
However, these can When I took up turning, for woodworking or woodturning
fog your glasses, three months I was lucky enough club or start your own, and
so the best option to have Rendal Crang across keep a look out for hands-on
is to use a powered the workshop, churning out workshops and symposiums, any
respirator. bowls for Douglas Hart. I’d paid of which can teach you the most
Dust extraction to be there and the workshop unexpected things. Then there’s
can easily be the sold everything I made that the mixed blessing of the Internet
most expensive was up to standard. There were ‘woodturning gurus’, many of
item in your very few woodturners in the whom seem woefully ignorant of
workshop, but early 1970s, so after that it was how much they don’t know. And
it’s well worth the school of hard knocks, finally there are quite a few very
the investment. literally, as I entered my own informative books and DVDs
apprenticeship and learned from made by professional turners,
Callipers and dividers my misadventures. Today it’s several of which I’m happy to
are handy accessories easy to find help that’ll get you recommend even though I have
to have in the workshop started. Connect with your local my own to sell. •

18 www.woodworkersinstitute.com

WT_289_15_18_RICHARD_RAFFAN_JRmbrr.indd 18 22/12/2015 09:46

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019_WTUR_289.indd 19 08/01/2016 12:14

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020_WTUR_289.indd 20 1/8/16 9:22 AM
 ALL ABOUT PENS PROJECT

PHOTOGRAPHS BY WALTER HALL

WALTER HALL
Walter Hall is a
woodturner who has
specialised in making
pens and pencils for
more than 20 years.
Based on the beautiful
Northumberland coast
in the UK, Walter sells his bespoke pens
and pencils through local craft centres
and via his website.

walter@walterspens.co.uk
www.walterspens.co.uk

EQUIPMENT USED
Pressure cooker
Vacuum supply fittings: vacuum gauge,
valves, four-way connector, straight
connector, adaptor
20mm-thick sheet of Perspex

A home-built
Pair of dividers
Pillar drill with 3.5mm drill bit
Bandsaw with a narrow blade
3.5mm woodscrew
Abrasives
Polishing compounds

vacuum chamber 11.8mm drill

¼in BSP tap in a tap wrench
PTFE tape
MATERIALS
Sheet of plywood for a jig
Walter Hall makes his own vacuum Pen blanks for testing
Resin
chamber for stabilising pen blanks

B
efore I begin to explain how I made my own vacuum pot,
for those who are unfamiliar with the concept of stabilising
wood or perhaps even why we might want to do so, a brief
explanation is in order. Often as pen makers or woodturners we may
come across an attractively figured or spalted piece of wood that
would make a beautiful pen or other turned item but the wood is so
soft and punky that it would be difficult or perhaps even impossible
to turn and finish. Stabilising the wood by impregnating it with resin
hardens it up so that it can be turned successfully.
A number of different chemicals are available for this purpose,
some of which need to be mixed with a catalyst before use and heat
treated after vacuuming while others come ready mixed and require
only a drying out period to prepare them for use. It is beyond the
scope of this article to give detailed instructions for the correct use
of each type of resin, but comprehensive instructions are supplied
with the products and further extensive advice is often available
on suppliers’ websites.
To test my vacuum pot I used Drechseln und Mehr Stabi 17 B
Vakuumharz (Vacuum resin), which does not require heat treatment
after vacuuming. Full instructions for use are available on the website
– www.drechselnundmehr.de – but you will need to translate them
from German using an online translator such as Google Translate.
I had been considering stabilising my own blanks for some time
but had been deterred by the high setup costs of a pressure chamber
and a suitable vacuum generator or pump so decided to reduce the
costs by building my own chamber based upon a retired domestic
pressure cooker. This will be large enough for me to stabilise several
pen blanks at a time and even to stabilise small bowl blanks. The
vacuum is provided by a HoldFast vacuum generator intended for
vacuum chucks but will eventually be replaced by a vacuum pump,
which will enable a more complete vacuum to be achieved. Useful
advice on the selection of a vacuum pump for stabilising is available
on the Turntex Woodworks website – www.turntex.com – who are
the suppliers of Cactus Juice stabilising resin.

Woodturning 289 21

WT_289_21_24_PENS_TECH_WH_JRbdwhmb.indd 21 22/12/2015 09:56

 1 I removed the lid and handles from a
domestic pressure cooker and used the
cooker’s body as the basis for my chamber. Do
not use ordinary cooking pots as they are not
made of heavy enough material to withstand the
vacuum and may deform or implode. While this
is unlikely to cause any danger, it will not result
in a working chamber so don’t waste time going
down this route. Don’t ask how I know this!

2 The fittings for connection and control of the

vacuum supply are all ¼in BSP components
readily available online or from specialist
vacuum, plumbing or hydraulics suppliers.
They consist of a vacuum gauge, two valves, 1 2
a four-way connector, a straight connector
and an adaptor to fit the inlet hose from the
vacuum supply

3 The lid of the pressure cooker must be

replaced with a sheet of thick, clear Perspex
or similar clear acrylic material so that we can
see what is happening inside the chamber. I
recommend a minimum thickness of 20mm.
I tried some 12mm material at first and, while
this worked, it deflected rather too much under
vacuum for my liking so I upgraded to 20mm.
A local sign maker or plastics supplier may be
able to provide you with an inexpensive offcut.
I could have left it square but opted to turn it
down to a more attractive circular shape. After
finding the centre, mark out the shape with a 3 4
marker pen taped to a pair of dividers

4 Using a 3.5mm drill bit in a pillar drill, bore a

hole in the centre of the workpiece so that
it can be attached to a jig on the bandsaw to be
cut to shape. A narrow blade is needed in the
saw to follow the curve without binding

5 You could follow the line freehand, but

setting up a jig ensures much greater
accuracy. This simple arrangement consisted
of a sheet of plywood clamped to the bandsaw
table to which I was then able to screw the
workpiece using a 3.5mm woodscrew through
the hole pre-drilled in the centre. Careful
alignment with the blade is required
5 6

6 With the workpiece secured to the jig, turn

on the saw and slowly turn the work into
the blade to cut a perfect circle. Take care to
keep your fingers well clear, turning the work by
holding it at the side furthest from the blade

7 After completing the cut and removing the

work from the saw, mount the Perspex on
the lathe using the 3.5mm woodscrew as a
mounting mandrel in a set of engineer’s jaws
fitted to a scroll chuck and supported by a
revolving cone centre in the tailstock. You can
then tidy up the sawn edges with the wing of a
bowl gouge or whichever tool you prefer

8 Sand the edge through the grits from 240

through to 600. I used Abranet, but any 7 8

22 www.woodworkersinstitute.com

WT_289_21_24_PENS_TECH_WH_JRbdwhmb.indd 22 22/12/2015 09:56

 ALL ABOUT PENS PROJECT

good quality abrasive will do. The sharp edges

can be rounded off too at this stage

9 You could leave the edge with a matte finish

from the sanding, but I decided to go for a
more professional polished look so brought the
Perspex to a clear, glass like finish, with Farecla
300 and 500 polishing compounds

10 Remove the workpiece from the lathe

and return it to the pillar drill to be drilled
out to 11.8mm and then tapped by hand using a
¼in BSP tap in a suitable tap wrench

9 10
11 The male threads of all the components
are wound with a few turns of plumber’s
PTFE tape to ensure good airtight joints. Wrap
the tape in the direction of the thread

12 Begin the assembly by threading the

straight connector into the tapped hole
in the Perspex lid. Tighten it with a spanner
sufficiently to ensure an airtight seal

13 The remaining components are then

assembled as shown in the photograph.
I found it easiest to assemble the components
to the cross piece first and then attach the
completed assembly to the connector already
fitted to the Perspex lid. The lid is then fitted
using the original seal from the pressure cooker
11 12 as a gasket

14 Connect the vacuum supply and run up

to its maximum to test the completed
chamber. Then close the inlet valve, turn off the
air supply to the vacuum generator and leave
the assembly to stand to see if the vacuum
holds up

15 After 24 hours the vacuum in my chamber

had dropped from 25inHg to about
10inHg so in order to achieve a better seal I
replaced the original seal with a flat rubber
sealing washer of the type used for industrial
pipework. These are readily available in a wide
range of sizes from specialist suppliers. You
can omit this step if the original seal on your
13 14 chamber is good enough

16 All that now remains is a trial run

with some punky timber to test the
equipment. I decided to use a couple of pen
blanks that had been cut from some soft horse
chestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum), which
was quite crumbly to turn

HANDY HINTS
1. Always read any instructions when using
equipment. High pressure and chemicals
make for a potentially nasty mix if things go
wrong. Double check everything too.
2. Softer timbers, not dense close-grained
ones – will yield the best stabilising results.
15 16

Woodturning 289 23

WT_289_21_24_PENS_TECH_WH_JRbdwhmb.indd 23 06/01/2016 11:30

 17 For larger pieces such as bowl blanks
you could put the resin directly into the
body of the chamber, but for these pen blanks
I used a plastic container to hold the resin,
thus reducing the amount needed and making
cleaning up less of a chore. You only need
sufficient resin to cover the blanks; too
much and it may overflow from the container
under vacuum

18 Make sure to use a container that is

resistant to the chemicals you are using.
The blanks will need to be weighted down to
stop them from floating. I used an offcut of steel
angle that I had in the scrap bin 17 18

19 The container is then placed into the

chamber, the lid is replaced and we are
ready to apply the vacuum

20 With both valves on the vacuum

chamber closed, the airline and vacuum
pipes are connected to the vacuum generator
and the generator is turned on

21 The inlet valve can now be gradually

opened to allow the vacuum to evacuate
any air from the timber and replace it with resin.
This should be done by adjusting the inlet valve
gradually until full vacuum is achieved. You will
see air bubbles coming from the blanks, I have
opened the valve fully in the photograph so the 19 20
bubbles can be seen more clearly, but gradually
increasing the vacuum will avoid excessive
foaming

22 Once the maximum vacuum has been

achieved the inlet valve may be closed
and the blanks left in the vacuum for the time
specified by the manufacturer of the resin you
are using. The vacuum generator can be turned
off but left connected in case the vacuum needs
to be topped up. After the specified time the
vacuum is released by opening the outlet valve,
the wood can then be removed and treated
in accordance with the instructions for your
stabilising product •

21 22

The stabilised blanks

now need to dry fully
before use, but already
they are much harder
and less fragile

24 www.woodworkersinstitute.com

WT_289_21_24_PENS_TECH_WH_JRbdwhmb.indd 24 22/12/2015 09:57

 When Walter Hall tested the ToolPost’s Compac tools, he observed:
‘... when these new Compac tools
arrived for testing, I was not
expecting to be impressed. I was
wrong.’
He continued:
‘These are not the usual miniature
tools but seriously reduced length
versions of full-size tools. They
are specifically designed to make
turning easier on smaller lathes
where the reduced swing and length
between centres can make access
with long-handled tools difficult.
They allow the turner to more
easily attain the correct positioning
of the cutting edge and handle
movement when working within the
constraints of a small machine, thus
making it easier to exercise good
practice and better tool control.’
And concluded:
‘These are well-designed and
robust tools made from exellent
quality materials. They will make
an excellent partnership with any
of the smaller lathes and fill an
imporant niche gap in the market’
The ToolPost
Unit 7 Hawksworth, Southmead Industrial Park, Didcot, Oxon. OX11 7HR
01235 511101 y www.toolpost.co.uk
025_WTUR_289.indd 25
In fact, all of these things were said
by Walter Hall when he reviewed the
Compactool set for ‘Woodturning’ in
Issue 276 (Feb. 2015).
We find ourselves agreeing
wholeheartedly with Walter, but
then we did design these tools and
they are unique to The ToolPost. So,
naturally, we’re proud of them - and
of the great success they have been,
helping many turners become better
turners. But it’s certainly nice to have
truly independent corroboration of
our views from such a well-respected,
experienced and knowledgeable
turner as Walter Hall. We take
our hats off to this very insightful
gentleman.
A typical small lathe has just 6 inches
of space between spindle axis and
bed. A typical bowl gouge is 23 inches
long. You can’t fit that into a six-inch
space and present it to the workpiece
correctly. The new CompacTool bowl
gouge measures just 10½ inches
overall so it isn’t hard to understand
why that fits so much better into the
available space is it?
sharing expertise
*inc VAT. Price correct at time of going to press. Also available singly.
Between headstock and tailstock
you’ve maybe got 20 inches at
most – and 4 inches less when your
workpiece is mounted in a chuck. A
standard bowl scraper is 17 inches
long. The new CompacTool bowl
finishing scraper has the same cross-
section as a standard heavy scraper
but is only 10 inches long. That fits.
Comfortably.
So you see, now at last someone is
thinking about your needs when
you work on your mini lathe. That’s
why the new CompacTool set is
unique to The ToolPost: we’re the
folk who think about your needs first.
CompacTool: designed for you. By
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Invest £120.00* in a set of new
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individually and you’ll have six of
the best reasons ever for owning a
compact lathe. And six new ways of
creating great work. Available from
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now.
1/4/16 2:05 PM
 Sti le s & Bates
T h e Wo o d t u r n i n g P e o p l e
Shop Catalogue We b s i t e C ou rs e s

%& &&!!&##&
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Big on quality, small on space!

steinert® piccolo and the whole Steinert lathe family available at:
The ToolPost · www.toolpost.co.uk · phone (UK) 01235 511101

026_WTUR_289.indd 26 1/5/16 11:19 AM


How to turn
a perfect sphere
Richard Findley continues his new series by sharing
a simple technique for turning a perfect sphere
RICHARD FINDLEY
Richard is a registered UK
professional woodturner living
and working in Leicestershire.
He discovered woodturning
while working for his father as a
joiner. He makes all kinds of work
to commission, from replacement
antique components, walking canes and stair
spindles, to decorative bowls. It is the variety of
work that he loves. He also offers demonstrations
and a range of woodturning supplies.
richard@turnersworkshop.co.uk
www.turnersworkshop.co.uk
Follow on Instagram: richard_findley
T
urned wooden spheres hold a certain
fascination. They demand to be picked
up and rolled in the hand, they show
off the figure of the timber and they also
hold a mystery to turners and non-turners
alike: just how do you turn this perfectly
symmetrical shape without marking it?
WT_289_27_31_RICHARD_FINDLEY_bdJRrfmbS.indd 27
LOOKING AT SHAPES TECHNICAL
It’s actually not that difficult to do, but
there are several stages involved. The method
I will show in this article is the simplest way
that I have found, but it is by no means the
only way. I’ve seen lots of variations, some
involve some very careful marking out, some
involve some mathematical formulae or the
use of jigs. The beauty of the way I do it is that
it is pretty much foolproof!
The blank
The first stage with any turning is sorting
out the timber. The spheres I show being
turned in this article were for a customer
who specified soft wood spheres, 110mm in
diameter with a 16mm hole drilled through
the centre. The hole needed drilling first, but
isn’t relevant to making a sphere, so I need
not go in to any details about that, suffice it
to say, the holes make no difference to the
making of a sphere.
To achieve 110mm, I laminated two pieces
of 65mm European redwood (Pinus sylvestris)
together, to give me a blank of around
PHOTOGRAPHS BY RICHARD FINDLEY
130mm thick, and cut it around 150mm long.
The beauty of this project is that you can
make your sphere from literally any wood,
to any size you like and the technique to
create the spheres will be just the same as I
show here.
TOP TIP: WASTE WOOD
A common feeling among woodturners and
indeed woodworkers of all sorts, is that they
hate to waste wood, so will leave as little
waste on a blank of timber as possible. The
problem with this is that the drive marks at
each end penetrate surprisingly deep into the
timber, you also need space to work the main
shape – in this case the sphere – without
the drive centres getting in the way. For any
spindle work where you will be parting the
work from its driving points, I would always
recommend leaving a minimum of 15mm at
each end. In this case I’ve left 20mm at each
end. I would always prefer to leave too much
waste, rather than not enough!
Woodturning 289 27
22/12/2015 09:58
 Templates
The next step is to make a template. It is quite possible to make
a sphere without a template, but to minimise the work later on,
a template will make life much easier. I use an offcut of MDF and
draw a curve with a radius to match the sphere, in this case 55mm.
The beauty of a sphere is that it should be the same in every
direction, so I only make about a quarter of a circle, but you can
make as much of the curve as you like.
TOP TIP: PREVENTING BLADE BINDING
Curve cutting on the bandsaw, even with a narrow blade like the 10mm
one that I’m using, can be difficult, with the blade binding in the cut.
A good way to avoid this is to make a series of relief cuts down to the
curve line. This means that there is no material to bind on the blade as
you make the cut, allowing you to progress smoothly.

Cutting the template on the bandsaw. Notice the relief cuts which make it much MDF template cut to the radius of the sphere
easier to produce a smooth curve

First stages of turning

With the blank held between centres and roughed to a cylinder ruler. Using my 10mm beading and parting tool, I then turned
of the correct diameter, the next stage is to mark out the sphere. down the waste at each end, leaving enough solid timber to give
In this case I drew two lines to mark the 110mm sphere and a a positive drive, but not so much as to get in the way when
centre line at 55mm, simply marking them with a pencil and shaping the ball.

Marking out the sphere

Using my 12mm spindle gouge I then
began to shape the block into a ball. I find
it best to do this gradually, first rounding
off the corners, then, with each cut,
increasing the curve. It is important here
to keep an eye on the overall shape; to
do this I will tend to work on one side
until it begins to resemble a sphere, then
go to the other side and balance out the
shape. It is important to realise when
turning a sphere, that the curve begins
on the central line – or the equator if
you like – there are no flats on a sphere,
just curves, so make sure you cut right
from the line.
TERMINOLOGY
For the purposes of clarity, if we imagine the
sphere to be the earth, the grain of the timber
will be running north to south, from pole to
pole – so initially the blank is driven from
its poles and the central line is considered
the equator. This will help to clarify how the
wood is held later on.
Beginning to shape the sphere

28 www.woodworkersinstitute.com

WT_289_27_31_RICHARD_FINDLEY_bdJRrfmbS.indd 28 22/12/2015 09:58

 LOOKING AT SHAPES TECHNICAL

Start checking Initially the template

As the globe shape emerges from your blank you can bring the will show up how far
template into play. As long as you paid close attention to making from perfect your
the template and did it accurately, you can trust the template. If you sphere is...
are not going to believe what it’s telling you, there was no point in
making it! By now your orb should be looking quite spherical, but
the chances are your template will tell you it isn’t. Take the blank
out of the lathe and turn it on its end so the poles are top and bottom. ... but trust the template
Iit is often surprising how this will show you how spherical your ball and continue to work
isn’t... yet! Little by little, cut by cut, remove small amounts of timber until it is spherical
as your template guides you and soon enough, you should have a
nearly perfect sphere with a relatively small block of waste at each
end. With the shaping process, the waste blocks will naturally
reduce in size, to the point where they are greatly reduced but
still securely driving the blank.

Removing the waste

There are several ways that you could remove the waste, but the safest
way is to saw it off with a hand saw. Parting on the lathe would only
remove the waste from one end so you would still need to saw off the
other waste block anyway and using a bandsaw could potentially be
dangerous – if the blade grabbed the wood and spun the sphere it
could endanger your fingers.
With the waste removed all that is left to do is to tidy up the cut
marks, but potentially the sphere might not be 100% perfect, so it
would be useful to be able to remount the ball on the lathe in such a
way that it would allow the removal of the cut areas and to correct
any imperfections in the first turning and shaping stage... well there
Removing the is a way, and this is the beauty of this method of making spheres and
waste with a hand saw the part that makes it foolproof. In addition, it is an easy method to
follow as well as inexpensive to create the parts to make it work.

Wooden mounting cups

To achieve this secondary holding method
we need to turn some wooden cups to hold
the sphere securely without marking it. I
chose two pieces of tulipwood (Liriodendron
tulipifera), a relatively soft hardwood of
around the same density as the redwood
I used for the balls. One is simply held in
the chuck and turned to a cup shape, the
other needs to fit onto your live centre.
I am fortunate that I own a Oneway live
centre which features a threaded portion,
designed to hold various attachments and
homemade holding devices such as the
wooden cup needed here. These centres
are acknowledged to be one of the best
on the market, but have a price tag to
match. There are now some very similar
versions available.
To make accessories for this style of live
centre, you need to buy a tap that matches,
in this case a ¾in x 10tpi UNC, but check
your centre to find the correct size. Any
wood can be tapped; evidence of this is the
fact that I have used this soft tulipwood here,
but you need to select a piece of side grain –
like a bowl blank, rather than like a spindle
– as this will hold the thread, whereas the
threads cut into an end grain blank will just
crumble, unless you use a very dense wood,
but this wouldn’t be suitable in this case.
I cut a square of timber, oversized in all
directions, pilot drilled a hole and tapped
out the thread. I’m sure an engineer would
wince at my tapping technique, but it does
the job! With the thread cut, I fit the block
onto the live centre. With a drive centre in
the headstock, I bring the tailstock up and
engage the centres until the block spins
and I turn it to a cylinder. This can then
be removed from the live centre, reversed,
and held in the chuck to turn the cup
shape into the face.

The blank is mounted on the live centre and simply

The tapped hole in the cross grain blank of tulipwood driven with a drive centre Truing the blank for the cup with a spindle gouge

Woodturning 289 29

WT_289_27_31_RICHARD_FINDLEY_bdJRrfmbS.indd 29 22/12/2015 09:59

 What if I don’t own a fancy live centre?
If you don’t have this sort of centre, it isn’t a problem because you can
turn a similar version to sit over your live centre to do the same job.
The process is similar to making a box, in that you hold the blank in
the chuck and turn out the inside, deep enough to accommodate the
live centre and to a diameter that is a tight push fit over the parallel
section of the live centre. At this point you can mount it and drive
Turning out the hollow for the live centre to fit, using the wing of the gouge,
just like hollowing a box
Truing the blank for the cup with it fitted on the live centre and driven by a drive centre
Once the fitting is made and turned true, mount it in the chuck and
turn a cup shape into the face. Again the grain direction is relevant
here, as the cross grain version will need turning from the rim down
to the bottom, like a bowl, where the end grain version will need
drawing out from the centre to the rim with the wing of the tool like
a box. The exact shape of the cup is important here; too deep and only
the rim will drive the ball, which will certainly leave ring-shaped
Use a template to turn the correct shaped cup. Ensure it isn’t too deep so the rim
can’t damage the sphere as it drives
30 www.woodworkersinstitute.com
WT_289_27_31_RICHARD_FINDLEY_bdJRrfmbS.indd 30
it between centres as I described for the threaded version. The main
difference here is the grain direction, because the threaded version
is cross grain, which means turning it needs a little more care and
the use of a spindle gouge to cut it cleanly, but the standard push fit
version will be end grain and can be simply turned, as a spindle,
with a roughing gouge.
MDF template cut to the radius of the sphere
Both types of live centre with the wooden cup fittings for driving the sphere
dents in the sphere. You need to turn the cup slightly too shallow,
which means that a good proportion of the bottom of the cup will
drive the sphere, but importantly the rim won’t come into contact,
leaving the sphere blemish free. To achieve this, I cut out the same
radius curve on the other side of the template and turn the cup to suit,
ensuring the rim doesn’t come into contact with the template, and
so the sphere.
Wooden cups, ready for action
22/12/2015 09:59
 LOOKING AT SHAPES TECHNICAL

The sphere held in the wooden cups by its equator, the poles are straight The grain of the sphere in this picture shows clearly which way it wants to be cut,
up and down but if you mount it diagonally you will always be working against the grain at two
points in each rotation

With the cups turned the sphere can be remounted. It is important
to understand the grain direction of the sphere before starting to
turn it. You need to ensure the poles of the globe are directly up and
down, or north and south, to ensure a clean cut. When turning the
blank initially, it was a standard spindle blank, so the cuts ran from
the equator, down to the poles. Now, with the blank mounted between
cups, it becomes faceplate work, so the cuts will be drawn apparently
uphill, but still from the equator to the poles, and so still working
with the grain of the wood. What you can’t do at this stage, is to
mount the sphere with the poles running diagonally because then
you won’t be cutting consistently with the grain; at some point you
will be working against the grain. I’m not one to say this will never
work, but it will be making life difficult for yourself when it comes
to achieving a good, even surface finish.

Turning between cup centres

Use the wing of the tool in a shear cutting action to achieve the best results You can see the tooling marks on the sphere, which shows how this method
automatically corrects any imperfections in your freehand sphere turning

With the sphere held at the equator by the cups, and the poles
running directly vertically, you can finish turn the sphere. Light
cuts with the wing of the tool in a shearing cut work really well
here. This is when it becomes clear just how simple this all is,
because as you turn in this new orientation, the waste marks
will be removed and, because the lathe simply spins the sphere,
you will automatically be removing anything that wasn’t perfectly
spherical from the earlier operation. Because you are using a light
shearing cut, working with the grain of the wood, it cuts cleanly
and a sphere is formed almost effortlessly. Check the sphere regularly
and reposition it in the cups occasionally, but only by rotating
it around the equator, so a different portion of the sphere can
be turned. Once it is all turned and the cut off marks are gone,
the sphere is ready for sanding.

The completed spheres

The sanding process is even
more simple. I worked from
120 grit to 240 grit on these
soft wood spheres, but you might
choose to go finer. You can sand
in any direction, so now you
can feel free to mount the ball
in whatever orientation you like
between the cups; just try to
ensure every surface is worked
evenly. Very quickly, you will
find you have a perfectly smooth
and spherical ball. • Sanding the sphere The completed spheres

Woodturning 289 31

WT_289_27_31_RICHARD_FINDLEY_bdJRrfmbS.indd 31 22/12/2015 09:59

 Long hole
PHOTOGRAPHS BY COLWIN WAY

COLWIN WAY
Colwin started turning
aged 13 and has since gone
on to teach the craft and

bored lamps
wishes to continue to give
people confidence to try
the wonderful hobby for
themselves. Colwin was
born and grew up in Lyme Regis, a small seaside
town in the southwest of England, and is still
living in the area with his wife Vicki and two
sons, Finley and Charlie. Colwin Way uses the long hole boring
colwinway@btinternet.com technique to make two lamp designs
www.axminsterskillcentre.co.uk

SAFETY & LEGAL REQUIREMENTS

• In many countries the wiring of lamps has
to be undertaken by qualified electricians.
Do not attempt to wire the lamp yourself
without first seeking professional
guidance and make sure you follow
the current, relevant legislation

L
ong hole boring is a method that is
most commonly used for drilling out
the lengths of lamps to take the electric
cable. There can be a number of pitfalls when
drilling these long lengths and probably the
most common is the wander of the drill or
auger bit. On a short length generally there’s
no issue, but when turning standard lamps
or long single pieces then the chance of
wander increases, especially when drilling
from both ends requires the drill to meet at
the halfway point.
To demonstrate this technique I’m going
to make a single-piece lamp from a sycamore
(Acer pseudoplatanus) blank and a standard
three-piece lamp in ash (Fraxinus excelsior).
The design for the single-piece lamp is one
I’ve been using for over 30 years; it was one TOOLS FOR LONG HOLE BORING
of the most popular lamp designs I made as As well as the normal turning tools, there is a range of tooling
an apprentice and was created by Geoff rey that is specific to long hole
Manley, my then boss. What I like about boring, such as augers,
this design is that it can be stretched and counterbores and hollow live
compressed from standard lamp to small centres. I’m also using a few
vase shapes and if you look hard, you’ll see other bits and bobs to make
some of its characteristics in the three-piece the process easier, including
lamp too. a 5⁄16in auger bit, a cam lock
auger bit holder, a hollow
live centre with exhaust
holes to expel the shavings
and an interchangeable
counterbore/boring head. Tools for long hole boring

32 www.woodworkersinstitute.com

WT_289_32_37_COLWIN_PRO_CW_MBJRcwS.indd 32 06/01/2016 11:24

 LAMPS PROJECTS

DRAWING & INFORMATION

INFORMATION & PLANS

EQUIPMENT USED
10mm bowl gouge
6mm bowl gouge
6mm beading and parting tool
30mm standard skew
Counterbore and drive system
Hollow live system
5⁄16in auger with cam lock handle
7mm drill bit
Abrasives, grits 100–600
Sanding sealer
Paste wax polish

TIMBER REQUIREMENTS
Single-piece lamp: sycamore (Acer
pseudoplatanus) blank 550 x 160mm
Three-piece lamp: ash (Fraxinus
excelsior) blanks, 2 at 750 x 75mm
for the uprights and 1 at 330 x 75mm
for the base

60mm (23/8in)
320mm (123/4in)

14mm (9/16in)
15mm (19/32in) 30mm (11/8in)
40mm (15/8in)
45mm (13/4in)
15mm (19/32in)
20mm (3/4in)

590mm (231/4in)
490mm (191/4in)

510mm
(20in)

95mm (33/4in)
87mm
(37/16in)
13mm ( /2in)
1

80mm (31/8in)
35mm
55mm (21/8in) (13/8in)

Woodturning 289 33

WT_289_32_37_COLWIN_PRO_CW_MBJRcwS.indd 33 06/01/2016 11:24

 Single-piece lamp
1 It’s really important that the hole through
your lamp is in the dead centre and the best
way to do this is to start by drilling the hole first.
To prepare the blank for centring and turning,
take the corners away on the bandsaw to give
an eight-sided blank. I’m using a large four-
prong drive, which needs to be tapped into one
end of the lamp first. In the tailstock I’m using a
hollow live centre, which consists of a ring and
removable centring pin. To start with we use this
pin to locate the centre and increase pressure
from the tailstock enough so that the ring leaves
an impression on the timber 1 2

2 Here you can see the centre once the pins

have been removed and the tailstock has
been wound back to its full, which will make
a shorter distance to push the auger through.
Mount the blank onto the lathe using the ring
mark from the live centre. This is a good time
to mention a few safety points: turn your lathe
down to a low speed for start up, ensure all your
levers are tight on the tailstock and the toolrest
isn’t touching the timber

3 The auger I’m using here has a separate

cam lock handle, this is ideal for lamps of
varying lengths and means you don’t need to
use the full length of the auger if you’re making
short lamps. The auger itself has a relief after 3 4
the main cutting section giving clearance when
drilling a long way

4 Before you start drilling, it’s good to plan

out your next moves. I like to start with just
enough auger exposed to drill in 100–150mm
but make a mental note of how much auger I will
need to take me past the halfway point of the
lamp, if necessary marking with masking tape
on the auger behind the cam lock handle

5 My hollow live centre has a set of exhaust

holes running around its circumference that
allows the swarf to be sent away from the cut
using centrifugal force. You’ll need to give the
centre a helping hand and, as you gently push
the auger in, keep easing back to allow the 5 6
swarf to clear

6 This stage of long hole boring can cause

problems and should not be rushed. Just cut
in 40–50mm at a time, making sure you clear
the exhaust holes frequently and lubricate the
auger with some wax polish. The wax polish
keeps friction down to a minimum and stops any
screeching and overheating. Don’t be tempted
to use machine oils or WD-40 as these will stain
the timber. Be very careful when applying the
wax as the auger is very sharp and very hot

7 As you can see, I’ve positioned myself

comfortably behind the auger. Relax into it,
clear often and have the wax ready. Drill to just
past the centre point 7

34 www.woodworkersinstitute.com

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 LAMPS PROJECTS

8 Next, turn the blank around and drill in

from the other side. Take the blank off the
lathe and replace the headstock four-prong
drive centre for the counterbore drive. The
counterbore has a centre parallel bar that
matches the auger diameter with four prongs
around it, which creates a very positive drive.
The other end of the lamp can now be drilled
to meet up with your previous drilling at around
the halfway point. Once that the centre hole
has been drilled, rough down using a 30mm
roughing gouge. There’s no need to be fussy
here as this is just preparation for drilling
the base hole
8 9

9 Swap the counterbore head over from the

drive to the boring head. This will be used
to drill a second hole in the base that will later
help with fitting the cable

10 Drill the base out using the boring head.

You also need to drill a 7mm hole in from
the side linking into this larger hole to be the
route of the cable coming straight down the
lamp and out to the side. When you’ve finished
the boring, replace the boring head with the
drive head ready for shaping the lamp

11 It’s now time to start the turning. It’s

a good idea to have a drawing of your
planned design beside you as you work. Start
10 11 by shaping the base. Here, I’ve left a large,
stable base before leading into a deep cove.
The cover will finish with a fillet before moving
into a convex curve to the highpoint about one-
third up the height of the lamp

12 For the upper part of the lamp, start by

taking off the bulk material using the
roughing gouge. Work from the high point to
create an ogee down to the next low point. As
you can see, I’ve replaced the hollow live centre
with a standard single pointed centre to add a
bit more security while making these heavy cuts

13 When happy with the rough shape of the

lamp, use the skew to iron out any lumps
and bumps. Remember to always rub the bevel
12 and cut with the supported bottom half of the
chisel. Moving the toolrest slightly higher helps
to keep that unsupported tip out of the way.
Use bowl and spindle gouges on all the coves
to give finishing cuts to match the skew finish.
Then sand the piece down to 400grit

14 Seal the lamp with cellulose sanding

sealer mixed to a 50/50 ratio with
thinners. Once the sealer has dried, very lightly
sand back with 600 grit at a low speed to
de-nib. For the main finish, I chose a neutral
paste wax to prevent yellowing. Apply the wax,
then wait 10 minutes before burnishing off the
excess, then buff with a piece of polishing cloth.
This lamp was fitted with a flex cable, switched
lamp holder, brass connecting plate and
13 14 cable clamp

Woodturning 289 35

WT_289_32_37_COLWIN_PRO_CW_MBJRcwS.indd 35 06/01/2016 11:25

 Three-piece lamp
1 Start this lamp in exactly the same way as
the single piece lamp by taking the corners
off the blank and then drilling the holes. As you
can see, I’ve already centred the parts of the
lamp and am locating the blank onto the hollow
live centre

2 If you don’t have a bandsaw to take off the

corners of the blank, now is a good time to
turn them off with the roughing gouge. You don’t
need to be too fussy with this as the aim is just
to make the blank easier to handle
1 2

3 Drill through the piece with the auger until

just past the halfway point

4 Swap the four-prong drive for the

counterbore drive head

5 Mount the blank onto the counterbore drive

and drill in from the other side meeting
at the halfway point as before. Remember to
clear the swarf regularly and use paste wax to
lubricate and cool the auger

6 Now that the first blank has been drilled,

you can change the drive centre for the
boring centre ready for making the mortise

3 4
7 Here you can see the boring head at work
creating the mortise. Bore in to a depth of
30mm. Hand pressure should be enough to
stop the blank from rotating while drilling but if
you’re at all unsure, bring the toolrest up to the
blank as a helping hand

8 The finished mortise is perfectly centred

using the locating pin on the boring head.
Now swap the boring head back to the driving
centre to start the shaping

9 As before, it’s helpful to keep a copy of

the design beside you as you work. Turn
the bottom section. As you can see here, the
bottom has a tenon that will fit into the base
and the top at the headstock has the mortise
we bored in earlier 5 6

7 8 9

36 www.woodworkersinstitute.com

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 LAMPS PROJECTS

10 11 12

10 Turn the top section including the tenon

to fit into the pre-bored mortise. Use a
set of callipers to measure the boring head and
then transfer the measurements to the tenon
to be sure of a good fit. If you’re unsure, make
the callipers slightly oversize and take a small
amount off at a time, testing every cut until
the fit is perfect. A perfect fit is not a tight fit,
remember the glue needs space so if the joint
is screeching in and out, take a bit away so the
joint goes together with little effort

11 When the two sections of your lamp are

assembled you should be able to hide any
join with a well-placed ‘V’ cut or fillet. In this
13 14 case, I’ve placed a fillet either side of a bead to
disguise the join

12 It’s now time to turn the base. Mount

this onto a screw chuck to avoid screw
holes from a faceplate being visible in the top
of the base. The base has a dovetailed recess
on the bottom, which we will use to mount it
onto a chuck for turning. You will also notice
that the underside is slightly fluted to the centre
point; this will guide the cable as it comes
through the bottom

13 This lamp includes a set of bung feet.

Drill a 20mm tenon that you can then
glue the feet into

15
14 After turning the base around into the
chuck and roughing it down, size the
mortise ready for finishing

15 You need to leave some weight in the

base to make a nice stable lamp and you
also need to drill an 8mm hole through the base
for the flex. Use a 6mm bowl gouge to give a
nice finishing cut ready for sanding

16 Test the fit and make sure the design

flows nicely. Make any adjustments
as necessary and then you’re ready for the
finishing

16 17
17 As before, sand with abrasives starting
at 100 grit and working through to 600.
Follow this with sanding sealer and paste wax •

Woodturning 289 37

WT_289_32_37_COLWIN_PRO_CW_MBJRcwS.indd 37 06/01/2016 11:26


Bob Chapman turns hollow forms in birch ply
Birch
BOB CHAPMAN
After teaching chemistry
for many years, Bob
took early retirement
to become a professional
woodturner, and is a
member of the Register
of Professional Turners.
He was a demonstrator at the 2009 AWGB
Woodturning Seminar and is available
for commissions.
bob@bobchapman.co.uk
www.bobchapman.co.uk
B
irch (Betula pendula) trees will thrive
in a very wide variety of habitats and
are fast growing, but relatively short
lived – around 60–90 years, although some
may survive to almost twice that age. They
are well known as ‘pioneer’ trees and may
often be found on the outer fringes of more
mixed woodland, colonising open ground
in advance of other trees. They are able to
survive in poor soil because their deep roots
find nutrients and they improve the soil when
their leaves are eventually deposited on the
soil surface and decompose. In this way birch
trees prepare the ground for the later growth
of other species.
An unusual form of birch is ‘masur
birch’, which has very attractive dark brown
markings, often giving a flame-like figure
to the wood. The origin of the markings is a
matter of debate, but one theory is that they
arise when the tree heals itself from damage
done to it by the Agromyzia Carbonara
38 www.woodworkersinstitute.com
WT_289_38_42_CHAPMAN_TECH_BC_bdJRbcmbS.indd 38
PHOTOGRAPHS BY BOB CHAPMAN, UNLESS OTHERWISE STATED
bottom photo on this page, stands close to
‘Lady Blantyre’s Rock’ in Bingley, Yorkshire.
Lady Blantyre was the wife of Robert Walter
Stuart, Lord Blantyre. She died in November
1875, aged 84 and her son in law, William
Busfeild Ferrand erected this memorial to
her in March 1876. He went on to become the
Member of Parliament for Knaresborough
and Devonport and showed genuine
sympathy for the problems then facing the
Birch trees do not generally grow to a great size working man. He has the unusual distinction
of being quoted by Karl Marx in Das Kapital.
beetle whose larvae bore into the trees. Also
known as Karelian birch from the province
in Finland where it grows, it is quite rare and
much sought after.
Birch trees rarely grow to any size,
with trunks around 400mm diameter
when mature and the timber has an even
pale yellow or white colour with a fine
straight grain. Although birch is not grown
commercially in Britain, Scandinavian birch
is used almost exclusively for furniture and
for making plywood. Birch is surprisingly
strong, being rated similar to oak (Quercus The silver birch is the best known species
robur) and beech (Fagus sylvatica) for its
strength and density. In England, birch was
once used for making broomsticks, its bark
was used in the tanning of leather and its sap
can be used as a source of sugar and can be
brewed into beer and wine.
There are several species of birch tree
common to Britain, but possibly the best
known and most easily recognised is the
silver birch. Its attractive silver white stems
and delicate leaves make it a favourite tree in
parks, gardens and other public spaces.
The birch tree at the forefront of the The birch by Lady Blantyre’s Rock in Bingley
22/12/2015 10:03
 USING LOCAL TIMBERS PROJECT

A birch plywood Although some of the differences in the

hollow form
As solid birch timber is not readily
available, I decided to use birch plywood as
the material for this project. Plywood has
the advantage that pieces may be glued
together to form a blank of any desired
size and the arrangement of the layers in
the finished piece provides a range of
design opportunities.
Design
Hollow forms lend themselves to a very large
number of different shapes, from small and
squat to tall and narrow, and the first task was
to decide on the actual shape I wanted. I began
by sketching shapes of differing proportions.
The designs were drawn on squared paper and
this allowed the proportions to be changed
fairly systematically.
proportions are small, they make noticeable
differences to the outlines. I considered ‘e’
to be the most pleasing and its proportions,
12:13, are the ones used for this project.
As 130mm seems a convenient height for a
hollow form, it will be 120mm in diameter.
The orientation of the plywood layers
has also to be considered and I wanted to
get away from simple horizontal or vertical
arrangements. However, if I wanted to mount
the blank diagonally in some way, how could
I calculate the size I actually needed to start
with, and how would I mount it on the lathe?
I overcame both of these problems by
drawing the hollow form full size on squared
paper. I then cut round this outline, arranged
it at the desired angle and drew a second
rectangle showing the size of the blank
required. These steps are shown in (a) and
(b) respectively. The drawings show that a
block 130mm square by 150mm tall would
accommodate my hollow form, with sufficient
waste at one end to form a spigot to hold it by.
At this stage I also decided to incorporate
a ‘sash’ of wood of a different colour, coming
over the shoulder of the hollow form. This
was drawn onto the diagrams, which were
then used to decide where this layer should
come in between the layers of plywood.
The sash would be made from 25mm thick
padauk (Pterocarpus soyauxii), which would
show a good contrast with the plywood. The
plywood is 19mm thick and it soon became
apparent that the design required three
layers each side of the padauk. This would
form a block rather larger in one dimension
than strictly necessary, but fewer layers
would make the block too small. I found the
diagrams invaluable at this planning stage,
and don’t think I could have worked this
out without them.

PLANS & EQUIPMENT

EQUIPMENT USED
Abrasives
PVA adhesive
Bandsaw
Steb centre
13mm bowl gouge
Four-jaw chuck
Forstner bit
LED lamp
Mini hollowing tool
3mm parting tool
Hacksaw
Power sanding disc a b c
Buffing system

d e

(a)
(b)

Woodturning 289 39

WT_289_38_42_CHAPMAN_TECH_BC_bdJRbcmbS.indd 39 22/12/2015 10:04

 Constructing the blank
1 Cut six pieces of 19mm plywood 130 x
150mm on the bandsaw, together with a
piece of 25mm padauk the same size. Lightly
sand the pieces before gluing them into a block
using PVA adhesive. Lightly clamp the block and
leave overnight to cure. It is essential that glued
up blocks are secure before turning begins. Use
a good quality glue and allow adequate time for
it to cure thoroughly before beginning work on
the assembly

2 Once set, draw the shape of the hollow form

onto the block, using a paper template as a
guide. Then, cut the block close to the line using 1 2
the bandsaw – remember to retain the waste at
the narrow end of the block

3 Next, remove further corners on the

bandsaw before mounting the rough block
between centres on the lathe. I find that a steb
centre is ideal for mounting this sort of work
and is very ‘forgiving’ if a catch does occur

Roughing down
4 Tidy up the waste end of the form and cut
a dovetail spigot so the piece can be held
securely for hollowing. The long point of the
skew is already the correct shape for cutting a
dovetail and I usually employ it for this purpose.
Before reversing the form, use a 13mm bowl 3
gouge to remove the corners and turn the
piece to something resembling its final shape.
This helps the piece to turn true and reduces
vibration which might otherwise cause the
spigot to break up. Leave plenty of wood at the
end of the form near to the spigot as this will
form a strong support for the piece. Reducing
this end of the form to its final diameter will
be one of the last tasks carried out

5 Reverse the blank and grip the dovetail

spigot in the standard jaws of a four-jaw
chuck. This enables a 30mm hole to be bored to
a depth of approximately 115mm. A good quality
Forstner bit will make this job much easier, so
it is worth investing in quality cutters. Note the 4
thick pencil line marking what will be the widest
part of the hollow form as a reminder not to
remove material from the outside in this area

Hollowing
6 Begin hollowing with the 13mm bowl gouge.
Feed the gouge into the hole with the flute
downwards. In this position the gouge cannot
cut and you can feel your way down the wall
of the hole. When you are a little way in, start
to rotate the gouge slowly clockwise. This will
bring the lower cutting edge of the gouge into
contact with the wall. Continue rotating the
gouge until you get a satisfactory cut. Don’t
over-rotate the gouge or you are very likely to
get a dig-in which will not be pleasant, at best 5 6

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 USING LOCAL TIMBERS PROJECT

7 A flexible LED lamp will help you see inside

the hollow form, and between what you feel
through the tool and what you can see inside,
you’ll develop a ‘feel’ for what is happening

8 I find a blast of compressed air is the best

7 8
way to remove dust and shavings from
inside the hollow form. Alternatively, try using
a bent spoon to scoop out the debris or blowing
through a straw but, if you do, make sure you
shut your eyes first! Whenever I’ve tried using
a straw I’ve found that the end gradually gets
clogged up as dust sticks to the moisture from
my breath. Because the gouge is scraping on
its lower wing, and also because the glue in
plywood blunts tools very quickly, you may
soon tire of hollowing in this way and wish
for a more specialised hollowing tool

9 I now use the Rolly Munro mini hollowing

9 10
tool almost exclusively and find it very
controllable in use. Its articulated head is
excellent for reaching under the shoulder or
to the bottom of a hollow form, depending on
how it is arranged. The circular cutter can be
rotated to a fresh edge when it dulls, and is easy
to resharpen. However, there are alternatives
and instead of using a shielded cutting tool
like the one I use, there are multi-tip angled,
swan-neck and articulated multi-tip hollowing
tools aplenty. It doesn’t matter what you use
as long as it removes the wood cleanly, safely
and it is something you feel comfortable using.
Take steady cuts, starting under the shoulder
and gradually working down the side of the form
towards the bottom. Stop frequently to remove
shavings and to measure the wall thickness with
callipers. Note that I’ve rotated the headstock a
little so that I don’t have to lean over the lathe
bed to get into the hollow form

Refining the
external shape
10 With the hollowing down to an
acceptable wall thickness, refine the
shape of the outside with the bowl gouge

11
11 Continue to remove material from the
outside until you achieve the desired
shape. Referring to the paper template may help
achieve this, but keep an eye on wall thickness
– you don’t want any accidents at this stage

12 Next, use a small 10mm bowl gouge to

refine the shape of the opening before
power sanding the whole of the outside, from
180 grit down to 400 grit

13 Plywood often has flaws and gaps in the

ply layers and it is essential to examine
the whole surface to see if you have exposed
any. If so, carefully fill with a matching filler and
re-sand the surface. Fortunately, the appearance
of plywood is such that repairs almost always
12 13 blend in and become unnoticeable

Woodturning 289 41

WT_289_38_42_CHAPMAN_TECH_BC_bdJRbcmbS.indd 41 22/12/2015 10:04

 Shocking!
14 At this point I applied a generous coat of
cellulose sanding sealer and, to my horror,
found that the cellulose dissolved the red colour
from the padauk and stained all of the plywood
a rather delicate shade of pink. With no other
remedy available, I bit the bullet and re-sanded
the whole thing again and then sealed it much
more carefully, taking care not to transfer colour
from the padauk to the plywood

The bottom
15 Using a 3mm parting tool, part off the
hollow form from the waste in the chuck.
Work carefully as you approach the centre and
14 15

stop before parting all the way through. Make

sure the bottom of the form is slightly concave
so that it will sit on the outer edge without
rocking. Stop the lathe and cut through the
small stub with a hacksaw blade to complete
the parting off. Remove the stub and sand the
bottom on a 50mm power sanding disc held in
the chuck. Hold the workpiece at an angle to the
disc so you can sand all the way into the centre
while retaining a crisp outer edge on the foot

16 The chuck jaws do not close enough to

grip the sanding disc and so hold it in the
chuck in a small disc of scrap wood. Drill a 6mm
hole and make a saw cut into it. This allows the
wood to flex slightly and grip the spindle when 16 17
the chuck jaws are tightened

17 Finish with a final polish using a buffing

system to give it a good shine

18 I used the same technique to make two

smaller versions with dimensions two
thirds and one third of the original. The sashes
are made from roupala (Roupala brasiliensis)
and ebony (Diospyros spp.) respectively. All
three are now in a private collection •

HANDY HINTS
1. When working with laminated pieces
take precautions against glue failure. Full
face protection is recommended. This
is especially true when working with
plywood, which is well-known to contain
voids and where the quality of the
manufacturer’s glue is unknown
2. When working with a combination of
pale and highly coloured woods, test if
your sanding sealer will dissolve colour
3. After sanding I now use a quick blast
of compressed air to blow any highly
coloured dust out of the grain of an
adjacent pale timber. This is not generally
recommended by HSE because it makes
more dust airborne and hence more likely
to be inhaled. Use with care and wear a
good quality dust mask
18

42 www.woodworkersinstitute.com

WT_289_38_42_CHAPMAN_TECH_BC_bdJRbcmbS.indd 42 22/12/2015 10:04

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043_WTUR_289.indd 43 1/6/16 11:55 AM

044_WTUR_289.indd 44 1/8/16 9:23 AM

HIDDEN BOX
EARRING
STAND
Andy Coates uses up some offcuts
by turning this earring stand
O
ne of my staple production items is
made from 85mm square lignum vitae
(Guiaiacum officinale) stock and the
stock is always delivered overlength because
that is how it is supplied. My customer has no
use for the offcuts, so they are the ‘cream on
the milk’ and I get to keep them. The trouble
I have is what to make from them. I don’t
particularly like lignum; it can be oily and
difficult to get a decent finish on, it can look
a little ‘old-fashioned’ for my tastes, and
recent batches have had a number of faults
that have rendered the blanks unusable
for anything other than pen blanks! I have
however, built up quite a supply of offcuts
and decided I should use them before
I get too many. They are usually about
90 x 90 x 190mm, so whatever I use them
for needs to be a small item, and small items
always suggest craft fair stock to me.
I decided to make one of my regular stock
items, an earring stand with a hidden box,
which I usually make from branch wood yew
(Taxus baccata). I designed this stand quite
some time ago now and the main reason for
the hidden box was to simply add interest and
value to what is a pretty ordinary stock item
WT_289_45_49_COATES_PROTECH_AC_bdJRmbacS.indd 45
that can only command a price within a very
tight band. The addition of the hidden box
means I can have two versions, one without
a box at price A and one with a hidden box
at an increased price, B. And so far it has
worked well. They always sell.
Like anything we make to sell, the
difference between the run-of-the-mill and
the special is attention to detail, and this
project is a good example of this philosophy.
Some of the steps may seem like overkill and
if they do to you, then please feel free to leave
them out and finish the project to your own
taste, but if you persevere and complete the
stand in the prescribed manner then you end
up with a finished object that looks and feels
considered and is finished to a high standard.
In order to complete the box I use a
homemade jam chuck for three of the steps.
You can make one of these for yourself quite
simply, and once made you will find other
uses for it over and above those detailed here.
I have included a drawing of the jam chuck,
and detailed the making within the project.
You could use almost any wood species for
this project, but it works best with something
strong-grained as it is the grain alignment
EARRING STAND PROJECTS
J
PHOTOGRAPHS BY ANDY COATES
that helps to hide the box; this wouldn’t work
quite so well with a bland wood species.
There are also opportunities for some further
design features, such as texturing on the upper
‘umbrella’, or around the base, or maybe some
colour, gilding or metal leaf decoration. As
ever this project is intended more to get you
thinking than simply copying a pattern.
ANDY COATES
Andy is on the Register of
Professional Turners (RPT)
and is Chairman of the
AWGB. He is a professional
woodturner and has a
workshop and gallery in
Suffolk. He mostly makes
one-off pieces, but like any jobbing woodturner,
is just as likely to be found doing small batch
runs, antique restorations or any number of
strange commissions. He also demonstrates
and teaches turning.
cobwebcrafts@btinternet.com
www.cobwebcrafts.co.uk
Woodturning 289 45
22/12/2015 10:06
 INFORMATION AND PLANS
20mm (3/4in)
EQUIPMENT USED
10mm long-grind bowl gouge
10mm spindle gouge “v” cuts
“v” cuts
2mm parting tool 10mm (3/8in) 3mm
4mm parting tool (1/8in)
hole
25mm round-nosed scraper
25mm skew chisel
3mm twist bit and drill 3mm
(1/8in)
Strip of Formica 30mm (11/8in)
Abrasives 180–400 grits
Cellulose sealer
Hard wax stick
PPE: facemask, gloves, dust mask/ 15mm
respirator (19/32in)
147mm
(513/16in)

110mm
(41/4in)

“v” cuts
tenon

box
hollow

28mm
(11/8in)

concave
78mm (31/8in)

MAKING THE JAM CHUCK JAM CHUCK

First, we will make a jam chuck for use 6mm (1/4in) neoprene pad
later in the project. Take a scrap hard wood
blank that will produce a cylinder 80mm
diameter by about the same in length
and mount it between centres. Rough it
down to a cylinder and turn an accurate
tenon on one end. Re-mount in your scroll
chuck and true up the face. Using a 20mm
Forstner bit, bore a hole through the
blank. Next you need a disc of neoprene. hole
20mm
This can be cut from an old mouse mat or (3/4in)
80mm
something similar. Glue to the face of the (31/8in)
blank using contact adhesive or carpet
glue and allow to cure. Now take the sharp
point of a skew and cut through the centre
to reveal the 20mm hole. Your jam chuck is
now complete. Set aside until later.

Tenon

80mm (3 /8in)
1

46 www.woodworkersinstitute.com

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1 2
3 4
5 6
7 8
WT_289_45_49_COATES_PROTECH_AC_bdJRmbacS.indd 47
EARRING STAND PROJECTS
1 Mount the blank between centres. I use a
multi-head centre and use the cup, or ring,
centre for this part of the process. The ring
centre serves two purposes which are of benefit
over a more conventional cone centre: firstly,
unlike a cone centre, the ring centre will not split
the wood along the grain, and is therefore a
safer option for holding stock. Secondly, the
indent that the ring produces is a useful aid
when re-mounting a blank as it gives an exact
reference point for realigning the blank later
2 Rough down the blank using a long-grind
bowl gouge or spindle roughing gouge.
Check for faults in the wood as you progress
and if you find any you may need to remount to
remove them. Try to keep the cylinder parallel
3 Turn an accurate tenon on the tailstock end
of the blank. Your particular scroll chuck will
have specific dimensions for this; note these
dimensions and get in to the habit of making
each tenon accurate to these dimensions.
Remember that depth as well as diameter is
important. Here you will see that a fault was
noted on my blank. I marked beyond the fault
so that I could cut it away later
4 Now re-mount the blank in the scroll chuck
using the tenon to hold it. Bring up the
tailstock for added support. Now mark 45mm in
from the end of the blank. Using either the bowl
gouge or spindle gouge begin to turn the top
section, or ‘umbrella’, down. The first 15–20mm
of the edge should be relatively flat, after which
you can produce a raised boss. This section
should be about 15mm deep
5 The remaining 30mm section needs to be
turned down to a cylinder about 20mm
diameter. From this turn a small decorative finial.
I prefer a ball type finial but you may prefer
something a little more ornate. Using a skew
chisel will give you a far better finish on lignum
but if you prefer, then use the spindle gouge
6 Using the point of a small parting and
beading tool, cut ‘V’ cuts 3mm in from the
edge and 13mm in from the edge. You can also
cut one near the base of your finial. Take a small
piece of Formica and scorch these cuts until
black. Now you need to abrade this top section
to a finish. Abrade from start grit to 400 grit,
then seal with cellulose sealer
7 The umbrella needs to be about 3–4mm
thick. Using either a spindle gouge or a
parting tool, cut in to set this thickness for the
first 10–20mm of depth
8 Now begin to remove waste working
towards the centre of the blank. Be careful
not to let the wings of the gouge catch. When
space becomes tight remove waste from the left
and work down. When the central section gets
to about 30mm diameter stop cutting for now
Woodturning 289 47
06/01/2016 11:32
 9 Before the remainder of the shaping is done
we need to mark the earring holes. With a
pencil mark the mid-point between the two ‘V’
cuts you made and scorched earlier. Using your
index system – or compasses if you don’t have
one on your lathe – mark 12 divisions around
the umbrella. Centre-pop the intersects with a
bradawl

10 Now we can return to shaping. At the

headstock end of the blank, mark in
30mm. Now turn a sweeping curve between
this point and the base of the umbrella. Try
to make complete cuts to produce a flowing
curve. Once completed make a ‘V’ cut under 9 10
the umbrella to differentiate the stem from
the umbrella

11 Now we can finish the umbrella section.

Using a 3mm twist bit in a power drill
carefully drill through at the 12 marked points.
Use your fingers to support the umbrella, taking
great care not to drill in to your fingers! Drill
slowly and do not force the travel of the bit
to ensure you do not get breakout on the
underside. Now abrade – 180–400 grit – the
curved section and underside of the umbrella,
and then seal with cellulose sealer

12 Mark a point about 15mm to the right of

the straight section of the base. Using a
4mm parting tool part in from this line until the 11 12
cut is as wide as the parting tool. Now make
a further cut to the left of the initial cut,
approximately half the thickness of the tool
– 2mm – forming a tenon 6mm deep

13 Take a 2mm parting tool and begin a

parting cut on the headstock side of
this tenon. You only need to go in about 10mm
at this point. Now abrade the remaining 4mm
of tenon edge. Keep it flat and parallel. Seal
the surface

14 Continue parting off the top section of the

stand. Keep the lathe speed slow and aim
to fully part off the section. You want a small
central reference point on the underside, so if
you can stop parting at about 2mm and snap 13 14
it off, all the better

15 Using a calliper record the diameter of the

tenon, here it was 43mm. Transfer this
dimension to the face of the portion remaining
in the scroll chuck

16 Using a small parting and beading tool

cut a recess to match the tenon – 43mm
diameter and 4mm deep. You need to remove
some of the central waste to allow for test fitting
the top section. Do this carefully with a spindle
gouge, making the interior slightly concave.
Work carefully towards your 43mm mark test
fitting the top section repeatedly until a very
tight fit is achieved
15 16

48 www.woodworkersinstitute.com

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 EARRING STAND PROJECTS

17 Now we need to fit the top section on to

the base section and re-turn the lower
portion of the curve. A tight fit alone might allow
for this, but to be assured that the top section
does not fly off the lathe use the jam chuck you
made earlier. I fit a cone head to the revolving
centre and locate the cone in the hole on the
underside of the jam chuck’s tenon. The
umbrella is supported on the neoprene face.
Do not apply too much pressure from the quill.
Using the bowl or spindle gouge re-cut the lower
curve until it matches the upper curve. Do not
be tempted to follow the cut through to the top

17 18
18 In order to help to hide the join, cut a
‘V’ cut directly in to the join. Now cut
matching ‘V’ cuts 3mm either side of the first ‘V’
cut. Scorch these black using the Formica. Take
special care on the middle one as the material
around it is finer than in the solid areas around
it. Now abrade the base section to match the
stand of the upper section. Seal with cellulose
sealer. You can also apply a wax or oil finish

19 Remove the top section from the lathe.

Using a 25mm round-nosed scraper cut a
round-bottomed hollow in the base. Make it as
deep as you feel confident to. It needs to be at
least deep enough to take a finger ring, fine
necklace, stud earrings or similar. Abrade the
interior and seal with cellulose sealer.
19 20

20
aag
Mount the jam chuck in to the scroll
chuck on its tenon. Using the ring centre
again, mount the base of the earring stand
bbetween it and the ring centre. The indentation
ffr from the first holding assures concentricity. Turn
tththe tenon away using a 10mm spindle gouge.
M Make the base slightly concave. Abrade and seal
the base. The remaining stub can be carved or
tth
ppower sanded away and then finished

21
finial
Take the top section and mount in a
similar fashion as previously. The ball
n should fit in the hole of the jam chuck; the
umbrella
u should sit against the neoprene face.
The
T small 2mm stub is your centre reference
for
ffo a cone centre in the revolving centre.
21 Apply
A minimal pressure from the tailstock

22
section
sse
Now, slightly dish the underside of the
tenon on the top section. As the top
may be very slightly out of true,
measure
m the lip in the base and mark the depth
on
o the underside face of the top section tenon.
From
FFr this mark, dish the base towards the
centre.
cce Abrade and seal. Remove the stub and
seal
sse to a finish. A light coat of finishing oil can be
applied
aap all over and then buff to a fine finish

23 Your earring stand is now completed. Fit

the two parts together and you should
finnd the grain matches and the scorched ‘V’ cuts
llolook like a simple decorative feature. If you feel
the fit is too tight, you can lightly abrade the
tth
22 23 eedge of the tenon to relieve it a little •

Woodturning 289 49

WT_289_45_49_COATES_PROTECH_AC_bdJRmbacS.indd 49 22/12/2015 10:07

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PHOTOGRAPH BY BINH PHO
AAW: transforming
woodturning in the US
The AAW looks back
over the last 30 years
W
oodturning is an endlessly fulfi lling
and rewarding craft because it is
truly a personal expression of form
and style; not only is every piece of wood
unique, but every woodturner seems to
invent his or her own distinctive approach
to working with it. And though the basics
WT_289_51_55_AAW_FEA_mbJRkrSD.indd 51
are not difficult to learn, mastery is an
absorbing pursuit that can take a lifetime
(Kelsey, back cover).
Like the craft that it supports, the
American Association of Woodturners
(AAW) is a truly unique organisation.
The AAW’s nearly 30-year journey, often
IN PROFILE FEATURES
fraught with obstacles and opportunities,
has led to a dramatic transformation of the
craft. Fuelled by the commitment to build
a community of shared ideas, techniques,
and passion, the AAW has played a crucial
role in the development of contemporary
woodturning and wood art since 1986.
Woodturning 289 51
22/12/2015 10:13
 Old traditions die hard
Prior to World War II, American turning
could be defined as a process of rotational
carving to rapidly produce elements out of
an inexpensive and widely available material
– wood. The primary use of the lathe as a
mass-production tool placed a premium
on minimising cost, so that where hand
operations were still used, skill was equated
with accuracy in speed and production. For
the first 75 years of the 20th century, the
long historical tradition of woodturning
embodied several distinctive attributes
(Kelsey, p. 123–124):
• Turning was taught in most secondary
schools, along with introductions to general
woodworking, metalworking and drafting.
It was also taught by master to apprentice,
by father to son, and by self-education.
• Turnings were commercial produced in
volume, primarily for utility as housewares
and structural/decorative elements
in furniture and architecture, and in
industrial patternmaking en route to
cast-iron objects.
• Pattern books were often used as the style
source, thus continuing aesthetic traditions
The birth of AAW
PHOTO: MARK LINDQUIST/LINDQUIST STUDIOS
From left: Melvin Lindquist, Rude Osolnik, James Prestini, and Bob Stockdale
participate in a panel discussion at the second AAW symposium in Philadelphia,
PA in 1988
Christian Burchard critiqued many of the works in an
early Instant Gallery
52 www.woodworkersinstitute.com
WT_289_51_55_AAW_FEA_mbJRkrSD.indd 52
even where details were modified or when Numerous woodturning weekend
the worker reinterpreted the specified form. symposiums had been organised, and there
• Turnings were generally monochromatic, had been ground-breaking exhibitions of
whether of a single wood or as the result turned wood. Many late-night conversations
of paint. had tossed around the idea of an organisation
• Turnings did not tend to result from for woodturners, on that could continue to
personal artistic expression. produce symposiums, exhibitions, and events,
and become a clearing house for information
and ideas (Kelsey, p. 55). Collectively, this
The times they are extensive growth in such a short period
a-changin’ provided the energy, content, and personnel
Cultural upheaval in the 1960s and 70s that would help pull woodturning out of
created new interest in all traditional the confines of its industrial past and onto a
crafts. A new wave of woodturning artisans stage in the decorative arts that was shared
emerged, along with a new market in turning with the established fields of ceramics, glass,
tools, lathes, and materials (Kelsey, p. 19). fibre and metal. Unlike these other media
By the mid-1970s, woodturning had begun fields, woodturning did not have an academic
to appear in galleries and craft shows, or art(full) base. In effect, woodturning
and woodworking magazines covered the had never graduated beyond a high-school
techniques and exciting new work of this woodshop class, while the other media
old craft now recharged with a sense of fields had gone on to graduate school in
quality and innovation. Woodturning was university art departments (Kelsey, p. 61).
taking a uniquely contemporary shape, and The era was ripe for some form of service
the enthusiasm was pushing beyond the organisation that could address the collective
isolation of basement and garage workshops. needs of a growing field that included
‘[American] Woodturners wanted to share novice-to-advanced levels of turners,
their work, their ideas, and their questions’ gallery owners, collectors and museum
(Mastelli, Mississippi, p. 5). curators (Kelsey, p. 60).
PHOTO: MARK LINDQUIST/LINDQUIST STUDIOS
PHOTO: AMERICAN WOODTURNER
David Ellsworth offers an intimate critique in the 2012 Instant Gallery
PHOTO: LARRY MART
Always a centrepiece of the AAW annual symposium, the 1998 Instant Gallery presented nearly 500
participant works
22/12/2015 10:13

Featuring more than 1,000 pieces, today’s Instant Gallery is the largest display of turned-wood objects under one roof
PHOTO: AMERICAN WOODTURNER
Turner Jerry Fant answers questions during an early symposium demonstration on hollow vessels
The concept of a service organisation
did not gel until October 1985 during
the Woodturning Vision and Concepts
conference held at the Arrowmont School of
Arts and Crafts in [Gatlinburg,] Tennessee.
On the second day of the weekend event, 13
interested people gathered on the porch of
the student dormitory, discussed the idea,
and agreed to form the American Association
of Woodturners (Kelsey, p. 55). It was clear
that in order to become effective, this new
WT_289_51_55_AAW_FEA_mbJRkrSD.indd 53
organisation would need to be not-for-
profit, be membership-based and have a
basic philosophy that focused on education
(Kelsey, p. 60).
The first AAW Board of Directors was
formed by write-in votes from approximately
100 of the 250 delegates who attended the
1985 Arrowmont conference. Individuals
receiving the highest number of votes
would be elected president vice president,
secretary, and treasurer. The remaining
IN PROFILE FEATURES
PHOTO: ANDI WOLFE
five would be known as board members at
large (Kelsey, p. 58). No one on the original
Board of Directors had the slightest idea of
what they were getting into. They were not
corporate types. They were unpaid. They had
no previous experience or training (Kelsey,
p. 58). What they did have was a love for
woodturning and a desire to see woodturning
not only continue but grow (Kelsey, p. 58).
In any organisation, it is inevitable that
board members will bring their own agenda,
personal quirks, and biases to the meetings.
But the overriding factors which influenced
the AAW board’s decisions were always:
1) what was best for the field of woodturning,
2) what was best for AAW members, and
3) how the board could improve growth,
fellowship, and communications among
AAW members.
David Ellsworth was elected the first
AAW president and led the organisation
through its formative years from 1986 to
1990. Reflecting on the experience Ellsworth
revealed, ‘It was expected that the beginning
of any organisation would be filled with a
number of rocks and rolls and, as expected
the first years were an event-full experience.
As president, I received the first rock when
[our administrator] informed me that the
printer he was using in Texas had mixed up
the pages imprinting our first newsletter’
Woodturning 289 53
06/01/2016 11:39
 (Kelsey, p. 68). ‘Probably the most difficult
period in these early years came in January
1989 when [our administrator] was let go and
was replaced. [Then, the new administrator]
struggled with personal problems and
only lasted about six months on the job.
That’s when our treasurer discovered… a
professional group specialising in running
nonprofit organisations. [They were] given
a one-year contract, but it was not renewed.
We discovered that they simply had no idea
what a woodturner was’ (Kelsey, p. 70).
‘Then we found [an administrator] who
single-handedly rebuilt our computerised
membership list and structurally saved the
organisation with good administrative skills
and an excellent memory. Equally if not
more important, [this administrator] was
a woodturner and spoke woodturning,’
he explained.
Another early rock in the road focused on
the articles that appeared in the American
Woodturner journal. Ellsworth explained,
‘All these articles were written by members.
The problem was that there were many
people out there doing important work both
technically and aesthetically, but you couldn’t
get them to write about it, or if they had no
writing skills, our ability to get valuable
information our there was severely reduced.
People rightfully complained that there
would be one primary article in each issue
Artist Cindy Drozda shares secrets of successful finial turning at the 2015 AAW symposium
54 www.woodworkersinstitute.com
WT_289_51_55_AAW_FEA_mbJRkrSD.indd 54
and that rest was fluff, which in many cases
was true’ (Kelsey, p. 70). ‘If an article wasn’t
directed to the weekend hobbyist turner and
fi lled with technical information and pictures
of flying shavings, it qualified as fluff… As an
educator, I felt it was a responsibility to help
our members grow in ways that went beyond
their present experience beyond the lathe,
beyond technique, even beyond wood, so that
there was no glass ceiling to their own efforts
as their personal skills increased. This also
relates to my greatest personal frustration
and the most perplexing element of any
grassroots craft media organisation: How do
you create and balance the needs of hobbyist,
semi-professional, and professional makers,
knowing that if you’re doing your job, those
needs will grow, will evolve, like cell division
overtime?’ (Kelsey, p. 71).
Alan Lacer was AAW’s second president,
serving from 1991 to 1994, a time of rapid
growth and organisational maturation.
Lacer recounted his experience: ‘My first
years on the board found me in the midst
of a struggling organisation. The days of
financial turmoil, survival loans, discussions
of shutting down the AAW, relocating our
office, multiple administrators, petitions,
and the like, played an important role in the
shaping of this organisation. As painful as
those times were, they helped formulate a
mission and vision for survival and growth.
In the struggle to exist, we probably had
the closest working relationships within the
board, with volunteers and with the editor
and administrators that we have ever seen,’
Lacer explained (Kelsey, p. 79).
The AAW also faced some procedural
and organisational obstacles, and needed
to improve membership records and create
an efficient system for tracking membership
dues. The first step to improving AAW’s
financial situation was discovering that
journals were being sent to 3,700 addresses,
everyone in the database, when only 1,700
of them were current paid-up members.
Looking back, there has been quite an
evolution of the process for organising
managing, and exchanging information
(Kelsey, p. 174).
PHOTO: ANDI WOLFE
Left to right: William Moore, Kevin Wallace, and
Frank E. Cummings take part in a 2012 symposium
panel discussion
PHOTO: ANDI WOLFE
22/12/2015 10:13

Leafing through the AW journal
Even the AW journal, over the years has
also undergone quite a transformation
from its beginning in 1986 as a stapled
newsletter. It then progressed to a colour
cover and then evolved to become a full-
colour, professionally produced, top-quality
quarterly magazine that went bimonthly in
2010 (Kelsey, p. 174).
Pitfalls aside, the worldwide influence of
the AAW has been significant. The heroes
of the AAW are also international turning
celebrities; the annual trek to the big
symposium has become a rite of passage for
many international turners, while others
all over the world wait for the latest issue of
American Woodturner so they can catch up
on what is happening in the biggest turning
club in the world. Turning groups across
the globe have emulated the AAW and a
delegate from the United States would feel
right at home at symposiums as far afield as
Germany, New Zealand, Ireland, and South
Africa (Martin, p. 37).
A new age for US
woodturning
Since the formation of the American
Association of Woodturners in 1986, a new
tradition of woodturning has developed with
a lengthy list of its own attributes (Kelsey,
p. 124–125):
• It is process-oriented and, by definition,
reveres the single media of wood.
• It is enamoured by faceplate work, rather
than spindles and has set the thin-walled
vessel as the standard reference for skill.
• It accepts speed-of-production as the
common denominator of skill rather than
quality, sophistication or repeatability.
• It has little concern for utility/function.
• Although many turners first saw a lathe
in industrial arts class or were self-taught,
today turning is most often taught in
intimate small-group settings.
• It can claim only a few formal college or
university programs in higher education
and has steadfastly eschewed formal
education in art or design.
• In the rush to be ‘modern’, turners have
exhibited little knowledge of, or interest in,
historical precedents.
• It was, until the early 1990s, composed
almost entirely of middle-aged to elderly
Caucasian American right-handed males.
• It has been seen by many practitioners as
a hobby or entertainment, often centred
upon the size and number of machines,
tools and gadgets.
• It is involved with one-of a kind production,
even when made for retail sale.
• It sees itself as apart from, and not a subset
of, the field of furniture.
• It has an extraordinary sense of community
WT_289_51_55_AAW_FEA_mbJRkrSD.indd 55
September 1986: The first issue of the American
Woodturner journal. It had 28 black-and-white pages
and sported five photos
and unique level of sharing and has led
the other crafts in its exploration of artistic
collaboration.
The AAW today
The AAW attributes its success to the
combined enthusiasm, commitment and
diligence of the woodturning community
including hobbyists, professionals, galleries,
collectors and others. Every year since 1992,
the AAW has recognised outstanding
contributors and has awarded the distinction
of Honorary Lifetime Member to a select
individual or organisation that has made a
significant impact on the field of woodturning.
AAW Honorary Lifetime Members include:
David Ellsworth, Ed ‘Bud’ Jacobson, Dale L.
Nish, Rude Osolnik, Melvin Lindquist, Ed
Moulthrop, Bob Stocksdale, Palmer
Sharpless, Alan Stirt, S. Gary Roberts, Alan
Lacer, Robyn Horn, Ray Key, Nick Cook,
Bonnie Klein, Dick Gerard, Arthur and Jane
Mason, Mary Lacer, Jerry Glaser, Arrowmont
School of Arts and Crafts, Albert LeCoff,
Giles Gilson, Mark Lindquist, John Hill,
John Jordan, David Wahl, Allen Hockenbery,
and Ruth and David Waterbury. While some
of these special people are no longer
with us, their passion and extraordinary
contributions to the field and AAW endure.
Today, the AAW has more than 15,000
members and more than 350 local chapters
worldwide. The association is well known
among turning communities globally with
more than 1,450 of its members residing in
51 countries outside the US. AAW maintains
an office along with its Gallery of Wood
Art in Saint Paul, Minnesota. The AAW has
evolved into the world’s leading resource for
IN PROFILE FEATURES
2015: Today, the American Woodturner journal
contains more than 70 full-colour pages of
instructional material, feature stories, process
articles, artist retrospectives, and profiles of
innovative turners, and received a 2015 Nichee Award
for Best Niche Consumer Association Magazine
woodturning information, inspiration, and
instruction. In addition to AAW’s annual
international symposium and the American
Woodturner journal, members have access
to publications including Woodturning
Fundamentals, Safety for Woodturners, and
mentoring publications, as well as a variety of
complementary services, website tools grant
opportunities, and specialty programming.
Learn more about the AAW at www.
woodturner.org.
The AAW’s 30th annual international
symposium will be held at the Atlanta
Convention Center at AmericasMart,
Atlanta, Georgia, 9–12 June, 2016. Regardless
of your skill level or interests, the AAW
symposium will offer something for you.
You’ll be able to select from a broad range
of demonstrations and panel discussions
to focus on session that will enhance your
woodturning experience the most. You’ll take
away knowledge, tips and techniques sure to
enhance your woodturning experience. Learn
more about AAW’s 2016 symposium at http://
tiny.cc/AAW2016Atlanta
REFERENCES
• Kelsey, John, editor. Woodturning Today: A
Dramatic Evolution. Saint Paul, Minnesota:
American Association of Woodturners,
2011. Print.
• Martin, Terry. ‘Friendship and Shared
History’, American Woodturner, October
2011: page 37. Print.
• Mastelli, Rick, and Connie Mississippi.
‘AAW, Then & Now’, American Woodturner,
March 1996: page 5. Print.
Woodturning 289 55
22/12/2015 10:13
 THE
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056_WTUR_289.indd 56 1/6/16 11:59 AM

 HOW TO DO THAT TECHNICAL
PHOTOGRAPHS BY KURT HERTZOG

Kurt Hertzog on turning

materials other than wood

The world beyond wood

KURT HERTZOG
Kurt is a professional
woodturner, demonstrator
and teacher and writes for
various woodturning and
woodworking publications in
the United States as well as
contributing to Woodturning
magazine. He is on the Pen Makers’ Guild
Council and is currently president of the
American Association of Woodturners (AAW).
kurt@kurthertzog.com www.kurthertzog.com
existing woodturning tools and equipment.
This month we’ll feature just a few of them
and hopefully kickstart your exploration if
you haven’t already ventured off the path of
wood. Be aware, though, that this is only the
tip of the iceberg. There are metals, plastics,
bone, antler, stone and others galore. The
selected items for presentation here are
intended to be just a starter. Using them
should need no additional tools or equipment
beyond what is probably already in your In addition to the usual safety precautions, working
workshop and kit. We’ll touch on just a few with metals can present cut hazards if careless
very readily available materials to get you
going on your journey beyond wood. debris presents very serious cut hazards.
These curled bits of metal can be incredibly

W
ith more than 100,000 species of
woods in the world, most turners
shouldn’t have a need to look to
other materials. The variety of characteristics
and colourations these species present to the
woodturning community should fulfi l every
real and perceived need. That said, however,
there is a world of other materials that can
easily be turned on your lathe with your
Safety
In addition to the use of PPE for the
standard woodturning safety including eye,
face and breathing protection as needed,
special considerations need to be taken.
When turning metals, long shards of curled
metal may be strung around the material
or tools. The innate habit to brush off this
sharp creating very serious cut hazards with
the simplest of contact. Always stop the
machinery before attempting to remove any
debris and especially when turning metals.
Even with the lathe stopped or trying to
remove debris curled around the tool, use
caution to prevent being cut. A chip brush or
a cut-proof carving glove to brush away any
metal cutting debris is a wise idea.

Woodturning 289 57

WT_289_57_62_KURT_HERTZOGckJRkhmbS.indd 57 22/12/2015 10:14

 What can you turn?
A better question would be ‘what can’t you turn’? As you think
about alternatives to the traditional woods for turning, you’ll
need to know what your tools can cut. With the commonly used
high-speed steel tools, you’ll be able to cut just about anything that
isn’t hardened. Your high-speed steel tools are the same cutting
material that a machinist uses on a metal-cutting lathe. The only
real difference is that his cutting tool is locked rigidly into a tool
post and yours is hand controlled. Other than that, your high-speed
cutters or carbide tools will work on materials that could be cut
by a machinist. How can you tell for sure, especially with metals?
Take a fi le and try to fi le the material. If it cuts with a fi le, it is soft
enough to be turned on your wood lathe. If the fi le skates across the
material without cutting it, it is a hardened material beyond your
tool’s ability to cut it.

Tagua nuts
Tagua nuts are the seed of a tree similar to a
palm but technically a different species. I’ve
heard the name pronounced in many ways
with the most common variations being ‘tag-
goo-ah’, ‘tah-gwah’ and ‘tau-gew-ah’. I am not
certain which of these, if any, is correct but
one of them will convey your thoughts.
Often called a palm nut, vegetable ivory,
ivory nut, or faux ivory, it has been used for
many years to create buttons and hand-carved
items. It grows in the tropical rainforests
of South America and is readily available
through the craft marketing circles. Having
become an alternative to animal ivory,
the turning community has adopted it for
small turnings and adornment where the
appearance of ivory would be attractive. The
biggest problem that tagua nuts present is
that they are hollow. The internal cavity is
often irregularly shaped and can be located
anywhere. When turning regularly shaped
lidded boxes or other similar items, this
internal void can be troublesome.
The nut can be mounted between centres
to create a small tenon for mounting or have
a sacrificial block attached with adhesive. The
easiest way to do this is by sanding a flat and
using that flat to attach your mounting block.
Turning and sanding is a breeze. Both cutting
and scraping tools will allow you to hollow
and shape the tagua material to your desired
shape. Sanding is exactly as you would do on
a softer species of wood. The outer dark, hard
shell can be cut away entirely or left partial
depending on your end goal. The nut itself
cuts like soap being soft and easily cut with
sharp tools. My typical use is to slice the nut
to provide accent pieces to be glued to my
turning. This allows the ‘ivory accent’ to be
integrated into drawer pulls, lidded box pulls,
and finials for boxes and ornaments. I find
that using two-part epoxy when adhering
tagua nut material to other woods works best.
You can also use hot melt glue to fasten things
provided you’ll be using a light enough touch.
The fun part of tagua turned material is the
ability to accept dyes. Give any of your dyes a
try. I find my Jacquard silk dyes work nicely.

Tagua nuts are available in a variety of shapes, sizes and freshness. The internal The nut’s internal void is irregular in shape and placement which can potentially
colour seems to vary with age present issues with turning projects

Tagua nuts cut very nicely with sharp tools and are ... they’re also easily mounted on a dowel, sanded flat ...and fun can be had colouring them. They take
sanded exactly as wood... with glue block, or a small turned tenon... readily to dyeing with most art dye brands

58 www.woodworkersinstitute.com

WT_289_57_62_KURT_HERTZOGckJRkhmbS.indd 58 22/12/2015 10:14


Antler
Deer family antler, which is a fun material to turn, is available in a wide variety of
sizes and shapes depending on the species
Antler is a fun material to turn on your
lathe. Depending on where you live, you may
have access to naturally shed antler just by
walking through the woods. The best time to
find shed antlers in the wild is late winter to
early spring. Grown on the members of the
deer family, this bone material can range in
size from quite small (roe deer) to incredibly
large (elk and moose). For those who don’t
have access to antler from the hunting
community or naturally shed, a variety of
antler is available for purchase on Ebay and
other mail order outlets. Antler is often
marketed as dog chew material.
The make-up of antler is nearly identical
regardless of the species or size. The outer
shell is hard and solid with the inner portions
being porous in the thicker sections of the
Antler has varying densities from the hard outer shell to the sometimes very
porous inner portions
In addition to purchasing antler online, you can find sources for water buffalo horn
WT_289_57_62_KURT_HERTZOGckJRkhmbS.indd 59
The antler pedicle or base is often turned to create a lidded box leaving the unique
outer surfaces
antler. This porosity can be a problem for the
turner depending on their planned project.
The two methods that I have had success
with when the porous inner-antler material
presents a problem are CA adhesive and
stabilisation. To fi ll the pores, soak the area
with thin cyanoacrylate adhesive, allowing
it to wick in. If accelerator is needed, use it
very sparingly to prevent the white foaming.
Just mist a small amount of accelerator on
the surface to allow the cross-linking process
to kick off. As you continue to cut into the
porous areas, you may need to repeat the CA
treatment. If you have the capability to do
stabilisation, the exposed ends of a cut antler
will allow that stabilising chemicals to be
drawn in by vacuum and then heat processed
to rigidity. The hard outer shell material
HOW TO DO THAT TECHNICAL
will vary widely in wall thickness based on
the species and antler size. Antler material
is usable from any portion from the pedicle
(base) to the crown tine (the very tip of the
antler). The diameter, shape, and curvature
comes into play. Stunning lidded boxes can
be made from the pedicles of larger antlers.
Don’t turn away the hard outside
irregularities. They add character. Much
like you’d match the top and bottom of a
box, the same can be done with the antler
material. Pen makers are big users of antler
material. Picking a straight area of the antler
to cut and drill, the outer portion can be left
intact providing a rustic look if desired.
Turning away the outer casing may reach
into the porous inner and need to be stiffened
for turning and finishing.
Antler turns and finishes
quite nicely using standard
woodturning tools and abrasives
Woodturning 289 59
22/12/2015 10:15
 Metals
Virtually any metal that isn’t hardened can
be turned on your lathe. This opens up steels,
aluminium, brass, copper and any other
metal soft enough to work with. After testing
with your fi le as noted before, you can be
assured your high-speed steel woodturning
tools can be effective on these materials.
Whether you are using metals as part of
your turning project, or as fi xturing for use
in workholding, you can turn and drill these
materials quite readily on your wood lathe.
You won’t have the ridigity of the cutting
tool that you would have on a metal lathe
but you’ll have the freedom of shapes and
movement that are difficult on a metal lathe.
One of the beauties of dealing with metals
is that you’ll often be starting with round
stock. This has two immediate advantages.
First, workholding is very simple and
straightforward by using a chuck or a collet.
Coming in standard diameters, a collet of the
proper size will securely hold the stock for
turning as well as being able to be precisely
remounted should it need to be removed.
Perhaps a bigger advantage is that it starts
out round, not requiring the effort to remove
corners. It will be round and accurately sized
as purchased. That doesn’t mean you may
not work with block materials but more often
If your town doesn’t have a metals supplier, there are
online sources for metals and plastics
A sharp, properly presented tool will deal with brass,
aluminums, bronze and soft steels (alloy depending)
60 www.woodworkersinstitute.com
WT_289_57_62_KURT_HERTZOGckJRkhmbS.indd 60
than not you’ll have the advantage of starting
with round stock.
Unless you’re given the material, you’ll
need to purchase it from an industrial supply
house, but it is also available by mail order
and on the internet. My suggestion would
be to do a bit of research rather than just
picking at random. The machinability of
metals is based on their alloy and how it
has been tailored. Aluminium, for example,
can be machined nicely, but it can also be
a nightmare depending on which alloy
you select. A conversation with your local
supplier or careful research online will let
you pick metals and their different alloys
that are most workable for you. The proper
selection will give you the most favourable
experience. A wealth of information is readily
available on the internet to help guide you
in your selection.
When purchasing metal bar stock, round
or flat, it is usually sold in 3ft or 6ft lengths.
You’ll need to cut it to the appropriate length
for use in your application. While a metal
cutoff saw is a joy to which most won’t have
access, an inexpensive hack saw with the fi ne
toothed metal blade will work. It takes more
effort but it’s very workable. While I’ve noted
you can turn steels, I have two metal lathes so
A cutoff saw is a nicety but a regular hacksaw with a
fine-tooth metal blade will cut your metal stock
Seems like everyone should make at least one
aluminum pen. Simple shapes work best with metals
I do my steel fitting and adapter work
on those. I use brass, aluminium and copper
on my wood lathe to create finial, ferrule
and pen parts.
Turning by hand allows for shaping and
curves that are very difficult to execute on the
metal lathe. Depending on your metal and
the desired shape, you may find that scraping
is superior to cutting. I can’t provide any
specific recommendation other than trial
and error. Speeds and feeds will vary on the
alloy as will the tool best to be used. I’ve been
cautious to select free machining alloys of
aluminium and brass to make my turning
process as easy as possible.
When selecting your cutting tool, find a
spot to test the performance of your cutting
and scraping tools. I advise slow process.
Because you’ll be controlling the tool, you
won’t have the cutting control you would
on a metal lathe. Too aggressive will be
troublesome. You can use your standard
woodturning abrasives to sand your metal
turnings, especially if they are cloth-backed
or wet/dry types, but if you intend to do
much metal turning, you may wish to invest
in emery cloth. Intended for metal work,
you may appreciate it as an addition – or an
alternative – to regular sandpaper abrasives.
The beauty of metals in round stock is the ability to
workhold and accurately remount in a chuck or collet
A brass pull on a green turned burl lidded box. The
brass cuts but also scrapes well
22/12/2015 10:15
 HOW TO DO THAT TECHNICAL

Ebonite
Unless you are involved with smoking pipes, sax or clarinet
mouthpieces, or a pen aficionado, you may have never heard of
ebonite. In the past, it was used for a variety of things including
bowling balls. Long since replaced for many applications, ebonite has
faded until recently. Fountain pens and nibs were made from ebonite
for many years but some companies have moved on. The renewed
interest in the collectable pen market has brought a bit of a rebirth for
ebonite. There are now companies producing specifically for the pen
turning market. Many of the high-end custom makers tout the use of
ebonite in their products. If you have an interest, you can easily work
ebonite just like you would work with plastic. It cuts, sands, threads,
and polishes easily. For the pen purist, ebonite is the only way to go.
The modern offerings to the retail pen turning market are a joy to
work with although a bit pricey.

Ebonite doesn’t have to be reclaimed from old bowling balls. There are modern Depending on your speeds and feeds, you can slice the stuff like tape to remove
makers that are supplying it again stock quickly

A test fit for a custom nib blank prior to separation for finish cuts and sanding Final dry fit prior to finish sanding and then MicroMesh to get the ebonite to pop

Solid surface materials

Last but not least, I’ve included solid surface
materials. There are a host of these made
and offered under a variety of trade names.
I’ll speak specifically of my experience with
Corian by DuPont. Others may perform
similarly but perhaps not exactly so be
certain to do small-scale testing prior to
committing to methods I offer here.
I’ve touched on Corian in the past but
want to delve a bit further into it here.
Corian, a fi lled acrylic polymer, i.e. plastic,
has been around since the 1960s. Primarily
a countertop and shower-surround material,
it has some very admirable qualities to the
turner. It is very dense and turns nicely with
sharp tools. Imagine a dense wood that has
no grain orientation. As such, it cuts nicely
in any direction as well as takes threads
without the frailty that wooden threads often
present. Because there is no grain, Corian
can be turned extremely thin yet retain great
strength. The term solid surface was selected
to tout the colour continuity throughout the
material. What you see on the surface is what
you can expect throughout the material.
Corian is only available in certain
thicknesses. If thicker material is needed,
you’ll need to create it yourself by bonding
multiple pieces together. Whether the same
colour or a different colour, you can easily
fasten Corian to itself to create blanks of
your desired colours and dimension. DuPont
markets the adhesive for Corian used by the
professionals but it is expensive and one-time
mixing. My method for fastening Corian
to Corian, while not advocated by DuPont,
works well for my needs. I use medium
viscosity CA adhesive to bond pieces. The
pieces need to be flat and clean to provide
a good bond. I flatten both surfaces using a
sheet of abrasive on top of a very flat surface.
A surface plate, band saw, or table saw cast
iron top will work well.
Once the surfaces are sanded flat as
witnessed by a complete coverage of sanding
dust, I clean both surfaces with denatured
alcohol and refrain from touching the clean
areas at all. Medium CA is spread entirely
over one of the cleaned surfaces. This needs
to be complete coverage since the clamping
can’t be relied on to spread the adhesive.
Once covered, the two surfaces are put
together, quickly rubbed, and immediately
clamped. I use spring clamps and cover as
much of the available area with clamps as
possible. No accelerator is needed or is used.
After resting under clamp load for at least 24
hours, the assembly is ready for use. Should
a stack of more than two be required, that
assembly can be then processed to be bonded

Woodturning 289 61

WT_289_57_62_KURT_HERTZOGckJRkhmbS.indd 61 22/12/2015 10:15

 to another single piece or another two-piece
assembly. The sanding, cleaning, spreading of
adhesive, wetting and clamping of subsequent
pieces is exactly the same. In the past, I
have created stacks of eight pieces without
difficulty. I use my method only for bonding
together pieces that will never be used as
structural components and I use caution
with my speeds and feeds of assembled
components. This common-sense approach
is no different than one you should be using
for assemblies of wood as well. Corian turns,
drills and finishes marvellously. Being a
plastic, it will cut well with sharp tools but
you can also use a scraper. I find a scraper is
the best tool for hollowing after drilling.
Where Corian really excels is the fi nishing
process. You can use the standard abrasives
but will be able to impart a mirror finish by
sanding far beyond the normal. After 400
grit, move to MicroMesh and proceed to that
endpoint of 12,000. You can also use various
plastic polishes if you wish. Buffi ng beyond
that will also further improve the sheen.
Over the years, I’ve used Corian for pens,
funnels, lidded boxes, small platters,
stemware bases and more.

Being a filled plastic, Corian cuts extremely well with woodturning tools Hollowing and dishing tend to work better with a scraper. The aspect ratio of the
material will have an impact on your choice

Gluing up the various colours or pieces allows for unavailable sizes and shapes. Don’t lose sight of jigs, fixtures, workmounting aids, bushings and more with
A good seam can be created your alternative materials

Conclusions
If you haven’t ventured out of turning wood,
you are missing much of the fun. View your
wood lathe solely as something to hold and
spin your material. With that done, you can
present your tools to any material you can
hold safely and your tools can cut. Don’t be
bound by wood as your material. Other than
hardened steel, chances are your high-speed
woodturning tools will cut nearly anything.
Another suggestion is not to be locked into
the rut of believing all your turnings need
to be a final product. You can use your lathe
to create fittings, special adapters, shims,
bushings, workholding aids and more. I’ve
made chair caster parts for a very favourite
office chair when replacement parts were
no longer available. We have club members
who turn frozen fruits and vegetables in
addition to wood at demos for the public.
Giving a member of the audience a nicely
turned potato to go along with a wooden top
certainly gets a laugh from the crowd. asking the question ‘why not’? Try something Turning tools and equipment are very versatile.
The point of this column wasn’t to give different. Do it safely but experiment and Whether turnings, bushings, jigs, or workholding
you all of the answers but really to get you have some fun! • aids, explore the world beyond wood

62 www.woodworkersinstitute.com

WT_289_57_62_KURT_HERTZOGckJRkhmbS.indd 62 22/12/2015 10:15

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064_WTUR_289.indd 64 1/8/16 9:38 AM

 IN PROFILE FEATURES

Nelson Cassinger
in profile
This month Chris Publow tells us about the life and work of Nelson Cassinger
PHOTOGRAPH BY JARED SEGER. ALL OTHER PHOTOS BY CHRIS PUBLOW, UNLESS OTHERWISE STATED

A
very interesting novel could be
written about the life of Nelson
Cassinger. He’s had a colourful
past riddled with stories about biker
gangs, drugs, shootings, insurance
fraud and fast women. Just as well
those stories remain in the past …

Woodturning 287 65

WT_289_65_69_PROFILE_NELSON_MBJRNC.indd 65 22/12/2015 10:16

 Background
Nelson was always handy and creative
making the seemingly impossible possible. In
his early years he would build custom Harley
motorcycles with the long forks and high
handle bars. He was an expert at making the
baddest looking bikes and was sought after
by all the bikers. To make the bikes look even
better he got into custom painting the gas
tanks and fenders. His work made the cover
of biker magazines, however, this life had its
dangers and he was happy to leave it behind:
“Lucky for me that I got married and moved
out west to Las Vegas. Most of my biker
friends are no longer around.”
Nelson then began a career in construction
work for a local builder. About 18 years ago
he met Dale Nish during a demonstration. He
was fascinated with the work and later took a
woodturning class with Rex Birmingham at
Craft Supply in Provo, Utah. For several years
he continued to take classes with the likes of
Mike Mahoney and Stewart Mortimer. He
found that he enjoyed the beauty and feel of
the wood.

Inspirations and
influences
Nelson has always found the Utah
Woodturners Symposium to be a great source
of inspiration. “I have been to the Utah
Woodturners Symposium 18 timess and and every
eve
very
ry
time it is a joy to meet the gifted w
woodworkers
o
oodworkers
and see the new creations. When I saw s the
segmented work of Ray Allen, I knew newe what
direction I wanted to go in. I love what
w I do
and it keeps me going despite my aage g and
ge
physical ailments.” Both Ray Allen n and Dale
Nish have influenced his turning work.
work.
o
Dealing with emotional issues has has been a
source of creativity out of necessity.t y.
y A divorce
put Nelson in a depressed state thathata inspired
the piece ‘Lifesaver’. He made ‘Lifesaver’
fesaver’ after
a friend asked if he had ever thought ght of doing
a design like the traditional Nativeve American
‘feather plate’. “Th is got me thinking
k inng and
evolved into a beautiful work of art.”rtt.” About
six years ago when Nelson found out o he has
macular degeneration in his eyes itt inspired
him to make the abstract piece ‘Faces’,
aces’,
c which
has a focus point on the eyes.
Designs and ideas also come to Nelson
N
in random ways. “Three years ago o I was
giving a lesson to a young man who ho asked
if he could make a bangle for his ggirlfriend
irlfriend
i
out of wood. I told him I didn’t seeee why
not. It proved to be quite a challenge. g Since
nge.
then I have created a system usingg Forstner
bits and custom jigs to make the process
process
r
simple enough for novices to make ke a
beautiful piece that is attractive too wear.”
Nelson is constantly coming up with w ith
i
different designs and uses of wood d to
enhance his unique bangles with colourcolour MAIN PIC AND ABOVE:
and movement. Variations of the ‘Feather Plate’

66 www.woodworkersinstitute.com

WT_289_65_69_PROFILE_NELSON_MBJRNC.indd 66 06/01/2016 11:40


Cherry (Prunus avium) rootball vessel
WT_289_65_69_PROFILE_NELSON_MBJRNC.indd 67
IN PROFILE FEATURES
Turning style
Most of Nelson’s pieces are simple classical
forms such as vessels and plates. Where he
separates himself from the average turner is in
his segmented designs. Over the years his work
has evolved from simplistic designs with fewer
than 50 pieces for a vessel in a symmetrical
pattern to unique and abstract designs with
over 3,000 pieces. Nelson describes the style of
his work as “Patient, perfect, intricate, delicate,
unique, creative, beautiful.”
He spends between eight and 10 hours a
day in his workshop. His more complicated
pieces, such as ‘Lifesaver’ and ‘Faces’ can
take over 500 hours to complete, while other
projects, including the bangles, can be done
in two or three days.
Workshop and tools
Nelson works from a custom-built
converted two-car garage with all the
amenities of convenience. The style of his
work means that he relies on his sander
a lot: “When I cut a small intricate piece
I have to finish the edges perfectly so that
the design is perfect and the glue holds firm.
I create special jigs to simplify this process.
My Easywood tool has become my favourite
tool for general turning.”
Future plans
When asked where he sees his work
heading, Nelson chuckles as he says he is
working on a design for his personal urn
to put his ashes in! Other plans include
“Completing my new designs and creating
some never-seen-before looks.”
Highs and lows of turning
Teaching the young turners at the Utah
Symposium has been a real high for Nelson.
He was also very excited when he sold
‘Lifesaver’ for $10,000, few artists can claim
such good fortune. His low has been his
degenerating eyes and health. When asked
what he thinks is the best thing about
turning, he says “I keep coming up with
new ideas, the possibilities are endless and it
excites me every day.”
LEFT: Multiple examples of Nelson’s bangles and
small vessels
LIKES
• The challenge, the creativity, the multiple
possibilities
DISLIKES
• The sawdust
Woodturning 288 67
06/01/2016 11:40
 ‘Dream Catcher’

HANDY HINTS
• With segmented pieces it is critical that
it be done in a specific sequence of
design, wood selection, cutting all the
pieces, finishing the edges, gluing the
rings, turning, sanding and finishing.
I usually make several bangles at a time
so there will be thousands of pieces
‘Indian Designs’ hollow form stacked on the workbench.
made from ebony, maple and redheart

68 www.woodworkersinstitute.com

WT_289_65_69_PROFILE_NELSON_MBJRNC.indd 68 06/01/2016 11:41

 IN PROFILE FEATURES

PHOTOGRAPH BY JARED SEGER

Nelson
Nels
son in his worksh
workshop

Segmented plate in
eucalyptus and redheart

Making bangles requires an organised work bench

Contact: Nelson Cassinger
Email: nelson@nelsoncassinger.com
Web: www.nelsoncassinger.com

Woodturning 288 69

WT_289_65_69_PROFILE_NELSON_MBJRNC.indd 69 22/12/2015 10:17

070_WTUR_289.indd 70 1/11/16 9:40 AM
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A cylindrical chess set
MIKE DARLOW
Mike Darlow lives in Exeter in
New South Wales, Australia.
He is the author of six
woodturning books, three
woodturning DVDs and about
150 magazine articles on
woodturning.
mike@mikedarlow.com
www.mikedarlow.com
I
n this last of the five chess set articles I’ll
show a set design based on the cylinder – for
a skilled woodturner the very antithesis of
craftsmanship. However, as this article illustrates the aesthetic success of the sets which
the challenge of the cylindrical constraint can
be overcome to yield a set design that is elegant,
fresh and has high playability.
Design features
• The piece heights conform to the
typical norms because they are
piece signatures.
PHOTOGRAPHS BY MIKE DARLOW UNLESS OTHERWISE STATED
Six different knight designs
WT_289_75_79_CYNDRICAL_CHESS_SET_TECH.JRmbMD.indd 75
CYLINDRICAL CHESS SET TECHNICAL
To end his series on chess sets, Mike Darlow
turns a set based on cylinders
Illustrations scanned from A.C. Fox-Davies, Complete Guide to Heraldry, London, T.C. & E.C. Jack, 1909
• In the Staunton set the top of the king
represents an arched crown, the queen’s
a crown with points, but without arches.
These two crown types are represented by
the convex and concave tops to the king
K1 and queen Q1 respectively. These two
mating tops could also represent a sexual
connectedness.
• The bishop B1 has a vertical slot or channel
that represents the gap between the front
and back parts of a mitre.
• In most western sets, including the
Staunton, the knight piece signature is
the head of a charger. Unfortunately a
large proportion of charger heads aren’t
convincingly carved and thus detract from An arched crown
include them. The diagram on the following
page and the photo below show a range of
turned knight pieces.
1) The drilled hole in knight N1, a feature
introduced by Jorn Pfab, results in a piece
signature which represents a charger’s head
and neck. Or does it represent the vision
slot in a helm? By turning a knight N2
on two parallel axes, a more convincing A pointed crown without arches
Woodturning 289 75
22/12/2015 10:19
 vision slot, which in some helmets was coverable by a visor, can be of the two cylinders are displaced from the other by 5mm, and the
created. Adding eyes in the bottom of the slot, as in a set designed heights of the two cylinders are in the ratio 3:2.
and made by NSW turner Ernie Newman and his son (Turned • The recess in R1’s top, which creates the impression of a parapet is
Chessmen, page 67) is optional. optional, but aids piece identification. I haven’t bothered with slots
2) The third article in this series showed a knight made by cutting to represent the crenels (gaps) between the merlons.
sectors from a profi led ring. This technique has long been employed • The pawns are unusually short when compared with the heights of
in turning, and two knights N3 can be cut from each doughnut- the other five pieces. The cylindrical finials added in P1 make the
like ring. resulting pawns easier to move.
3) A knight’s cranked move is recalled by turning knights N5 or N6 in One more design matter. The diameter of a set’s cylindrical set
one piece on two axes, or knight N7 in two pieces. The vertical axes signature should be related to the breadth of the squares of the
42mm B C
(111/16in)
dia
36mm
(13/8in)
dia 28mm
(11/8in)
dia

50mm (2in) dia 4mm Slot width

(5/32in) to suit
saw blade
x 20 deep
50mm (2in) dia 4mm
(5/32in)
Hole 16mm (5/8in) Turning visor
slot for N4

10mm 7mm
(3/8in) (9/32in)
72mm (27/8in)

64mm (29/16in)

11mm
King K1 Queen Q1 17mm (7/16in)
(1/16in)
54mm (23/16in)

Recess
44mm (13/4in)

Bishop B1 3mm (1/8in) 10mm

44mm Deep (3/8in)
(13/4in)

27mm
Knight N1 (11/8in) Knight N2 23mm
(15/16in)

28mm (11/8in) 28mm (11/8in) 28mm (11/8in) 28mm (11/8in) 28mm (11/8in)

19˚
B C
19˚
Saw

Saw

N4 and N6

46mm
(113/16in) D E
5mm
Grain direction

dia (7/32in)
Knight N3 28mm (11/8in) Recess 18mm x 3mm
74mm (27/8in) OD (23/32in x 1/8in)
5mm 18mm (23/32in) ID
(7/32in) 12mm (1/2in)
28mm (11/8in) Dia 18mm
(23/32in)
N5 40mm
10mm Saw Saw (15/8in)
19mm
(3/8in) 25˚ N7 Pin (3/4in)
10mm
(3/8in) dia
Rook R1
Knights N5, N6 & N8
with pin 14mm
27mm (11/8in) tall Pawn P1
(9/16in)

Cross section
through donut 28mm (11/8in) 28mm (11/8in) 28mm (11/8in)
Positions of screws to fix
donut to backing plate D E

76 www.woodworkersinstitute.com

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 CYLINDRICAL CHESS SET TECHNICAL

board on which will the set will be used. I designed the pieces
pictured for a board with 43 x 43mm squares, and chose a 28mm
cylinder diameter which is 65% of 43mm. Because of the need to
grip men to lift, move and place them, the cylinder diameter should
decrease as a percentage of the board square’s breadth the further
that breadth is below 43mm. Similarly, that percentage can be
increased as the board square’s breadth increases above 43mm.
The diagram opposite shows the pieces at the exact size that I
made them. If you want to turn a chess set with larger or smaller
men than those dimensioned in the diagram included here, then
you can magnify or reduce the piece designs you want from
this article using a photocopier or by scanning and scaling in a
computer. Alternatively, you could calculate the revised sizes from
those specified using the appropriate multiplier.

Making the pieces other than the knights

Punching the centres for turning white-side men Cutting the right-hand end of a workpiece flat with Scraping the recess in a white rook R1
the long point of a skew. The workpiece is gripped in
a scroll chuck’s pin jaws

Sawing the slot in a white bishop B1. The workpiece has already been finish- A 2mm wide parting-off tool
turned, polished and parted off

Chess men are best turned from dense
woods. To differentiate the black and white
sides you could use the same wood for both
sides and apply paint or stain. I, however,
prefer to use two woods of contrasting
colours. Here though I’ve turned all the
men from blackwood (Acacia melanoxylon),
with the presence of the sapwood being
the white side’s side signature. I therefore
carefully punched the ends of the white-side
m workpieces so that I could accurately centre
) them in the lathe for roughing.
In the previous four articles different
chucking methods were shown. Although
any of the four could be used to hold this
article’s cylinder-based men, I chose to
use a pin chuck. I therefore roughed the
individual workpieces to about 32mm
diameter cylinders between centres.
For finish-turning I cantilevered each
cylindrical workpiece from the pin jaws of a
scroll chuck. After turning a workpiece to a
cylinder of the designed diameter, I then cut
the workpiece’s right-hand end flat and far
enough back to eliminate any centre point
impression left from the roughing. These cuts
are best performed with a skew’s long point.
For a skew’s left-hand bevel to arc while
remaining in a plane perpendicular to the
lathe axis, right- handed turners should push
the skew forward solely with the left hand. The
finished length of the piece can then be
marked from the right-hand end.
• The convex top of each king K1, the concave
top of each queen Q1 or the recess in each
rook R1 are turned as soon as the chucked
workpiece has been brought to finished
diameter, has had its right-hand end
flattened and has been marked out.
• The slot in the bishop B1 can be marked out,
sawn and chiselled by hand, or cut on a saw
bench with a jig.
After finish-turning and sanding each
cylinder-based man, I dechucked it without
parting it off. I then rechucked them for
polishing in the lathe as detailed in the first
article. To part off after polishing I used a
narrow (2mm wide) parting-off tool.

Woodturning 289 77

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 Making the knights
• The turning centres and the hole through
the knight N1 should be marked out on
a square or rectangular cross-sectioned
blank. The hole is then drilled. Each
workpiece is then roughed between centres,
chucked axially in the pin chuck, finish-
turned, and later polished in the lathe and
parted off.
• Knight N2 is turned on two axes B-B and
C-C. The workpiece should be at least
75mm long and have a cross section of at
least 45 x 45mm.
1) Accurately mark out and punch the two
axes on the ends of the workpieces.
2) Mount a workpiece between centres
on axis B-B and accurately turn it to a
cylinder of 42mm diameter.
3) Mark out, finish-turn and sand the 10mm
wide x 3mm deep channel in the outside
of the cylinder. If you allow, say, 10mm of
waste at the right-hand end of the man, the
Drilling the 16mm diameter hole in a knight N1. Note
that the turning centres have also been punched
5) Finish-turn and sand the right-hand side
of the doughnut.
6) Bandsaw the two knights free from
the doughnut.
• The cranked knights N4 and N5 are turned
in one piece between centres on two
parallel axes D-D and E-E. Knight N4 has a
horizontal shoulder; alternative knight N5
has a sloping shoulder instead. The steps in
turning N4 or N5 are:
1) Mark out and punch the centres D and E
in each end of a workpiece.
78 www.woodworkersinstitute.com
WT_289_75_79_CYNDRICAL_CHESS_SET_TECH.JRmbMD.indd 78
right-hand side of the channel should be
21mm in from the right-hand end of the
workpiece.
4) Remount the workpiece between centres
on axis C-C. Finish-turn and sand the
cylindrical body of N2. Turn a suitable
chucking spigot at the workpiece’s
left-hand end.
5) Remount the workpiece on axis C-C using
the chucking spigot. Use a series of arcing
cuts with a skew’s long point to cut the top
of N2. Partially cut the bottom of N2. Sand.
6) The N2 men can be later remounted for
polishing using the chucking spigot,
and be completely parted off when the
polishing is finished.
• To make the knights N3, you turn a ring
doughnut form for each pair of knights –
because the grain runs vertically through
these knights, only two N3 knights can be
Parting off a black knight N1 after polishing
2) Mount the workpiece between centres
on axis E-E. Rough the workpiece to a
cylinder of about 42mm diameter.
3) Leaving about 10mm of waste at the
right-hand end of the workpiece, cut the
junction between the upper and power
cylinders with a skew’s long point. Use
small gentle cuts so that the skew’s long
point isn’t forced off line. Finish-turn
the periphery of the upper (right-hand)
cylinder. Also turn a cylindrical chucking
section at the workpiece’s left-hand end.
4) Remount the workpiece between centres
on axis D-D. Finish-turn and sand the
sawn from each doughnut. Apart from the
difference between the ring workpiece cross
sections, the procedure is identical to that
described for the knight in article three
except that the backing plate usually can’t
be reused. The steps are:
1) Prepare a disc-shaped workpiece, mount it
on a commercial screw chuck, and finish-
turn and sand its right-hand half.
2) On the same screw chuck turn a backing
plate with a shallow annular recess deepest
at 46mm diameter. On the opposite side
of the backing plate mark out the saw cuts
that will later be made to separate the two
knights N3.
3) Screw the already finish-turned and
sanded side of the doughnut into the recess
in the backing plate.
4) Rechuck the backing plate and doughnut
assemblage on the screw chuck.
Checking the cross section of the right-hand half of a
knight N3 doughnut with a template cut from a plastic
milk container
Left to right: a commercial screw chuck, a backing
plate and a half-turned doughnut
lower cylinder of the knight.
5) Chuck the workpiece by the pin on its
left-hand end on axis E-E. Turn off the
right-hand waste and sand the upper
cylinder.
• Knights N6 are turned in two pieces. A pin
turned on the top section is later glued into
a suitably positioned hole bored into the top
of the bottom section. However, making
knight N6 is considerably more fiddly than
turning N4 or N5. It’s therefore worth
practising making N4 or N5, and thus
avoiding making N6.
22/12/2015 10:20
 CYLINDRICAL CHESS SET TECHNICAL

The bandsawing of an N3 doughnut completed

Cutting the junction between the top and bottom

parts of a knight N4. The workpiece is mounted
Finish-turning the second face of a doughnut screwed Bandsawing the third cut to free two knights N3 between centres on axis E-E
to a backing plate

Cutting the waste from the top of a knight N4. The workpiece is chucked in pin Sanding back the hardened coat of one-part polyurethane from the top of a
jaws on axis E-E knight N4

Conclusion FURTHER READING

My main purpose in
writing this five-part
series was to illustrate the
infinite scope for turners
without high carving
skill to produce chess
sets with some degree of
design originality and
high playability. You
could exactly copy the
designs shown on which
I am not claiming design
registration or copyright.
However, why not try to
design your own sets?
Over to you. •
There are about 20 books published on chess sets.
The six books listed below are strong on turned chess set designs.
Darlow, Mike, 2004, Turned Chessmen, The Melaleuca Press, Sydney.
Dean, George, 2010, Chess Masterpieces, Abrams, New York.
Graham, F. Lanier, 1968, Chess Sets, Studio Vista, London.
Kloprogge, Mathieu and Ine, 2007, Chessmen Art and History, Gopher B.V., Amsterdam.
List, Larry, editor, 2005, The Imagery of Chess Revisited, George Braziller, New York.
Schafroth, Colleen, 2002, The Art of Chess, Harry N. Abrams, New York.
Williams, Gareth, 2000, Master Pieces, Allen & Unwin, Sydney.
There is also a society of chess set collectors called Chess Collectors
International, which publishes the quarterly journal The Chess Collector.

Woodturning 289 79

WT_289_75_79_CYNDRICAL_CHESS_SET_TECH.JRmbMD.indd 79 22/12/2015 10:20

 Issue 290 on sale 25 February

Stuart King has a

bit of fun and shows
how to make this
Easter egg with
hidden rabbit
Richard Raffan looks at turning
handled bowls
PHOTOGRAPH BY STUART KING

We talk to Max Brosi and find out

more about him and his work

Colwin way shows how to turn a

candlestick with spun-metal candle dish

Andy Coates shows how to make

a burr oak bowl – tackling the issues
of cutting the burr, mounting it, shaping
it and finishing it

To subscribe call 01273 488 005 or visit www.thegmcgroup.com

Editor Mark Baker E: russellh@thegmcgroup.com E: helenc@thegmcgroup.com Woodturning for subscription rates in USD $.
E: markb@thegmcgroup.com Advertisement Production Marketing Anne Guillot (ISSN 0958-9457) Post your order to:
Assistant Editor Briony Darnley Production Controller T: 01273 402871 is published 13 times a year by The Subscription Department,
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Editorial Assistant Karen Scott Tel: 01273 402807 GMC Reprographics Publications Ltd. Lewes, East Sussex
T: 01273 477374 E: repro@thegmcgroup.com Printer: BN7 1XU, England.
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Tel: 01273 402899 T: 01273 402 873 lightningpublications.com

Woodturning will consider articles for publication, which should be sent to the Editor together with a stamped-addressed envelope for return. GMC Publications cannot accept liability for the loss or damage of unsolicited material. Views and comments expressed by
individuals do not necessarily represent those of the publishers and no legal responsibility can be accepted for the result of the use by readers of information or advice of whatever kind given in this publication, either in editorial or advertisements. No part of this
publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means without the prior permission of the Guild of Master Craftsman Publications Ltd.

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082_WTUR_289.indd 82 1/8/16 9:24 AM


In the workshop
with… Larry Wise
We go into the workshop with Canadian woodturner Larry Wise
L
arry has always done woodworking
as a hobby, but it has been within the
past few years that he got a little more
serious about it. Larry was designing a new
style of Adirondack chair, with the idea that
he could help raise money for Wounded
Warriors Canada. Borrowing a wood
lathe from a family member and with no
experience, he began to learn the fine art
PHOTOGRAPHS BY LARRY WISE
of woodturning. After reading and watching
videos from very experienced turners,
Larry listened to their suggestions about
starting with something simple like rolling
pins. He thought ‘if I can make segmented
WT_289_83_85_IN_THE_WORKSHOP_WITH_bdJRmbS.indd 83
bowls, then why not segmented rolling
pins?’ and Larry has been trying to
continually take his creativity one step
further ever since.
How, when and why did you start turning?
I started about a year ago, without having any
experience or even knowing anyone around
who even did woodturning. I began to learn
as much as I could from books and videos
What and who are the greatest influences
on your work?
When I first started I bought the book
WORKSHOP PROFILE FEATURES
Woodturning with Ray Allen. I was amazed
at what he could do with wood. After reading
his story on how he started and what he
did, it was a big influence for me and that’s
when I thought, ‘why can’t I do that, but with
rolling pins?’
If you were to offer one sage piece of
advice to someone what would it be?
Practise and don’t be afraid to try something
different but, be safe doing it. If you have
an idea then do it, don’t give up until you’re
done. Let the finished product decide and
go from there
Woodturning 289 83
22/12/2015 10:27
 What music and which book are you
currently into?
I like to listen to music from the 80s while
I’m working, just to have a little background
noise. At the moment I’m reading American
Sniper by Chris Kyle, the memorial edition
What is your silliest mistake?
Not wearing my face mask, just ask my wife.
Shaving your beard to see if you need stitches
in your lip is enough to never forget again
What has been your greatest challenge?
Trying to make something more challenging
than my last piece. When you have a limited
size to work with and you’re trying to put
as much as you can in it, without making it
look like you just glued something together.
When I see a masterpiece segmented bowl,
I try even harder to push myself to take it to
the next level
Name one thing on your turning ‘to do’ list?
I want to see how many rolling pins I can
make before running out of ideas. If I keep
making it a challenge, it will only make me
84 www.woodworkersinstitute.com
WT_289_83_85_IN_THE_WORKSHOP_WITH_bdJRmbS.indd 84
a better turner, plus I want to show people
not only can you make a pie crust, you can
also use a piece of art to do it
Tell us about the piece you are currently
working on...
At the moment I have several projects on the
go from designing another piece of outdoor
furniture to go with my Wounded Warriors
chairs, benches and swings to designing
a rolling pin with a yellow ribbon going
through it
What is the one piece of equipment or tool
you would not be without and why?
I think like most woodworkers the tablesaw
is the heart of my ’shop. I’m sure that’s why
it’s always placed in the centre of the ’shop.
For me it all starts there, plus it works great
for cutting up any mistakes for a nice little
campfire with my wife
If you could
uld change one thing what would
it be and why?
One thingg I would like to change is the
distance to
o the lumber store.
store If I want any
kind of exotic or hardwood
ood I have to drive
434 miles round trip to get what I need
What is your favouritee type of turning?
I love turning exotic woods,
oods, it’s so different
than what I’m used to and the colours can
be amazing. Bringing thehe colours together
to make the piece flow from one end to
the other, no matter what
hat you’re turning
at the time
If you had one wish, what would you
wish for?
One thing I wish I hadad was a bigger ’shop.
Having to move everything
ything around just
to make enough room m to work gets a little
frustrating after a while,
hile, but I’m also
thankful to at least have a ’shop to work in
If you could have one piece of equipment,
what would it be and
nd why?
A new bandsaw. I have ave been looking at a
new Laguna and it’ss theh next tooll I would
ld
like to purchase. I kkeep telling my wife,
I already know how w many rolling pins I
for it •
have to sell to pay fo
22/12/2015 10:27
 WORKSHOP PROFILE FEATURES
F

LIKES
• I like explaining my work to people
who are truly interested in woodturning.
I don’t know of anyone in my area who
does it, so if I can get anyone
anyo else involved
it’s just another person to share it with
• The hands-on work that is i involved, taking
something that doesn’t lo look like much
and turning it into a piece of art. Cutting
together in a way that
and gluing wood togethe
is different from others and a bringing your
idea to life. Watching you your creation come
to life as it’s turning is something
so you have
to do to understand
• Sharing ideas with others,
othe even if they
don’t live in the same country;
co putting
your work on the inter
internet to share it
and also to get fee
feedback from
others. Since there
the are no
clubs around, I have joined
a Facebook ppage for
woodturners
dt people
s and the peo
on there are amazing
a
• Once you start a pro project
oject it’s hard to
stop. You just want tto keep going until
it’s done to see you
yourr final outcom
outcome.
I think once you gett involved in tu turning
it doesn’t take longg to get hooked and
challenging
you’re always chall yourself to
lenging yourse
“I love turning exotic woods,
d g better
get

it’s so different than what I’m used

DISLIKES
to and the colours can be amazing” • Sanding. It just seems to never end some
days; you think you got it done and then
you see what you missed
• Spending the time sharpening your tools,
but it is a veryy important part
• The pile of shavings
shaavings you can make in a
short time. If you
y notice you’re gettgetting
taller as you ggo, you know it’s time to stop
and clean
• Having someone
sommeone who has never used
a wood lath
lathe
he give you advice. I’m always
open to advadvice,
vice, however, it’s nice coming
someone
from someo one who has experience
experien
• Not having
haviing a club to share your
yo
work with
with

HANDY
HA
ANDY HINTS
• Ju
Just
ust keep going until it’s done.
Stopping
Sttopping and second gguessing
yourself
ourself means you mig
yo might just
pass
paass up on your best work
w
• Always help anyone who w is
wanting to get involved.
involve They
turning
might not have any tu
experience, but they might
have something else that can
help you down the road
ro
• Make w that’s what
what you want to, that
makes vvariety
• Always wear
e r safety equipment
wea

Woodturn
Woodturning 289 85

WT_289_83_85_IN_THE_WORKSHOP_WITH_bdJRmbS.indd 85 22/12/2015 10:27

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086_WTUR_289.indd 86 1/6/16 12:04 PM

 CANDELABRA TECHNICAL

Candelabra
Philip Greenwood turns
an elegant candelabra
from three pieces of timber
PHOTOGRAPHS BY WENDY GREENWOOD

PHILIP GREENWOOD
Philip has been turning
wood since 1980 and started
turning professionally in
1986. He was accepted onto
the Register of Professional
Turners (RPT) in 2006. He is
also a member of the AWGB.
He can be seen working in his workshop in
North Yorkshire and has demonstrated at the
woodworking show at Harrogate since 2008.
He runs courses at his workshop.

philip@woodturningintoart.co.uk
www.woodturningintoart.co.uk

T
his candelabra is made from
three pieces of timber; the base
could be made from the centre
of the circular disc that makes up the
arms, but here a separate piece is used
to make the base. A small piece is used
for the stem between the base and the
arms. The arms are joined together
with the small stem, which has a spigot
to fit in the base and the bottom of the
arm sections. You could just use half
of the circle to make a two-candle
holder instead of this one; you just
need an extra stem and base pieces,
then you have two candle holders.
There are two main points to consider
when turning the circle that will make
the arms. Firstly, when you reverse the
disc on the chuck, make sure it runs
true, and secondly make sure that the
designs on both sides match each other
or it will be very noticeable when the
ring is cut in half and looking down on
the section of the arm, you can use
a template to check both sides match.
Give careful thought to the safety
aspect when making an item that can
hold candles which may or may not be
lit, especially if you sell the candelabra
– you don’t know what the customer
will do, so that is why I always use
a metal or glass liner on any item I
make that holds candles. The timber
I used was an offcut from a plank
that was used on a previous
project. The finish was
one coat of cellulose
sanding sealant.
This was finished
with a three-part mop
buffing system, the final
coat was carnauba wax.
This process is best carried
out before assembly, buffing each
component separately, trying to
avoid any part that will be glued.

MARKING A HOLE ON A TURNED CIRCLE

How many times have you drilled a hole in the top of a half circle only to find it was off-centre?
Use this method to make sure the hole is always in the centre. All you need is a piece of paper
or card. Draw a line the same length as the width of the half circle, let’s call the ends A and B,
and then divide this into half. Now draw a line at 90° at this halfway point at least the height
of the half circle, let’s call this C and D. Next, lay the turned item on this paper making sure the
ends line up on the A and B line. At point D mark a point on the item, this is the mid-way point,
you just need to make sure it is in the middle of the width as well. Then drill on this point. If
you’re using a pillar drill, make sure the table is at 90° to the drill bit, if you’re using a hand-
held drill use a set square to make sure you drill at 90° in both planes.

Woodturning 289 87

WT_289_87_90_PHILIP_GREENWOOD_bd, MBJRpgS.indd 87 22/12/2015 10:28

 PLANS AND
DRAWING & EQUIPMENT
INFORMATION
ALTERNATIVE METHODS EQUIPMENT USED Timber requirements
FOR SEPARATING RINGS 10mm bowl gouge Walnut ( Juglans regia): ring 260 x 45mm,
FOR A DISC 25mm French curve scraper base 180 x 40mm, stem 145 x 40mm
3mm parting tool
When you separate a ring off a disc you need 20mm skew
to make sure it will not come loose, if it does 10mm spindle gouge with a fingernail profile
a couple of things can happen. Firstly the
parting tool can grab, secondly the ring could
hit a part of the lathe or chuck and damage
the ring. An alternative way of separating a
ring from a piece held in the chuck is to use a
backing piece of board and double-sided tape
to hold what will become two parts together,
you need to make sure that the item and the
18mm
board are flat and parallel to each other for (23/32in)
the double-sided tape to work.
250mm (93/4in)

30mm
(11/8in)

9mm Cross
(11/32in) Section

SANDING JIG FOR FINISHING

THE TOP OF THE ARMS
This is a jig you can make and use for
sanding flat parts on a lathe. I used a disc
of MDF with a chucking point on the back,
145mm (53/4in)
then turned this down to 150mm and 10mm
added a self-adhesive sanding disc, I have (3/8in)
85mm (31/4in)
made one for several grades of paper. Next 22mm
(7/8in)
I made a table. I turned a piece of timber
down to the same size as the toolpost 15mm 8mm 35mm
(19/32in) (5/16in) (13/8in)
diameter at one end and a diameter to suit
a drill bit, 30mm in my case. Next, I drilled
a 30mm hole in a flat piece, you can glue
two pieces together to make this thicker
if needed. I assembled and glued the
stem and table parts and it was ready
to use. Run the lathe at a slow speed and
use dust extraction.

175mm (614/16in)
15mm
(19/32in)
Ø
35mm
(13/8in)
9mm
(11/32in)

88 www.woodworkersinstitute.com

WT_289_87_90_PHILIP_GREENWOOD_bd, MBJRpgS.indd 88 22/12/2015 10:28


1 2
3 4
5 6
7 8
WT_289_87_90_PHILIP_GREENWOOD_bd, MBJRpgS.indd 89
CANDELABRA TECHNICAL
1 Mount your blank on the chuck using a screw
chuck or drilled recess. Then, using a bowl
gouge with a swept-back grind, true up the
outside of the blank and the face. Once clean,
mark the diameter for the chuck recess needed
to hold the wood later and also mark a rough
guide for the rim thickness. Next use the bowl
gouge to remove most of the waste for the
chucking recess, then use the point of the skew
chisel to cut the shape needed for your jaws
2 Now to shape the rim of the candelabra.
This design needs little measurement as
you can the tools you have to form the design.
My parting tool is 3mm wide so the design will
be in 3mm increments. With the left side of the
parting tool at the outer edge of the rim, part in
3mm deep. This is the first part of the rim detail.
Leave a 3mm space, which will form the bead.
Now part in at the other side of this to a depth of
3mm. This is the second part of the rim detail
3 Cut a bead on the section just created. I used
a bead 3mm forming tool, but you could use
another tool to create your bead
4 You now have a 9mm-wide design. Start
to part through at the side of the groove
you produced with the parting tool earlier.
When you have parted about 6mm deep, slide
the parting tool out on the toolrest and take a
second clearance cut to the right of the first cut
to prevent tool binding. Part in about halfway,
this will be around 17mm. Sand and seal the
detailed area
5 Next, reverse the work and affix it in the
chuck. Move the toolrest close to the face of
the disc and check for run out on the face and
also on the outer rim. Adjust until it is running
true in both planes. Then, use a bowl gouge to
clean up the face of the disc, and thin it down in
width to around 34mm thick
6 Start to shape the side detail to match the
other side of the face. This needs to match
perfectly or it will be very noticeable when
the ring is cut in half. Line up the left point
of the parting tool with the outer edge of the
disc and part in 3mm
7 Now cut the bead next to the last cut.
Remember, this tool is 3mm wide, so this
now makes the detail area 6mm wide. Use the
parting tool to cut to the right of the bead, line
up the left-hand point of the parting tool and cut
in 3mm. The detail is now all finished. Double-
check that this matches the other side. Sand and
seal all the area
8 Use small pieces of card to fill the gap
left by the parting tool; I have placed four
pieces evenly round the disc. Now tape over the
packing pieces – masking tape is strong enough
to hold. This will stop the parting tool jamming
when parting from the other side
Woodturning 289 89
22/12/2015 10:28
 9 Now start to part through the rim, not
forgetting to keep this at right angles to the
disc and also taking a clearance cut to the right
to stop the parting tool binding. When you are
almost through the rim listen very carefully as
you get close to parting through, once you
hear a change in sound, stop the lathe and
you should be able to just pull the ring free.
It is also advisable to slow the lathe speed
down when getting near to depth. It is all
too easy to just make one last cut and have
something go wrong.

10 Use a sanding wheel in the chuck to

sand the inside of the disc to a smooth
finish, this will be finished by hand sanding
9 10

to remove all marks. This surface needs to

be as good as the outside

11 The disc needs to be cut in half, I am

cutting through on the end grain on
the bandsaw, but this could be done with
a handsaw just as well. Do make sure that
the ring will be cut into equal halves for
this design

12 Find the centre of the half, you then

need to drill a hole through each half
(see ‘Marking a hole on a turned circle’).
Use a scrap piece of timber to reduce breakout
when the drill bit goes through. I used an 8mm
drill bit for this. You now need to mount a piece 11 12
for the base. You could use the centre from
the disc but this would waste a lot of timber,
so mount a new piece and cut a recess for the
chuck. Reverse and clean the edge of the base.
Turn a simple ogee with the bowl gouge

13 Use the fluted parting tool to add a

bead on the base edge to match the
bead on the arms. Sand through all the
abrasives grades from 120 to 400, checking
that all the marks have been removed,
then seal with sanding sealant

14 Mount a piece for the stem between

centres and seize the spigot for the
base next to the steb centre. Next mark the
length for the spigot that will go into the arms 13 14
sections, these need to be 3mm in length less
than the two arms thickness for the cap to fit
into the arms. Now turn the basic stem shape.
Refine the stem shape by taking a smaller cut.
Next, reduce the spigot for the arms down to
8mm in diameter to match the drill diameter.
Sand and seal the stem

15 I used a buffing system to finish all

parts before assembling them. Be
careful to make sure that the arms are
at 90° to each other. When gluing to the
stem, I made a small cap to fit into the top
of the arms just to finish it off

16 The finished candelabra should look

something like this • 15 16

90 www.woodworkersinstitute.com

WT_289_87_90_PHILIP_GREENWOOD_bd, MBJRpgS.indd 90 22/12/2015 10:29

 Andrew Hall Mick Hanbury

ie Starbuc Wayne Mack

Jenn k

Tony Wilson

Mich
ael Painte
r Peter Sefton

in Pidgeon
Mart Nic
Westermann

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14-507 WT subs ad 2015.indd 92 1/8/16 9:25 AM

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093_WTUR_289.indd 93 1/5/16 12:41 PM

 www.norfolksawservices.co.uk
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094_WTUR_289.indd 94 1/8/16 2:08 PM

 KIT & TOOLS

Kit & Tools A mixture of press releases showing the

latest tools and products on the market
All prices are correct at time of going to press. Products from USA & overseas to UKare subject to shipping & taxes

THREADCUTTING TOOLS FROM ROBERT SORBY

PRICES FROM £25.55

T
hreadcutting is becoming an
increasingly popular discipline among
woodturners as projects like lidded
bowls and boxes become more common
and the understanding of the tools used
to make them more widespread. Screw
threads can be achieved using a host of
various tools, but the traditional fine-threaded
application used by turners still
fascinates and inspires.
Robert Sorby manufactures a
range of high-speed steel tools
to equip the turner and enable
him or her to easily create a variety
of different thread sizes. Threadcutters
are available in 10, 16 and 20 TPI
(threads per inch) in pairs or
boxed sets. Pairs and sets include
tools to cut an external and an
internal thread. Sets also include a
handy sizing gauge to take all the
guesswork out of dimensioning as
well as a ‘how to’ DVD produced in
conjunction with Allan Batty. The external
and internal threadcutters allow the user
to create an exact matched set of ‘male’
(external) and ‘female’ (internal) threads.
Robert Sorby is the only production that have perpendicular teeth and followers bottom where the threaded section of
tool manufacturer to produce its that can easily foul on the thread. Robert the box/lid will be created.
threadcutters with the thread pitch included Sorby also offers a relief cutting tool and a
in the teeth and followers. This ensures tool support to make the process easier. The Contact: Robert Sorby
the tool follows the thread being created relief cutting tool is designed so that the Tel: 0114 225 0700
accurately unlike traditional thread chasers woodturner can produce a relief cut at the Web: www.robert-sorby.co.uk

FROM £3.96 PEN MAKER’S BEESWAX SHEETS

it’s not a soft bouncy

material, but a hard
substance used in many
applications where stability,
workability and resilience are important.
Many clarinets and oboes, for instance,
are made from ebonite, as are tobacco pipe
mouthpieces. Ebonite takes a fine thread,
holds fine detail, cuts, drills and sands easily,
and polishes to an extremely high, lasting
shine, without the need for finishes or waxes.
EBONITE PEN BLANKS NOW Beaufort Ink have added a range of eight
AVAILABLE FROM BEAUFORT INK different colourways, including classic black,
to their ever growing catalogue, which are
T
hese natural beeswax sheets are the
fastest way to prepare pen and project
tubes for gluing and casting. They
make plugging quick and easy: just press the
ends of the tube onto the beeswax sheet and
you’re plugged and ready to go. When you’ve
finished casting, you can re-use the beeswax
for finishing or roll it out and use it again. The
sheet measures 200 x 405mm.
£2.53

U
sed by the world’s prestige pen available in three different lengths depending
manufacturers in their classic marques, on your requirements.
ebonite has long been one of the
materials of choice in America for pen kits Contact: Beaufort Ink Contact: Craft Supplies USA
and kitless pens, and is now readily available Tel: 01397 712520 Tel: (001) 800 551 8876
in the UK too. Made from vulcanised rubber, Web: www.beaufortink.co.uk Web: www.woodturnerscatalog.com

Woodturning 289 95

WT_289_95-96_KIT_&_TOOLSckmbSD.indd 95 06/01/2016 11:43

 AXMINSTER APF 10 EVOLUTION POWERED RESPIRATOR
£199.94

T
he new APF10 Evolution respirator from Axminster is not just
evolutionary in name. This positive pressure powered respirator
eliminates the drawbacks encountered with standard negative
pressure face masks. The motor unit blows fi ltered air down over the
face at a rate of 160L/min. Fatigue caused by having to suck through
a fi lter is no longer a problem; breathing is normal and comfortable.
The air exiting around the sides and bottom of the mask is at a slightly
higher pressure than that outside, thereby forming a most effective
seal. Beards are not a problem, and if you wear glasses, these will not
fog or mist up as you breathe out.
With the motor and fi lters mounted on the peak of the bump
cap and the battery at the rear, the balance of the APF 10 Evolution
unit is excellent. Combined with the low overall weight, it is very
comfortable. The Li-Ion batteries give a runtime of eight hours on a
full charge. The fi lters are easy to inspect and replace and the bump
cap’s outer cover is removable for washing. The unit provides FFP2
respiratory protection to EN12941:1988 TH1P. The bump cap gives
head protection to EN812. The clear visor gives you a wide field of
vision along with impact protection to EN.166.B.1. The respirator is
supplied with an eight-hour battery, plus charger, two fi lters, a flow-
rate meter and complete instructions all within a strong storage box.
Remember, you only get one pair of lungs.

Contact: Axminster
Tel: 0800 371822
Web: www.axminster.co.uk

INSIDE AND OUTSIDE CALLIPERS

T
urners Retreat is now stocking two
new 200mm digital callipers – one for
internal and one for outside measuring
– which help to eliminate guesswork involved
with using traditional callipers. These
fractional display callipers can be preset to
a specific measurement or simply used to
display the size of work being measured. The
8in inside callipers are made of aluminium,
are spring loaded for easy operation and
feature a large handle for convenient use.
The easy-to-read display shows measurements
in fractions, decimals or millimetres and
will measure up to an 8in diameter. The
battery is included.

Contact: Turners Retreat

Tel: 01302 744344 SANDI PADS
Email: eShop@turners-retreat.co.uk

J
Web: www.turners-retreat.co.uk ohnson Tools has recently introduced a
new selection of power sanding pads and
£22.96 interface pads to suit a wide range of the
sanding situations turners encounter. The
Sandi Pad EVA foam pads are supple and
flexible allowing them to follow the tighter
contours of a workpiece, they also feature a
very high quality hook attachment material
that will not let go of your abrasives mid-
use, unlike cheaper products available on
the market. The Premium Urethane pads
are dense but still flexible, and also feature
a very high-quality hook attachment. The
FROM £2.99
High Profi le pads are of a soft/medium
density meaning they can be used without
an interface pad. Sandi Pad Premium Grade
Interface pads are designed to convert
medium density pads into soft pads thus
allowing a higher degree of flexibility. They
feature a superior hook-and-loop attachment
material that fi xes firm and will not let go.
Contact: Johnson Tools
Web: www.johnsontools.co.uk

96 www.woodworkersinstitute.com

WT_289_95-96_KIT_&_TOOLSckmbSD.indd 96 06/01/2016 11:44

 Router Bits
and Sets

Saw Blades

Cutter Heads
and Knives

For a catalogue or more information please visit

www.cmttooling.co.uk or call 01202 611 123

Alternatively for your nearest stockist visit

www.tomaco.co.uk

097_WTUR_289.indd 97 1/8/16 9:23 AM

 ?
Missed
an issue

YOU CAN STILL OBTAIN BACK

ISSUES DIRECTLY FROM US!

A back issue of Woodturning magazine costs

£4.95 in the UK and £5.45 overseas.

To check availability and to order:

CALL OUR SALES TEAM ON

+44 (0) 1273 488 005 OR

VISIT OUR WEBSITE:

WWW.THEGMCGROUP.COM

14-157 Back Issues_WT.indd 98 1/8/16 9:28 AM

 TIMBER, TOOLS & ACCESSORIES COURSES/CLASSIFIED

Woodworking Materials
Large selection of products
Clocks & Accessories (Quartz & Mechanical), Barometers,
Thermometers, Cabinet furniture, Screw, Plans, Kits,
Polishes, Adhesives, Abrasives etc.
For free catalogue please contact,

Chris Milner, Woodworking Supplies

(Dept WT), Beresford Lane, Woolley Moor,
Nr Alfreton, Derbyshire DE55 6FH
Tel/Fax: 01246 590 062
Email: milnerwoodwork@aol.com

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.ORTHô9ORKô-OORSô.ATIONALô0ARK

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7ITH

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/NôTHEô2EGISTERôOFô0ROFESSIONALô4URNERS
'IFTôVOUCHERSôAVAILABLE
#LOñCROQEBOñABQ>FIPñ@LKQ>@Qñ-EFIFMñLKñ ñ ññ
BJ>FIñMEFIFMTLLAQROKFKDFKQL>OQ@LRH
WWWWOODTURNINGINTOARTCOUK

Allan Calder’s Ltd Sandpaper Supplies

since 1986
Unit 2B Churnet Works, James Brindley Road, Leek, Staffordshire ST13 8YH

We are supplying top

quality brands of
Turning and carving blanks, full machining service. sanding abrasives for all
types of wood turners.
Contact us for details or come and see us (please ring first)
We'll ensure a helpful personal service. Web: www.sandpapersupplies.co.uk
Wells Road, Emborough, Near Bath BA3 4SP Email: sandpapersupplies@yahoo.co.uk
Tel: 01538 387738

LINCOLNSHIRE WOODCRAFT SUPPLIES

Easy to find - Only 2 mins from A1 - Easy to Park
Specialist in High Quality Turning Blanks in Both Homegrown and
Exotic Timbers. Over 60 timbers in stock.
OPEN 9.00AM - 4.30PM MON - FRI
9.00AM - 1.00PM SAT
Send six First Class stamps for our
NEW MAIL ORDER CATALOGUE
FOR EXPERT ADVICE CONTACT: ROBIN STOREY
THE OLD SAW MILL, BURGHLEY PARK,
LONDON ROAD, STAMFORD, LINCS PE9 3JS
TEL: 01780 757825
NEW WEBSITE: WWW.LINCOLNSHIREWOODCRAFT.CO.UK

TO ADVERTISE PLEASE CALL RUSSELL: 01273 402841 Woodturning 289 99

WTUR_289.indd 99 1/6/16 10:16 AM

 CLASSIFIED TIMBER, TOOLS & ACCESSORIES
www.hopewoodturning.co.uk
HOPE easy-set threading jig
Create beautiful threaded
boxes and forms with
ease! Whether making
threaded wooden rings or
direct threading into your
projects you can add
another dimension to
your turnings with ease.

Easy twist and click

system built into the main
body for easy setting. 5
clicks for 16 tpi cutting
depth and 3 for the 20 tpi!
Totally unique to the
HOPE threading jig.

Jig comes with 20 tpi and 16 tpi threads. Chuck thread is m33 x 3.5.
Stem is 1” as standard (other stem sizes available).
Price includes high quality HSS cutter. £215.00 inc vat.
Call Simon on 01206 230694 email: hopewoodturning@gmail.com

Precision Accessories
for wood lathes
Compound slides
Sphere turning
Copy turning
NAREX - FLEXCUT - CHESTNUT PRODUCTS - LIBERON
Fluting
Spiralling
7YVÄSPUN
Drilling
Routing
Thread routing
Rose engine turning
E-MAIL: CHARLIEJUSTWOOD@SKY.COM WWW.JUSTWOODONLINE.CO.UK
Lignotec Nävesta 965
S 70591 Örebro Sweden
+46 19-222727
www.lignolathe.com
contact@lignolathe.com

100 TO ADVERTISE PLEASE CALL RUSSELL: 01273 402841

WTUR_289.indd 100 1/8/16 3:56 PM

 TIMBER, TOOLS & ACCESSORIES CLASSIFIED

Woodturning Available from

Signature Tools www.glennlucaswoodturning.com
and selected dealers worldwide.
Jig sharpening charts included for New - 1/2” and 5/8” bar ø double ended
sharpening on the Tormek, Woodcut, bowl and spindle gouges now available.
Oneway and the Sorby ProEdge.
Bowl gouges have a parabolic flute shape
for a superior cutting edge profile and ease
of sharpening.

Mastering
Woodturning
DVD series

Uk Suppliers of Olive Wood

SPINDLE BLANKS
Blanks for Turners
At Olive Wood Turning my intention is to supply BOWL BLANKS
Beacon Kilns, High Street Village, St Austell, PL26 7SR part seasoned olive wood turning blanks in
www.machinery4wood.co.uk sales@machinery4wood.co.uk
Telephone 01726 828388
useable sizes at reasonable prices. We supply to
both professional and hobby turners as well as
PEN BLANKS
turning supply shops
All blanks have been dressed and wax sealed to OLIVE WOOD PLANKS
help prevent splitting.
Multi-buys available to save on postage costs OLIVE WOOD BURR
When you need a If you have a project but aren't sure if Olive is for
you, call to chat it over, I'm not a salesman, I'm a
MULTI BUYS
wood turner that sells some nice wood.
reliable tradesman for Courier service to mainland UK, Highlands &
Islands, Northern and Southern Ireland and
work on your home… Europe
If you have no internet please phone or write
…choose a member of The Guild of Master Craftsmen. to the address below to receive a product
For a tradesman you can trust – and a job done well. list and order form in the post

WWW.OLIVEWOODTURNING.CO.UK
TEL: 07714 204060
The only place to list members of The Guild of Master Craftsmen exclusively EMAIL: JAMES@OLIVEWOODTURNING.CO.UK
Unit 10 Lidun Park, Boundary Road, Lytham, Lancs FY8 5HU

TO ADVERTISE PLEASE CALL RUSSELL: 01273 402841 Woodturning 289 101

WTUR_289.indd 101 1/8/16 9:47 AM

 CLASSIFIED TIMBER, TOOLS & ACCESSORIES

Barkers Lane, Snainton, Nr. Scarborough,

SPEED GENIE WOODWORKING SUPPLIES TEL: 01723Open
859545
North Yorkshire YO13 9BG

“Variable Speed Kits Mon-Sat 9.00 - 5.00.

for Woodturning” www.snaintonwoodworking.com Sun + Bank hols CLOSED.
Features:
% Mains illuminated On/Off switch Demonstration Day 27th February
% Start/Stop buttons
! % Speed control dial Sue Harker (RPT) Woodturning Demonstration
% Kit suitable for the Record
DML305, CL0, CL1, CL5,
RPML300 and DML24/36/48
10.00 A.M. - 4.00 P.M. Free Admission
lathes CHARNWOOD NOVA
% 0.5 HP kit £355 incl. delivery ML28 LED Light £28 NOVA Comet II Midi Lathe From £474.95
(Inclusive delivery applies to main W715 10" Bandsaw £185 Nova DVR XP Lathe From £1799
routes except Highlands and W730 14" Bandsaw £479 RECORD
Islands) W815 Mini Lathe £189 DML305 Midi Lathe £299
% Other kits available W821 Vari Speed Lathe £295 DML320 Cast Midi Lathe 3/4HP £469
W813 Lathe £380 CL3 Lathe Ex Display 1 Only £449
W813 Lathe and Chuck Package £460 Maxi 1 Lathe £1899
W870 Lathe £550 BS250 10” Bandsaw £259
CHUCKS AND ACCESSORIES BS300E 12” Bandsaw £499
Charnwood W810 3 Jaw Chuck £49 BS350S Bandsaw Package £699
Charnwood Viper 2 Chuck £89 BS400 16” Bandsaw £999
Charnwood Viper 3 Chuck £99 Large range of machines, tools and accessories.
Record RP2000 Scroll Chuck From £69.99 We are stockists for Camvac Dust Extraction.
Record SC3 Geared Scroll Chuck Package £99.99 ROBERT SORBY
Record SC4 Geared Scroll Chuck Package £129.99 Turnmaster ST123 £73.35
NEWS FLASH!! Nova G3 Scroll Chuck
Supernova 2 Chuck
From £79.95 Turnmaster HT123
From £94.99 Turnmaster HCT123
£87
£89.95
The Speed Genie has moved!!!!! Sorby Patriot Chuck £159 6 Piece Chisel Set 67HS £121
New address as of 1st December 2015… Full range of jaws for above chucks in stock ProEdge £278
HEALTH AND SAFETY ProEdge Deluxe £330
Spring Bank Farm, Goosefoot Lane, Face Shield and Visor £9.50 Free delivery UK Mainland on ProEdge
Samlesbury, Preston, PR5 0UU Elipse Half Mask £21.50 SANDING/FINISHING ACCESSORIES
Elipse Replacement Filters £9.00 Stockists of Sandi Pads, Abranet, Chestnut,
Tel:- 01254 851918 / Trend Airace £43.60 Micro-gloss, Micromesh, Nywebs, Rhynalox,
07849725195 Trend Airshield
JET
£199 Rhynogrip, Simon Hope, Turners Sanding Pack.
SHEPPACH
S.Haydock JWBS-20Q Bandsaw
JWL-1015VS Lathe
£1699 Bts800 Belt/Disc Sander
£449 DS405 Scroll Saw
£139
£299
Tel: (01254) 851918 / 07849725195 JWL-1221VS Midi Lathe
JTS-600 Saw Bench
From £699 SD1600F Scroll Saw
£1219 MT60 Portable Workbench
£139
£75
www.haydockconverters.co.uk VISIT OUR WOOD STORE TO SEE OUR LARGE STOCK OF TIMBER
JOIN OUR WOOD DISCOUNT CLUB 25% OFF ALL BRITISH
E-mail: converters@shaydock.fsnet.co.uk TURNING/CARVING TIMBERS WHEN SPENDING £20 FOR ONLY £15 PER YEAR.

102 TO ADVERTISE PLEASE CALL RUSSELL: 01273 402841

WTUR_289.indd 102 1/8/16 9:47 AM

 TIMBER, TOOLS & ACCESSORIES CLASSIFIED

‡ Hardwoods
SURREY TIMBERS Ltd ‡ Wood finishes
‡ Australian Burrs
‡ Exotic Timbers
Your One-Stop Wood Shop

t: 01798 861611 f: 01798 861633

W.L.West & Sons Ltd
Selham, Petworth, GU28 0PJ
‡ Woodturning Blanks
‡ Woodturning Courses (see website for dates)
Hardwood Timber Merchant ‡ Woodworking Tools
stocking local & Imported Timber ‡ Fencing, Gate & Decking Products
‡ Bespoke Garden Furniture

QH
%X\RURQH Off A272 Midhurst to Petworth road opp The Halfway Bridge Inn

FHR
SLH FN
SD
THE WOOD SHED
Please come & select from our range:
Ple
11 Lowtown Road
OAK, YEW, WALNUT, SAPELE, APPLE, MAPLE Temple Patrick
Co. Antrim BT39 0HD native and exotic woods
SYCAMORE & More!
02894 433833 woodturning tools
$OOZHOFRPH &DOOLQDQGVHH accessories • finishes
www.wood-shed.com woodturning courses for all abilities
f:RRGWXUQHUVf-RLQHUV RXUKXJHUDQJHDW/RVHOH\3DUN
f&DELQHWPDNHUV *XLOGIRUG6XUUH\*8+6

07795 663792 01483 457826

www.surreytimbers.co.uk
● Jet ● SIP
● Sheppach ● Fox
● Rojek
● Startrite
● Triton
● Charnwood ● Ryobi

Timberman Robert Sorby, Crown Tools,

Gwili Garage, Bronwdd, Liberon, Fiddes Finishes,
Carmarthen SA33 6BE Jet Lathes, SIP
Email: mike.jones@freeuk.com
Tel: 01267 232621 Hardwoods, Turning Blanks,
Fax: 01267 222616 Woodworking Machinery
Open: Mon-Fri 9am - 5pm & Power Tools
Saturday 9am - 12 noon
www.trucutbandsaws.co.uk A B C CV D F H M P S T W

Woodturning BWS BWS

magazine is the
Barmossie Barmossie
best platform for Suppliers of quality blanks,
spindles and boards in Woodturning Supplies Woodturning Supplies
reaching native hardwoods and
exotics. Also abrasives and
finishes. We will cut to Moss of Barmuckity, Elgin, Unit 25, Twitch Hill, Horbury,
your target customers requirements. IV30 8QW :DNHƓHOG:)1$
Visits to clubs welcome.
market Mail order available.
01924 271868
01343 842747
Tredegar House
07966 298026 07966 298026
Newport NP10 8TW
To advertise contact Russell on Tel: 01633 810148
Mob: 07854 349045 Open every Saturday Open every Saturday
01273 402841 www.iscawoodcrafts.co.uk
or russellh@thegmcgroup.com iscawoodcrafts@yahoo.co.uk 8am - 5pm 8am - 5pm

TO ADVERTISE PLEASE CALL RUSSELL: 01273 402841 Woodturning 289 103

WTUR_289.indd 103 1/8/16 9:47 AM

 FEATURE FEATURED ARTIST
Kimberly Winkle –‘Binary’
Kimberly Winkle’s piece for the AAW’s Creativity in Construction: A Collaboration of Materials
‘Binary’, walnut (Juglans regia), polychrome poplar (Populus spp.), 150 x 125 x 95mm, individually
‘B
inary’ was created for the AAW’s POP
invitational show entitled ‘Creativity
in Construction: A Collaboration of
Materials’, which was exhibited at the AAW
headquarters in Minnesota and subsequently
at the AAW International symposium in
Pittsburgh, PA. In the creation of ‘Binary’,
I had in mind a collaboration of not only
materials – wood and paint – but also a
collaboration of processes, traditional
techniques and new technologies. As a
result, ‘Binary’ was inspired largely by the
confluence of modes of making; in this case,
digital and traditional. The original form was
modelled using a CAD program called Rhino
and subsequently, carved from a solid block
of walnut (Juglans regia) using a CNC router.
While the CNC efficiently translates the CAD
rendered image, the technology’s limitations
104 www.woodworkersinstitute.com
WT_289_104_FEATURED_ARTIST_bdJRmb.indd 104
PHOTOGRAPHS BY KIMBERLY WINKLE
are also revealed
in the process
and outcome.
For example, the
rounded corners
of the interior void,
apparent exterior
seams and the
textured surface
left behind from
the cutting burr. The undersides of ‘Binary’
Admittedly, I fi nd
none of these aspects bothersome but, in the end, the collaboration of techniques results
response, I reproduced the CAD form in in a duet of forms that simultaneously look
poplar (Populus spp.) using traditional forward while also celebrating tradition; creating
analogue techniques of lathe turning, carving an interesting dialogue between the two.
and painting. This allowed for increased
hands-on control, more attention to detail Email: wimkinkle@yahoo.com
and improvisation of surface and colour. In Web: www.kimberlywinkle.com
22/12/2015 10:32
 “This is by far the best powered head unit
I’ve used. Its compact design means it’s
extremely light and unrestricted for the
wearer, and the added protection of the
bump cap means you have a real sense
of security. My best purchase this year!”
Colwin Way
Woodturner and tutor

Comfortable, efficient
and made in the UK
4HENEW!0&%VOLUTIONRESPIRATORFROM!XMINSTERISNOTJUST
EVOLUTIONARYINNAME4HEBALANCEOFTHEUNITISEXCELLENTWITH
THEMOTORANDlLTERSMOUNTEDONTHEPEAKOFTHEBUMPCAPANDTHE
BATTERYATTHEREAR#OMBINEDWITHTHELOWOVERALLWEIGHTITISVERYCOMFORTABLE
The motor unit blows filtered air down over the face at a rate of 160L/min, and breathing
is normal and relaxed. The air exiting around the sides and bottom of the mask is at a
slightly higher pressure than that outside, thereby forming a most effective seal. Beards are
not a problem, and if you wear glasses, these will not mist up as you breathe out. The Li-Ion
batteries give a runtime of 8 hours on a full charge. The filters are easy to inspect and
replace and the bump cap’s outer cover is removable for washing.
The unit provides FFP2 respiratory protection to EN12941:1988 TH1P. The bump cap gives Axminster
head protection to EN812. The clear visor gives you a wide field of vision along with impact !0&%VOLUTION
protection to EN.166.B.1. 0OWERED2ESPIRATOR
a Inc.vat 
The respirator is supplied with an 8-hour battery, charger, two filters, a flow-rate meter and
6ISOR/VERLAY (Pkt 10) a 
complete instructions all within a strong storage box.
0RE &ILTER0AD (Pkt 2) a 
Evolution® is a registered trade mark of JSP Ltd, used under licence by Axminster Tool Centre Ltd. More accessories are available.

To find out more visit axminster.co.uk or call 0800 371822

All prices include VAT and are correct at time of publication but may be subject to change without notice.

!XMINSTERs"ASINGSTOKEs#ARDIFFs(IGH7YCOMBEs.ORTH3HIELDSs.UNEATONs3ITTINGBOURNEs7ARRINGTON

IBC_WTUR_289.indd 1 1/6/16 10:20 AM

 Proudly Made in Sheffield, England

There’s only one lathe chuck that ticks all the boxes
 Complements the majority of lathes  Includes 50mm jaws and screw
chuck as standard
 Smooth jaw movement
 Huge range of jaws and accessories  Peace of mind with the Robert
Sorby lifetime guarantee

Athol Road, Sheffield, England, S8 0PA England.

Proudly Made in T: +44 (0)114 225 0700 F: +44 (0)114 225 0710 E: sales@robert-sorby.co.uk W: www.robert-sorby.co.uk Proudly Made in
Sheffield, England Sheffield, England

OBC_WTUR_289.indd 1 1/4/16 4:49 PM