Sculpted centerpiece bowl


wtnhighlander

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I have been gluing walnut scraps and making all sorts of stuff also, looks like it's going to be a pretty cool center piece.

 

Have you ever put a rotary rasp or burr cutter in the drill press and hand worked a piece into it? I will sometimes to this to cleanup tool marks as I get close to the desired shape and start approaching finished design. One needs a firm grip and a light touch or it can get a little grabby.

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Well, I had the opportunity to make some noise in the garage today. Dust was still an issue, so I rigged a flex hose to to top of my bench, and went to work with the grinder. The Kutzall disk was great for shaping the interior of the bowl, and for adding a slight hollow to the bottom. I tried out my die grinder / rotary rasp, but my little air compressor just can't handle the load. I guess the fine details will have to be done with meat power.

Now, I am becoming intimately familiar with my gooseneck scraper:

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This is actually working quite well, now that I figured out how to get the burr right. Most of the How-to vids on YouTube say burnish the edge square, then at 5* to turn the 'hook'. I found that to leave a brittle and awkwardly angled burr, so I tried just burnishing square to the edge, and my shaving have never been better. Helps that walnut is a not-so-hard wood...

And a $2 pair of rubber palmed knit gloves from HF really protect my hands from the edge, and give a wonderful grip. Reduces fatigue tremendously.

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Still scraping .....

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The interior is coming along nicely. The outside still has a way to go:

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Sorry for the poor quality photos, lighting is horrible in my "shop".

Quick tool review:

On a whim, I decided to try one of these:

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from Harbor Freight.

Meh. Even at "80 grit", this thing won't make dust out of walnut. Might polish the chrome on your 22" spinners, but useless for wood.

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Daniel, I don't know about them being a "pleasure" to use, but they are certainly effective!

I'm still thinking about a finish to use. I used mineral oil & beeswax on a walnut cutting board recently, and love the look, but it needs frequent re-application. Have you used tung oil and wax mixed, or applied oil, then wax after the oil cures?

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I sometimes use BLO, never used tung oil. BLO is not a good sealer, leaves visible lumps on some woods. To solve this I first apply a coat of shellac.

 

I always apply wax as the last coat, but never mixed the wax with other finishes. You may also want to apply a coat of shellac before the wax, but this is entirely optional.

 

I often mix BLO with whatever oil based varnish I have at hand, and mineral spirits (equal shares of each one).

 

But if you're going to use that centerpiece for fruits, then I wouldn't use any of the above except for shellac and/or food grade mineral oil.

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I like the minwax tung oil, 2-3 coats, or till it does not soak in right away and then 3 coats of water base poly. I have been picking up these little 8oz sizes and trying out different ones. Rustoleum also makes a water based crystal clear that I like over oil.

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  • 2 weeks later...

A well sharpened curved scraper can be your friend on a piece like that. Might need a fairly aggressive hook to start with. Gloves are a good idea too, easy to get cut when a finger slips on a scraper.

If you consider any top coat over Danish oil give it a week or more to dry , 2 or 3 weeks wouldn't hurt. A shellac barrier coat if you are considering a water bourne might be smart.

It's looking good, keep posting !

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