Turn a bowl the old school way

[Jonkou]

Working on a lesson plan for teaching bowl turning and figured I’d organize my thoughts and do a dry run here. Questions and comments welcome. This tutorial is to demonstrate a simplistic method for turning a bowl. It‘s meant to be a guide for newbies using just what came with the lathe. No chuck is needed and will only use two turning tools, a bowl gouge and a parting tool. Though this bowl is medium/large the principles are the same for turning any scale on any lathe.

Use a belt sander to make a flat spot on the face of the prepped blank, mount a faceplate on center (using a screw chuck here). Bring up a live center in the tailstock and lock it down.



Remove the waste with a bowl gouge until all surfaces are leveled. Not shaping anything yet, just seeing what there is to work with.



Rough out the outside to the desired shape paying particular attention to shape, scale and form.
Flatten the bottom in preparation for mounting a waste block and establish the rim.



Minimum material has now been removed to reveal what there is to work with. Repair any defects if needed.

 

[JonLanier]

I'm curious to see how you hollow that out without a chuck.

 

[JD1137]

My 2-cents..........glue blocks and face plates are "old school" (I know, because I'm old) as your title suggests - LOL

As I teach newbies, I teach rough-turning between centers on everything up to 12" diameter and then into a chuck for hollowing.

Bigger stuff with a face plate (if necessary) although I personally turn everything up to 16" diameter between centers (I'm experienced and careful) . Chucks are inexpensive compared to the price of lathes and some of the other tools, and so much easier. Rough turning between centers offers so much flexibility in lining up grain, etc. vs. kinda being stuck and the hassle of repositioning a face plate or glue-block.

But, I also understand everyone has their favorite method and it all works at the end of the day.

 

[Alancw]

I'm curious to see how you hollow that out without a chuck.

Face plate attached to waste block?

 

[Jonkou]

Next step is attach the faceplate with a solid wood waste block minimum 1/3 the dia of the piece being supported.
Remove the nub and dress the foot so it’s flat.



Scuff the foot and waste block with coarse sandpaper for a stronger bond. Bring up the tailstock and dimple the foot to find center, mark the outline of the waste block and pre check the glue up alignment.

The dimple will be invaluable later when reverse mounting the bowl to complete the foot.



Test fit, all good



Butter the two surfaces with glue and mate them together. A cone on the tail stock works well to ensure a more precise alignment.

Normally use medium CA and can be back to turning in minutes. Recommend wood glue for newbies because it has much better shear strength in case of a catch.

 

[Jonkou]

My 2-cents..........glue blocks and face plates are "old school" (I know, because I'm old) as your title suggests - LOL

As I teach newbies, I teach rough-turning between centers on everything up to 12" diameter and then into a chuck for hollowing.

Bigger stuff with a face plate (if necessary) although I personally turn everything up to 16" diameter between centers (I'm experienced and careful) . Chucks are inexpensive compared to the price of lathes and some of the other tools, and so much easier. Rough turning between centers offers so much flexibility in lining up grain, etc. vs. kinda being stuck and the hassle of repositioning a face plate or glue-block.

But, I also understand everyone has their favorite method and it all works at the end of the day.

Hear you and agree, goal of this exercise is use what came with the lathe to keep expenditures to a minimum until sure they will stick with it.
Typically do the aligning when cutting and dressing the blanks, rarely turn rough stuff anymore where can’t read the grain. Exception would be natural edge bowls where do tween centers to balance the rim.

 

[Jonkou]

After the glue dries mount it on the lathe and remove the ugly from the top to get it balanced and minimize vibrations.



Shape the outside as desired, fix any surprises and shear scrape to minimize sanding.

 

[Jonkou]

Just a little more turning, refine the foot and establish the top of the undercut rim.



Sand the outside to 400



Outside is complete, will hollow it next time. Don’t turn much big stuff anymore, too physically demanding and usually only work in 2-3 hr sessions no matter what I’m making. In the end it doesn’t matter what is left on the floor or how long it took to make, it’s the pleasure of the creative process that motivates me to keep going.

 

[woodtickgreg]

I agree with the last paragraph.

 

[Jonkou]

Undercut the rim first and establish the wall thickness (<1/4”) then hollow in stages to minimize flex while cutting. Remove the center cone in stages as you go.



The undercut rim traps the shavings




Set up to sand the inside next time

 

[Steve in VA]

Great step by step so far John, as expected.

The only things I might add would be:

• General safety
• Grain orientation and a few tips such as bowl gouge vs. roughing gouge and speed selection.
• The pros and cons of wet / green wood versus dry as many just starting out may not know.

 

[Jonkou]

Sand the inside and outside to 600



Part off from the waste block, don’t go too deep and risk it breaking.



Dress the waste block to use again or shape it to use as a jam chuck to complete the bottom.



Use a chisel to remove the nub. Note - the dimple will be used for alignment.

 

[Jonkou]

Mount the bowl on a reverse jam chuck and bring up the tail stock to lock it in. The drawer liner provides traction and protects the finished bowl surface.



There isn’t much holding the bowl on so take your time and use light cuts. Turn as much of the foot as can without risking a failure.



Remove the nub with chisels and sand to completion.



Not part of the lesson plan but did want to complete turning the bottom to my normal standards.



Ready to apply your finish of choice.



So that wraps it up… you too can turn a bowl with just a bowl gouge and parting tool using what came with your lathe. Accessories such as chucks, various turning tools, and countless other stuff are handy but not necessary. By them as needed as your skills increase.

 

[2feathers Creative Making]

Thanks a lot! There went a whole bowl full of excuses to buy more stuff and put off making those...

 

[trc65]

Very nice tutorial John. Ought to be required reading for any new turner.

Too often, and too quickly, we as a society turn to buying a new tool, accessory, or gizmo to help solve problems. If one were to just take a step back and think about the situation, the solution may be as simple as a little ingenuity and tools at hand.

 

[2feathers Creative Making]

We sure 'nuf know those old traveling lathe masters wouldn't have carried 2500 dollars worth of additional tools that got used once a year. I bet the old timers had no more than 10 lathe tools and some of them likely did double duty from time to time. Saws make great parting tools if you are treadle lathe working. Your newer, high speed society and get bunches of them done now ideas didn't get traction until the last century. There were Several centuries where folks only made what they could use right then. With what they had right then. Those who had a lathe and chisel turned their bowl. Those who had a hatchet, chopped their bowl out and smoothed it with what they had on hand. Those who had neither, got a fire going and burned a bowl out. All the bowls still held food. These tutorials are a good reminder that 10 bucks with time goes farther than 100 bucks with no patience.

 

[Jonkou]

1st coat of oil