This is the August 2018 Newsletter. I apologize for the format. No pictures yet. Still learning how to add items page one Volume 1 Issue 8 August 2018 Vermont has just closed out the hottest month in all of recorded time, with over half the days hitting 90 degrees or more. Normally we get two or three for the entire year! Why am I moving south for warmer weather? Well, we know what it is like up here from November through April, so our decision still stands. For the what it’s worth department: a friend of mine up here in Vermont recently opened a small art gallery. The building she bought a couple years ago was almost 200 years old and had been a meeting house, general store, and in its last iteration, a church! Situated in a scenic tiny town on Lake Champlain that sees hoards of summer traffic, and almost none in the winter, she knew this would not be in the category of high dollar commerce, so she decided to make it a ‘showing’ gallery (and coffee house) rather than a ‘selling’ gallery, although some work would be for sale. She wanted to have a woodworker represented, so she asked me to take a six week time slot this summer, along with a graphic artist. I made her a few pedestals and took her a mix of twelve pieces. The pictures show the display. Some you may recognize pieces from past “show & tells.” The grand opening was a lightly attended and modest event, but surprisingly, over the next week several pieces sold! The ones that sold first were those with wings and/or finials, not unlike the one I demonstrated at Franck’s in early July. (See my tool review piece on page 14.) The lesson: if you are thinking about selling your work, the slightly “quirky” pieces with wings, lids, finials, feet, etc. definitely attract more attention than bowls. Plus, they are a lot more fun to make! The thing that generated the most “how’d you do that” questions was the multi-axis finials! You have heard me say this before, but it’s worth repeating: our hard-working newsletter editor, Dave Hausmann, is doing a great job getting things up and running over the last few months. It is all about content, so please think about sending him something? In this digital age of always having a camera in your pocket, take a few shots and send them to him. Your shop, your woodpile, a piece you are working on while you are out of town and can’t make it to ‘show & tell’ will work. Anything of interest to your fellow turners. Reader input has a way of building on itself too! Our club has had a website for many years, but in the new age of iPads, apps, and rapidly changing protocols, it is badly in need of a makeover! We are just getting going on this, and your input is encouraged. Take a minute to look at websites of other clubs. There are some 350 chapter clubs in the AAW, and most of them have websites. Dave is helping to co-ordinate this, so if you have some thoughts, or see something “out there,” send him a note and/or link. Thanks! See you all in the Fall! Russ Sarasota Woodturner’s Club Officers President - Russ Fellows e mail: skunkmen@gmail.com Vice President - Jim Weeks e mail: jburtonweeks@gmail.com Treasurer - Stephen Johns e m a i l: steve2515@hotmail.com Secretary - Dave Hausmann email: dhausmann@comcast.net phone 703-608-4255 Director at Large - Franck Johannesen email: vikno11@verizon.net phone 941-323-4988 Director at Large - Alan Levin email: Docal714@icloud.com page two Upcoming Sarasota Woodturners Events and Demos Michael Gibson at Advantage Lumber August 15, 2018. “We are dedicated to promoting the art of woodturning through educational demonstrations and hands-on training. We meet to share our techniques, methods and skills. We provide assistance with tool and equipment recommendations.” In This Issue Kimberly Glover‘s Pyrography Demo Steve Johns’ Oneway Easy-Core System Steve Johns’ Bowl Turning Demo Franck’s Mushroom Demo Russ Fellows’ Tool Review 16 3 12 Don’t forget our members-only tool and supply auctions. See Tom Falcone for tickets. 19 23 Franck Johannesen showing Thompson Lathe Tools donated for Sarasota Woodturners Club Members’ use by Doug Thompson. page three Kimderly Glover’s Pyrography Demo at Advantage Lumber, July 18, 2018 A good turnout for Kimberly’s Pyrography demo. She began pyrography by making Christmas ornaments four years ago. Pull the pen toward you for better control. Denatured alcohol will remove overburn and carbon lines. Graphite paper is used to transfer images to the wood, preferable cherry or maple. She uses a scrap piece of wood to check temperature and a brass brush to remove carbon on nib. page four Use a 1/64” ball tip for stippling. Stipple in arbitrary circles. Higher temperature for branding. Razertip Single Wood Burner and Razertip Dual Wood Burner. Interchangeable Pen Tips. page five Club members asking questions of Kimberly. 20/22 gauge wire for making nibs. Various nibs can be easily made for different burn patterns. page six Pyrography by Kimberly Anne Glover, 2014 Materials: Maple, pear, cherry or any close grained wood is ideal for pyrography. If you use a large grained wood such as oak or ash, the grain may take the tip in a direction you did not intend for it to go. You can also do pyrography on leather. Safety: • NEVER do pyrography on any material that has had finish applied • Use a solder-style fan to pull the fumes away from you to avoid smoke inhalation • When not in use disable the unit. Good – remove the pen cord from the unit, Better – unplug the unit, Best – have the unit on a switched plug that can be turned off. • Tips such as the skew and knife are sharp and will cut skin • Ergonomics – change your work area to suit you. I work at a low bench sitting in an office task chair. My light/magnifier is movable so I can sit comfortably and not hunch over the work. Tools: • Pyrography set characteristics • Single or dual burners • Some units have a secondary adjustment for heat • Pens come in standard or heavy duty as well as fixed nib or interchangeable nib • Leather strop (used for cleaning nibs that are skew, knife, chisel) • Small brass brush (used for cleaning nibs that are complex shapes) • Tracing paper, graphite, scotch tape or blue painters tape • Store bought stencils, clip art books, free images from the internet • Tracer, stylus (homemade or purchased) pro – reuse a pattern, con – hard to tell where you have already traced • Pencil and a good size eraser (soft white-colored erasers leave residue in the grain that may show when you put the finish on) • Small ruler (if you like straight lines) • Coloring tools (pencils, crayons, markers, dye, etc.) • A good light that can be directed at your work • Magnifier (no matter what age you are, it helps to see the fine details) • Work Support for you and the piece page seven Hints Set up: • Pyrography is NOT an outdoor sport - breezes and temperature change will affect the way the burner performs. • Don’t fight the cord! After you connect the cord to the pen, lightly hold the pen in your hand like you were going to work with it. If the nib is not oriented to the work as you intend,turn the cord – NOT the pen. This will reduce the amount of stress on your hold and allow you to make more fluid movements and not get hand cramps! Patterns: There are numerous ways to put a pattern onto a workpiece (tracing, naphtha transfer, iron transfer, draw directly on the workpiece). • Tracing – using graphite paper, trace the pattern with as much or as little detail as you need or using graphite or chalk on the back of the original and trace. • Naphtha transfer – you must have the pattern copied on a toner style copier for this to work. It can be a little messy if you use too much and will tend to raise the grain of the wood. • Iron transfer – again you have to have a copy from a copier. If the piece is very thin, the heat may cause twisting. It is also not feasible on concave or convex pieces. Short of drawing the design directly on the work, I prefer the tracing with graphite paper method. It is the cleanest and most versatile – although it does take a little time. Hints: • Keep things small. Cut the tracing paper to a size that works for the design. Having a larger piece than necessary makes it harder to align the design and if it should slip, you may not notice. It also makes it more difficult to position the graphite. • I also cut the graphite into smaller pieces and move it about as needed. Using a larger sheet caused dark smudges where I would hold or rest my hand while tracing. • Reuse the graphite paper. You’ll be surprised how many times you can use it! • You can use a pencil to trace it, but your pattern won’t be reusable for long. If it’s not a complicated pattern, use a stylus, available at most craft stores. • Use a LIGHT touch when tracing. If you press down hard, you will compress the wood fibers. This could ‘direct’ your tip when burning, and if you want to make a change to the design, you could end up with that ‘line’ showing. Burning: Having a scrap piece of the project wood is a necessity! • Use a light touch – the nibs are fragile and will bend/distort/break if you use too much pressure. • Always pull the pen toward you turning the piece as necessary. You will have more control. • Practice a bit of the design to make sure the nib can make the arc or line you want. • Work in batches to cut down on pen/nib changes. Work does not have to be consecutive. • Use the scrap piece as a temp checker as you work. I constantly use the scrap piece to make sure that my nib temp is where I think it is – as I work, if a breeze blows through the shop, if I turn the unit off/on, clean the tip or even if I pause for a couple of minutes with the unit on the temperature will change. • How fast you move will affect the degree of burn that you achieve. You may start out with the shade of burn that you want, but if you move too quickly the nib will cool off and the shade will be much lighter. • When burning a repetitious pattern such as shading or stippling, session continuity is important. When you take a break – short of overnight, you may find it hard to resume the same “rhythm” and it’s possible the temperature will different. If it will be necessary for you to stop and start, keep the edges a random wave. It is much harder to detect than a straight line. • If you’re trying to achieve a random pattern, it’s often better to work in varying circles than covering the area with a systematic grid. Without realizing it, you’ll find yourself lining up the soldiers in nice neat rows. • Clean your nib as you work. I use a brass brush while working to get rid of any built up carbon. Do it as often as you think you need. If you don’t do it often enough, you will see a drop in the nib temperature and possibly carbon bits dropping off as you work. I also use a leather strop to clean and sharpen some of the nibs – skews, spears, chisels and knife nibs. Design: Basic elements of design: • Line — the visual path that enables the eye to move within the piece • Shape — areas defined by edges within the piece, whether geometric or organic • Color — hues with their various values and intensities • Texture — surface qualities which translate into tactile illusions • Tone — Shading used to emphasize form • Form — 3-D length, width, or depth • Space — the space taken up by (positive) or in between (negative) objects • Depth — perceived distance from the observer, separated in foreground, background, and optionally middle ground page eight Sarasota Woodturner Members’ Show & Tell, July 18, 2018 page nine Ed Newton’s Segmented bowl. Norm Stabinski’s John Henry’s Poinciana vase. Candle Holder. Dave Hausmann’s American Elm vase. page ten Franck Johannesen‘s Segmented bowl. Maple sarawood bowl. Bill Maroney’s Maple bowl. Norfolk Island Pine. Alan Coppes’ Quilted Maple, Turquoise and Ebony piece. page eleven Pat Sullivan’s Bowl of Fruit with wax finish. Allen Coppes’ Rosewood vase. Dave Laubisch’s Dimo Wood Tool Handle. Kimberly Glover‘s Pyrography Eggs. page twelve Steve Johns setting up the Oneway Easy-Core. Steve Johns Setting Up The Oneway Easy-Core Coring System at Franck’s Studio, July 24, 2018 How Does the Easy-Core Work? - A heavy duty steel base plate attaches to the bed of the lathe. Two supports, one for the support finger and one for the cutter blade, are attached to the base plate. The support finger and cutter blade fit into these supports. The position of the support is determined by the size of the blank being cored and the wall thickness desired. A tool handle is attached to the cutter blade and is used to introduce the cutter to the wood. This system has been designed in such a way that the tailstock can be used while coring. Using the tailstock in any wood turning operation greatly increases the safety factor. When the entry cut is made, the support finger is positioned at the face of the bowl supporting the cutter blade. The cutter is on a fixed arc and it becomes a simple matter of deepening the cut by exerting pressure with the handle. After progressing 2 - 3 inches into the groove, the cutter is removed and the lathe stopped to re-position the support finger by introducing it into the groove. This procedure is repeated until the knife reaches maximum depth. The core is then removed by tapping the edges or a bit of easy prying. Cores produced will be symmetrical and have a smooth surface. Knife Sets - The size of the sets determine what size bowl blanks can be cored. There are four knife sets available for the system. (9”, 11”, 13” & 16”). These Knife Sets are purchased separately. Easy-Core Base Set - The unit needed is determined by the swing of the lathe. The swing is the distance from the middle of the spindle to the bed multiplied by two. Any size lathe from 16” to 26” swing and flat bedways can be accommodated with the Easy-Core Coring System. Base Set includes: the Base; Front & Rear Post; Short Tool Handle; Screws & Washers; and an Instructional DVD. Note: Knives and Clamp Block Sets sold seperately. The Knives are made from quality materials to ensure they hold up to the task at hand. The supports fingers for the 9” & 11-1/2” sets are constructed using 60,000 lb tensile carbon steel, whereas the support fingers for 13” & 16” sets are made from 100,000 lb chrome nickel steel. Knife Sets include: a knife; a knife support, and a cutter. page thirteen Using the laser from the Hope Hollowing System. The cutter. The Elm bowl. An interior cut out bowl. Use a tail stock extender to secure bowl at end of cutting. Sarasota Woodturner Members’ Show & Tell, July 24, 2018 page fourteen Dave Laubisch’s Sarawood bowl. Dave Laubisch’s Sarawood bowl. Dave Laubisch’s Sarawood bowl. John Henry‘s Chinaberry bowl. Steve John‘s Maple Sarawood bowl. page fifteen Tiffany Vase, Tampa Museum of Art Dave Hausmann‘s first attempt at a Tiffany-Inspired Sycamore vase. Alan Levin‘s first attempt Norfolk Island Pine hollowed vase . page sixteen Downhill shear cut, elbows in, handle against hip, right foot in front. Steve Johns’ Bowl Turning Demo at Franck’s Studio, July 31, 2018 Attach blank with screw, round bowl out with roughing gouge. Steve’s 60 degree gouge grind. page seventeen Reverse wood in chuck. Drill depth hole for hollowing. Smooth continuous cut demands a smooth continuous motion with tool. Push, lift, swing are all done with right hand. Left hand just pushes down. Wood wants certain speed and feed, don’t push it! Maintain constant thickness with wet wood to prevent cracking. Check thickness with thickness guage. Show & Tell at Franck’s Studio, July 31, 2018 Norm Stabinski’s Chinese Elm bowl. Steve Johns’ Norfolk Island Pine vessels. Pat Sullivan’s Turned & Carved Apple bowl. page eighteen Franck Johannesen’s Norfolk Island Pine Mushroom Demo, August 7, 2018 page nineteen Smooth out and see how knots are arranged. Try to get knots to come across face Make tennon. Use side of gouge on end grain to smooth out. Reverse piece on lathe, secure in chuck. Use parting tool at base of mushroom. Drill and hollow out bottom so it won’t crack. page twenty A second mushroom is begun. Smooth out with roughing gouge. Align knots as before. Drill base and then hollow with spindle or roughing gouge to keep from cracking. Shear cut top with flute pointing south. Norfolk Pine is full of sand so you’ll sharpen tools more often. page twenty one Show & Tell at Franck’s Studio, August 7, 2018 Steve Johns’ Norfolk Island Pine vessel. Steve Johns’ American Elm bowl. Franck Johannesen‘s Lutz Demo Segmented bowl. John Miller‘s Segmented bowl made with Forstner bits and bent coping saw blade. page twenty two Carbide Lathe tools Some of us are old enough to remember when carbide tools were considered a luxury and really only seen in big professional shops. That has all changed. Today, even a cheap skil saw blade has carbide teeth. It has been a slower process for carbide to appear in lathe tools, but it has arrived. In doing demo’s and teaching classes I have frequently made reference to them, but never had any to show. A few weeks ago I went online to search for some. There are many brands out there, but the name Harrison (https://www.harrisonspecialties. com/carbide-woodturning-tools/) had popped up several times, so I thought I would give them a try. As can be seen from the website, there are many choices. I chose the mid-sized set with one handle and four tips. As soon as they arrived I put them to work. In my demo at Franck’s in July, I had talked about how tricky the grain can be when doing a wing bowl because it is neither end grain nor side grain! The round carbide tip using a pull cut definitely helped tame this issue. Another application was smoothing a resin tool handle, this time using the square (actually slightly radiused) tip. Care is needed doing this or the corners will catch. Tool Review by Russ Fellows Conclusion: carbide tools are a valuable addition to your “arsenal.” Will they do everything? No. You still need a regular assortment of gouges to do your serious wood removal and shaping. Think of them more as detailing tools and scrapers, which of course, they really are. If I were ordering again, and you can add to the set buying tips individually, I would specify a larger diameter round cutter. It would help in smoothing operations and allow you to reach around corners a little better, as in a bowl rim or vessel neck. If you would like to “try before you buy,” stop by my shop. I will be back in town in a few weeks! Russ Fellows (802-343-0393) page twenty three Allen Coppes found this book in the library and wanted to share it with our members. He is particularly interested in the way it presents design proportions. Arts & Crafts of the Islamic Lands: Principles Materials Practice 1st Edition by Khaled Azzam (Editor) An unparalleled reference on Islamic arts and crafts that connects cultural history with modern practice Islamic arts and crafts do not belong to the past: artists and craftspeople in the Islamic tradition draw on their rich cultural heritage to inform and inspire their practice today. Created by The Prince’s School of Traditional Arts, one of the world’s leading schools for the study of Eastern and Western crafts, this book combines detailed information on techniques and materials with discussion of the philosophical and historical background of the cultures that have contributed to Islamic arts. The book covers a range of artworks and media from intricate geometric drawing, decorative Kufic calligraphy, and Persian miniature painting to ceramics, wood parquetry, mosaics, and glassblowing. Common tools and materials, such as gesso panels, gilding, and brush and wasli paper are presented along with information on their historical significance. Each chapter introduces a principle, tool, or technique along with examples of masterworks found across the Islamic world before providing a fully illustrated step-by-step guide to creating specific designs. 1000+ illustrations in color and black and white Woodturning Tips, Techniques, Ideas & Information This newsletter was designed and produced by club secretary David Hausmann. Articles, digital photos and information that you would like to share with Sarasota Woodturner members are welcome. Please contact me at dhausmann@comcast.net. Alan Levin’s Border Collie, Ebony White, enjoying turning demos at Franck’ Place. The Border Collie is a working and herding dog breed developed in the Anglo-Scottish border region for herding livestock, especially sheep. It was specifically bred for intelligence and obedience. Considered highly intelligent, extremely energetic, acrobatic and athletic, they frequently compete with great success in sheepdog trials and dog sports. They are often cited as the most intelligent of all domestic dogs. Border Collies continue to be employed in their traditional work of herding livestock throughout the world. A Request to Pen Turning Members Hi Dave We talked briefly about asking the pen turners if they had cutoffs from pen making that are not needed. I can use bright colored ones to make beads for a lidded box. Acrylic Ones are best. Also, I wanted to thank you for all your time and effort to get the newsletter out on a regular basis. Much appreciated! Allen Coppes Sent from my iPhone |
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