Log bowl 03-15-12

Starting this bowl today.  Again, I am very new to the lathe, so we'll see how this turns out.  This is a log that was at my wife's nana's house.  I would like to keep it with a natural edge, and the rim uneven.

We'll see how this goes......

I was originally going to use this end of the log, because it was the biggest.  Well.....I messed up, and tried to pick the piece up before the saw was done turning.  the log fell on the blade, and cut the crap out of the bark.  That would have been fine, and I might still use it later, but I wanted this to be a natural edge.

I don't have the chuck to screw in to the wood, so I glue a piece to the bottom, and keep that piece in the chuck the whole time.  I turn the outside of the bowl, then turn the inside.  Maybe when I get a little better, and use it more often, I will get a new one, and pass on my 100.00 pawn shop lathe.

Wellllll, that didn't end to good.  I don't have my lathe secured to my table very well, so I'll have to work on that before trying another uneven bowl.  I took that first piece that I talked about, and cut that one down to fairly even.  I've got it glueing up right now, and I'll probably get on it later on today.  I'll keep you updated.

Well, a couple hours for glue time, and about thirty minutes on the lathe, and I've got my first decent looking bowl....

I'm going to the store right now and picking up some mineral oil, and some polyurethane.  I'll post some pictures when I have it totally done.

Here we are, about a day after I started my log bowl, and a few bumps, I'm done with my first real bowl. 

You can see in the first picture that I got a few tiny pieces of bark in the finish on the bottom of the bowl.  Once I realized this, I couldn't get the bark out.  Next time on a natural edge piece, I'll be a little more careful around the rim.

That's the end of this post, and probably the last one for a few days.  I have to work all weekend, and won't be going down to the basement at all.