Sunday, January 22, 2012

Cherry Burl Shawl Pin

I turned the circular part of this cherry burl shawl pin from a small cutoff from a cherry burl vase project (not quite finished as of the moment).  The stick pin part was turned from a piece of regular cherry.  The round piece measures just over 2" across; the stick pin is 4 ½" long.


DSC03393

 



DSC03394

 



DSC03395

 



DSC03396

 


Friday, January 13, 2012

Cherry Burl Bowl

I'd had a piece of cherry burl sitting around the shop for at least a couple of years and hadn't been able to figure out what to do with it.  I think it was the product of one of our club raffles.  Part of the problem was its odd appearance:  it looked like it had been hacked out of a tree with a hatchet - had no discernible shape, and many hatchet-chop facets all around - and it was impossible to tell what it had originally looked like.  Inspired, I guess, or maybe just made a little braver by the success of the cherry burl hollow form I'd just turned (see previous entry), I cut flats on the ends, put the chunk between centers and started turning for exterior shape.  Ultimately I turned a 100mm tenon on one end to mount in a chuck for hollowing, and just kept at it.  The completed piece (finished with Watco Danish Oil - Natural) is pictured here.  There are a number of bark inclusions and some gaps that run all the way through from outside to inside, which is one reason I didn't try to make the piece any thinner.  As a result it's a little heavy in the hand, but not too bad, and I think the overall appearance came out pretty well.  It measures about 6 ½" across and is 4 ¼" high.


DSC03375

 



DSC03376

 



DSC03377

 



DSC03378

 



DSC03379

 



DSC03380

 



DSC03381

 



DSC03382

 



DSC03383

 



DSC03384

 


Wednesday, January 04, 2012

Cherry Burl Hollow Form (Vase)

In the gift exchange at our club's Christmas party I received a couple cherry branch sections with large burls.  I turned this hollow form from the smaller of the two.  (I put the branch ends between centers, rough turned the outside and put a tenon on one end; then reversed the piece, gripped the tenon in a chuck, finished turning the outside, and hollowed it out; finally I reversed the piece again, used the chuck in expansion mode to grip the opening by the inside edges, and turned the base.)  Since the wood was still green there was a lot of movement in the surface when it dried, as you can see in the pictures, which lends a very organic - even ancient - look to the piece, I think.  It measures about 7 ½" tall, and 4" across at its widest.


DSC03358

 



DSC03359

 



DSC03361

 



DSC03362

 



DSC03363

 



DSC03364

 



DSC03365