A new segmented vase

[handibunny]

Haven't posted a project in a while, and didn't want anyone to think I stopped making sawdust.

This vase was inspired by a turned vase I saw on another forum. It was cut from two blanks, about 7" x 7" x 7/16". One blank was solid padauk, the other was a sandwich of padauk and dyed black veneer. The blanks were stacked and cut into 10 segments. The segments were alternated and glued up, to form the finished blanks. Because of the thinness of the wood, I was limited in shaping, (31˚ starting angle) but I think it came out pretty well.

I left the wood natural, buffed it with a 320 grit sanding mop, then waxed and buffed it with one of those cotton thingies that chucks into the drill press. The sanding mop is a fantastic tool for buffing projects like these. It really lets you see any irregularities, and leaves a great surface. I also use the mop after my usual sealer coat of shellac to smooth it and save the aging shoulders (sigh!).

I used the wax sold by King Arthur's Tools. It went on very easily, and smelled really nice. I used wax because there were some dark places on the padauk that would have turned muddy if I used my usual finish. This worked out better than I had expected.

[DWSudekum]

That is fantastic Carole! I really like that a lot. Thanks for sharing it with us.

DW

[jowshu98]

Wow Carole, that turned out great. I really like the colors. You did a great job shaping the entire piece but the opening really jumps out at me. How did you get into that and keep it uniform? I think it would give most turners a run for their money!

[handibunny]

Thanks DW and Don. Glad you like it.

Don, I used a compass to draw a circle in the center of the remainder of the blank to guide the cut. Then, after I glued that piece on (the construction is similar to the jar in my bowl book) and got the shaping done, I measured from the top piece of veneer to the edge of the opening, going all around the circle. Wherever it was off, I drew in corrections to the circle, and used one of the small inflatable sanders to adjust it. When I was satisfied that it was as good as I could make it, I rounded the upper and lower edges of the opening. I considered making a lid, or a lip, but decided to leave it plain. Took much longer than I expected, but I was pleased with the final effect.

[GladeFade]

What a Beautiful piece!!!!!!
Funny you should mention about the smell of the wax.
A friend of mine years ago told the story about selling and people would always pick up his work and sniff it. Well he found some lavender smelling wax and started using that and his sales nearly doubled.
I have looked recently for wax with a lavender scent and have not been able to find any. Maybe I could add scent to wax?
Anyway GREAT bowl.
Bill

[Kiwi]

Lovely work. It is as good as any turned bowl. Can you share in a little more detail how you glued up your blank. Thanks

[JimSawyer]

Excellent effect Carole...!!!
Show piece for sure...!!

I can't wait til spring so I can start making bowls...(I have to do the sanding outside. My landlord would have a cow). Almost here....

[handibunny]

Bill, thanks for the kind words. That's really interesting about the lavender smelling wax. When I use oil for my collapsible basket and cutting boards, I use "Boos Mystery Oil", which is probably just overpriced mineral spirits, but it smells really nice.

Jim, when you get around to making bowls, you'll be all set for that apple tart that you intended to make--same technique. And you can do inlay on the bowl bottoms!

Kiwi, here are some process photos that I took. I had thought of writing this up as an article, but it turned out to be more challenging than I thought. It's not a complete set of photos, but shows the blank and the early steps. The techniques I used appear at various places in my bowl book.

Here are the two blanks that I used. They ended up being about 7/16" thick.
two blanks.jpg

Here's the pattern, and how it looked when I stacked the two blanks.
10 segment pattern.jpg attaching the pattern.jpg

Here's how it looked when I cut the stacked blanks into segments. I used double sided tape to secure the blanks to each other.
stack cutting.jpg

I alternated segments--plain and laminated--and glued up the four halves. Then, I glued up the halves to make two circles, being sure to keep the numbers in order.
gluing one half.jpg gluing one circle.jpg

The bottom half consisted of three rings and a base. The top half consisted of three rings. The remainder was used for the top piece. I increased the cutting angles as much as I could, given that I had to start out fairly steep to begin with. Hope this makes it a little clearer.

[lkbraa]

Another beautiful project Carole!!! I have been playing with segmentation, but I think I started out with too big of ideas...need to go back to the basics. Are you cutting all your segments with the scrollsaw? Do you find any issues with the edges being true or is that where the numbering comes in handy so they butt up correctly? (Hope that makes sense)

I had a terrible time keeping my glued blanks flat using regular clamps. I read in a segmented turning book where they used large hose clamps and that seemed to help me out better...but still not as perfect as I want it. Hoping with a lot more play time I will be able to turn out a great scroll saw project like you!!! Great inspiration for me to keep on trying...thanx so much for sharing!

[sawdustus]

Carole, that is simply the most beautiful bowl I have ever seen. You are an inspiration to all of us.

george

[handibunny]

Kim, I stack cut the segments with the scroll saw, and since I exchange the segments, irregularities tend to cancel each other out. That's where the numbering comes from.

However, even then, I usually need to do some sanding to get things even. And sometimes I need to sand the tips of the wedges off so I can glue them together and get the best fit. It's not the precision that turners need, but it's close enough to look good, and there aren't those forces to make the blank explode.

I often use the clamp just to draw things together, then remove it so things lay flat. If you rub two pieces together and the edges are really good, that's often good enough without clamping. Or I clamp just until it grabs, but before it messes things up.

I haven't done real segmentation--too fussy for now--so this is sort of "faux" segmentation, and it's good enough for me! Maybe one day I'll get more elaborate, but I kind of like to find quicker ways that give the same overall effect.

[martzy]

Absolutely georgous. Thanks for the tips on glueing. I think I sometimes over tighten because I'm worried the glue won't bond tightly enough. That usually leads to things getting out of wack.

[handibunny]

Yup--that will do it. Just tighten evenly until everything is firm. If the rings are flat you don't need to force anything. And for laminations that aren't quite perfect (like mine) there are tiny voids that can wreak havoc. Gentle is good.

[mtnman]

Stunning bowl, Carole! Thanks for the additional info on the process you used to make it.

[Wood Dog]

Thanks for sharing (as usual ) the info on your process........keeping everything in the back of my mind.
Now if I can only keep it all there without anything falling out.
Sweeeet looking project to be sure.