WOOD LATHE LEVEL 2

BOWLS

HOUSEKEEPING

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1. Land acknowledgement
2. Personal Intro & Pronouns
3. Waivers
4. Structure
1. 30 min presentation
2. 2:30 work time
5. Bathrooms

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PROGRAM OVERVIEW

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To provide you with the confidence to independently make safety conscious decisions while working on the lathe

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1. Safety and expectations
2. New lathe terms
3. Steps for bowl making
4. Avoiding kickback

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1

SAFETY & EXPECTATIONS

SAFETY & PPE

• Must wear glasses AND a face shield
• Face shield only disperses the energy of flying debris
• Do not aggressively weight the tool
• This could dislodge the work or cause a rough surface finish
• When turning the machine on, stand to the side of the work
• No gloves
• No loose clothing, hair, or jewelry
• Resist the urge to touch the spinning work
• Keep your foot space clean

END OF SESSION EXPECTATIONS

• Allow enough time to clean up!
• Sweep
• Reorganize tools
• Leave the space better than you found it
• Look for general cleanup tasks that need to happen
• Don’t clean for yourself, clean for the next member

2

NEW TERMS FOR BOWLS

REVIEW OF TERMS FROM LATHE LEVEL 1

Review of Terms

NEW TERMS FOR BOWLS

1 - Chuck: A self centering device with three or four jaws that grip a workpiece (usually a tenon or mortise). Very commonly used to hold bowl blanks

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2 - Faceplate: A round metal plate that screws directly into the headstock spindle. The wood bowl blank is screwed to the faceplate to hold it for turning

CHUCKS AND FACEPLATES

NEW TERMS FOR BOWLS

3 - Blank: The piece of wood, typically a round disc for a bowl, that has been prepared and mounted on the lathe for turning.

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4 - Tenon: An angled, protruding cylinder of wood turned on the bottom of a bowl blank. It is designed to be gripped by the contracting jaws of a chuck.

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5 - Mortise: A recessed groove or socket turned into the bottom of a bowl blank. It is designed to be held by the expanding jaws of a chuck.

TOOLS FOR BOWLS

Roughing Gouge ✘

Spindle Gouge:

• Tenon ✓
• Details ✓
• Hollowing ✘

Scraper ✓

Skew, Parting Tool

• Tenon ✓
• Details ✓
• Hollowing ✘

Bowl Gouge ✓

3

STEPS FOR BOWL MAKING

Overview of steps

1. Material selection
2. Prepare the blank
3. Create outside profile
4. Create the tenon
5. Flip it around and clamp it in the chuck
6. Hollow out the interior
7. Shape the rim and face
8. Sand and finish
9. Remove the tenon (optional)

1. Material selection
1. Hardwood vs softwood
2. Create a glue-up
3. Purchase a pre-made blank
4. Verify wood quality (knots/splits)

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2. Prepare the Blank and Mount

• Cut stock to round shape or square (less ideal, but still workable)
• Mark the center
• Attach/secure the faceplate - this is the inside of your bowl and this material will be removed later
• Mount to headstock
• Make sure blank size can fit in your lathe

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3. Create the outside profile

• True your blank using the gouge
• This is the outside of your bowl
• Mark the center
• Attach/secure the faceplate
• Mount to headstock

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4. Create the tenon

• On the future base of the bowl, turn a tenon in a dovetail profile that is sized to fit the jaws of the chuck.
• Ensure the shoulder of the tenon is flat and square to the bowl base
• The base of the tenon must NOT hit the base of the chuck
• Mount to headstock
• Mark the very center (important for later)
• Alternatively you can make a mortise. The same principles apply.

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5. Flip it around and clamp it in chuck

• Remove the faceplate.
• Mount the chuck jaws and tighten securely.
• The flat shoulder of the tenon must seat firmly against the chuck jaws

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7. Shape the rim and face

• True up the face first and refine the shape of the bowl rim

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6. Hollow out the interior

• Hog out material from the center inside of the bowl using the bowl gouge
• Pay attention to tool rest height and position
• Take even amounts and pay attention to bowl wall thickness
• Work from the rim towards the center.

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8. Sand and Finish

• Sand and finish the bowl while still on the chuck and lathe
• I like to apply wax or oil on the lathe

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9. Remove the tenon (optional)

• Remove it by using the friction jam chuck fitting and the tail stock.
• Flip your bowl around and use the tailstock and your previously marked center.
• Use the gouge to remove the tenon to a small nub.
• Sand to finish.

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4

AVOIDING KICKBACK

Tool Position

Verify the tool angle

• The tool handle should be between your ribs and waist
• Test with lathe off
• Adjust the height of the tool rest to change the angle of tool handle

Tool Position

When cutting

• Make sure bevel stays in contact with wood
• Make sure the cutting edge contact point is supported by the tool angle and tool rest
• LISTEN to your cuts and the lathe. If an unexpected sound arises, shut off the lathe and review the security of the work and your cutting angle.

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ANY QUESTIONS?

WOOD LATHE LEVEL 2