Serving Southeastern West Virginia
The West Virginia Woodturners Association provides woodturners in southeastern West Virginia and western Virginia with an opportunity to meet other turners, enhance their skills, and share their skills and interests in woodturning. Send an email to info@wvwoodturners.com to request additional information about the club and its activities.
Turning Center at Lee Street Studios
All members can work in the Turning Center any time, any day of the week and use any of the Club lathes, tools, or specialized equipment such as the deep hollowing system and the coring system. Members will pay $2.00 per hour to use the Center. They will sign in and sign out, leave the area neat and clean, take their trash and shavings with them, and pay for their time at the next Club meeting.
The Turning Center will be open to the general public on First Fridays and Second Saturdays when the Lee Street Studio complex is open. A small gallery will be set up where Club members will be able to display and sell their turnings with the Club retaining a 10% commission.
Holiday Dinner December 14
The Club's Holiday Dinner this year will be held at Anne Turner’s home at 594 Private Road, Lewisburg. She has offered to make custom Pizzas and will also have Pasta Bolognese, Salad and Tiramisu for dessert. Feel free to bring your own 'adult beverage'.The cost will be $15 per Member or Guest.
Next Meeting: January 25
The Club will meet next on January 25 at Montwell Commons. Rick Lay will show how he stabilizes wood that is cracked, decayed, or otherwise difficult to turn using epoxy , wood hardener, or other similar materials.
November 16 Meeting Highlights
One guest, one new member, and 25 other members attended the November meeting and participated in the door prize and raffle drawings. Members displayed several recent turnings for Show and Tell pieces. Club officers and Directors for 2020 were elected and met after the meeting to plan the demonstrations and Club challenges for next year. The 2020 meeting dates and demonstrations are listed on the Meetings and Events page.
The following Officers and Directors for 2020 were elected:
- President: Bruce Brenneman
- Vice President: Rick Lay
- Secretary: Anne Turner
- Treasurer: Gary DeGraff
- Director: Bill Sproul
- Director: Cliff Baker
- Director: Wayne Bolen
- Director: Rocky Parsons
- Director: John Pauley
Since the summary of the October 26 meeting and Larry Weese's demonstration were only posted on the website for a few days, click here to see the meeting report.
Show and Tell
The Show and Tell judges selected three turnings for recognition:.
Additional Show and Tell Entries
Rick Lay turned this 7" bowl froma buckeye burl.
He also turned this nice little snowman in preparation for the holiday season.
Mike Cope turned 4 mulberry bowls for the Pearl Buck Museum and a small cherry burl bowl
Gerald Chandler turned this walnut lamp that is held in an ash flower pot.
Mike used his Bowlsaver to core this bowl from his larger cherry burl bowl.
Six Club members volunteered to turn these 6" salad bowls from butternut blanks for someone who had heard about the Club.
Bill Sproul: Deep Hollowing
Several years ago the Club purchased a McNaughton deep hollowing system and Club members can borrow it at any time. Bill Sproul shows how to set up and use this system.
The user's manual gives detailed instructions for setting up and using the Jamieson deep hollowing system.
A steady rest helps reduce vibration spirals when turning long, thin spindles. Use a 3-jaw chuck and a live center with minimal tailstock pressure.
A steady rest balances the sidwards force of the cutter while deep hollowing.
A forstner bit with an extension is a convenient way to begin the hollowing process.
A laser mounted on a rod above the boring bar lets you see the exact position of the cutter tip.
Cliff Baker: Coring Multiple Bowls from One Blank
When we turn a bowl from a large blank, it seems like two thirds of the wood ends up as shavings. That can be a real problem when we are turning highly figured burls or rare or expensive wood. With a coring system, it is possible to get several additional bowls instead of a big pile of shavings. Several manufacturers sell coring systems and the Club has purchased a McNaughton Center Saver coring system that is available for Club members to use. The user's manual provides detailed instructions for setting up the tool, laying out the coring plan, and using the coring system.
Knives with different radii are included in the system that allow each bowl to have a different profile.
The toolrest is placed 3/4" from the face of the blank and by changing the knife and the position of the toolrest, an infinite variety of profiles can be turned.
The toolrest height is adjusted so the knife tip is at the centerline. The knife is placed between the two pins that match the height of the knife, and under the top bar of the toolrest. In use, the knife is held so the top of the knife touches the top of bar and the bottom of the knife rests on the toolrest between the pins. The depth of the bowl depends on the angle when the tool tip contacts the blank. The maximum depth is obtained when the angle is 90 degrees.
The Woodcut Bowlsaver is another coring system that is easier to use but because it uses a curved knife that rotates on a baseplate. Because the same knife is used for each bowl removed from the blank, their shapes are identical. This system will often let you get more bowls from a blank because the depth of each bowl is more easily controlled than with the more flexible McNaughton system. Detailed information on the setup and use of the Bowlsaver is provided in the Bowlsaver manual.
Mike Cope uses a Woodcut Bowlsaver and will loan it to any Club member who wants to make more bowls rather than shavings.
Additional Tips and Comments
- Crinkle the paper patterns and then glue it to the curved turning with 3M 77 Adhesive.
- After burning, the paper pattern can be easily removed by soaking it with turpentine and then peel it off. Use rubbing alcohol to remove the residual turpentine.
- When stippling, use a knife tip to burn a border, then use a ball tip for stippling.
- Keep a sketchbook handy while you are turning so you can make notes for future projects.
- Printable adhesive film is convenient for printing patterns for piercing and is available from Hobby Lobby, Amazon, WalMart, and other suppliers.
- Embellishing helps differentiate your turnings from others.
- Set a fair price for your turnings. If they don't sell, move them to another outlet rather than cut your price.
- Piercing is very effective on hollow forms. Turn the upper and lower sections to 1/8" and glue the two halves together.
New Demonstrations Page
The Demonstrations page has been completely redesigned so individual demonstration topics can be easily found in the categories of Tools, Basic Techniques, and Projects.
General Club Information
For further information about any WVWA activity, call Bill Sproul at (304) 497-2319.
Supporting Companies
We would like to thank these companies for the support they have provided to the Club during the past year. Check out their websites when you are ready to purchase products that they stock.
Craft Supplies USA is a one-stop shopping site for everything a wood turner might need or want - lathes, tools, accessories, project supplies, materials, and more.
Woodcraft offers a 10% discount at the Roanoke store to WVWA members when they show a current membership card.
TurnTex supplies acrylic casting resin, solutions for stabilizing and hardening punky and spalted wood, and associated equipment.
by WVWA, a chapter of the American Association of Woodturners