On Mar 15, 9:43 pm, "George" wrote:

I'm turning a fairly small walnut bowl, ~4" diam. The turning is all done.
There are rough patches inside the bowl and on the outside separated by 180
degrees, which are clearly due to tearing of the end grain. I've gone over
them with the scraper, and I've sanded. And I've done both procedures
again, but the patches are still there.

Suggestions?

George

George,
I am also new to turning but have encountered this many times - I turn
mostly maple blanks that are very dry, and find there are times that
no matter the tool or the sharpness, I still see tear out in certain
areas.

Have come to the conclusion that in these cases, sandpaper is the only
viable way to fix it.

After spending time convincing myself that its not the method or the
tool, I lightly spray the piece with water and let it sit for a few
minutes in the hope it will raise the grain ( i admit this could be a
mind game I play with myself!) then with the lathe off, I sand back
and forth with the heavier grit the area in question.

One I have worked my frustration out,I turn the lathe back on and
begin the finishing process again, starting with the grit used to
remove the tear out.

Good Luck!