tww wrote in news:e0fb9a8b-881c-4d73-935b-
:

Richard Raffan's book 'Turning Bowls' has a small section at the back
on selling one's bowls. In the section he describes a rule of thumb
he uses to calculate how long it takes to make a bowl. His cost for
his time + current value of raw materials + something for fixed
costs = the price he sets.

His rule of thumb for turning time assumes you start with seasoned
wood. The rule says to multipliy the diameter of the bowl by the
height. That number is the number of minutes it takes to make a bowl
and is used in calculating how much to charge.

I recently timed how long it took to turn several oak bowls and the
time they took was two to three times the number I got multiplying
diameter times height. I started with two rough bowls aged for about
four months instead of a dry bowl blank cut from a dry slab of wood.
Needless to say my skills are not at the expert level but I got
curious how long it takes other people to make a bowl starting with a
dry rough bowl or dry slab of wood.

Has anyone used Raffan's rule of thumb ?


I (me) wouldn't consider using Raffan's rule of thumb until I can turn as
well and as quickly as he does. This means I will never be able to use his
rule of thumb. My rule of thumb is 'hmm, wonder how much I can get for
this'.
Hank