mac davis wrote:

I've been turning what were called "round boxes" when i learned, and I
think are called jars or covered jars here???

Anyway, it's a hollow shape with a matching/fitting lid, ok?

I've always turned them with a faceplace, but My wife would like
several from some walnut firewood we got from a friend, and they would
roughly 2" or so in diameter...
My question is how do you hold the little buggers??
They're too small to mount on a faceplate and I can't imagine trying
to turn them on a screw center...
I know there has to be an easy way to do thais, any suggestions?


Mac,
I just tonight turned my first ever boxes. Here's what I did.

First, I followed this link to get a sense of what I needed to do and yes,
you CAN turn them on a screw center.But I didn't. I was intrigued by the
authors assertion (in Method Two) that "but this, too, has a drawback. This
is that the lid cannot be hollowed out" so I found a way to hollow it.

http://www.turningtools.co.uk/projects/box/box.html

I'm using cast-off poplar and oak 3x4's from my employer. By the time I got
them cleaned up in the jointer, my stock was small (~2.50") so I:

1) rough turned one end round in a 4-jaw utility chuck
2) reversed and turned 2nd end round
3) parted off top and set aside
4) ran a 1.375" Forstner bit into the box base to full depth
5) turned the mating lip about .250" tall and about 1/2 the original wall
thickness
6) parted it off from the chuck
7) put top in chuck and ran the Forstner bit in about 1/2"
8) brought recess in the top to size to match tenon on base, reserving a
1.375" step for chucking in step 9 & 10
9) removed 4-jaw chuck and replaced with the PSI internal chuck for watches
10) mounted and finished the top, including all shaping and sanding
11) mounted and sanded the base, including a slight depression in the box
bottom to encourage it to sit square on flat surfaces.
12) applied first coat of finish (Minwax tung oil finish), rubbing by hand.