I would like to hear comments from people what they do when a hollow
form shatters on the lathe. I had my Sorby "Texan" tool break between
the shaft and the handle on Saturday and it exploded half the top off
my latest hollow form which was gargantuan, and I was really looking
forward to the new masterpiece. It is large, unusual, difficult,
pushing my abilities, but I was succeeding and was half done with the
hollowing when this happened.

In a high risk/high payoff venture such as this there are bound to be
disappointments. What do you do to alleviate the pain and get back on
the horse?

I find sometimes it's good to have another piece nearby to get working
on it right away.
Sometimes I see that my shop has become so cluttered with the tools I
got out for the project I have to clean up before I can work ,but in
doing so, I make room, clear my head and sometimes find things I
thought were missing, or forgot about, and find new inspiration there.

What about resurrection of the exploded piece? I have so much work in
this, and it is so unusual and spectacular I think it's worth
finishing and gluing the jigsaw puzzle back together. Even with scars,
I'll enjoy having it around. I have done this before and have not
regretted the repair work, even though it won't be as valuable as a
pristine piece. What do you do?

Mark
If it breaks it is kindling or I keep it around to learn from the mistakes.
I feel that you are not pushing the envelope and thus not learning unless
something breaks now and then or at least comes out after a lot of work and
you ask "why did I bother?" The reason is, to learn.

I hear you about having to clean the shop after every project. It does clear
the mind, but seldom the work bench. Man I can make a mess. Over and over I
say I am going to put everything away as I go. Hah! However, it does clear
the mind for the next shot, so it is not a total waste.

As an aside, Ellsworth says that now and then we should turn a pot and run
it through the bandsaw to see how we are doing. Definitely an ouch, but a
good learning experience. If you blow out the side, no sweat. Two learning
experiences for the price of one :-)

--
God bless and safe turning
Darrell Feltmate
Truro, NS Canada
http://aroundthewoods.com
http://roundopinions.blogspot.com
"Mark Fitzsimmons" wrote in message
...
I would like to hear comments from people what they do when a hollow
form shatters on the lathe. I had my Sorby "Texan" tool break between
the shaft and the handle on Saturday and it exploded half the top off
my latest hollow form which was gargantuan, and I was really looking
forward to the new masterpiece. It is large, unusual, difficult,
pushing my abilities, but I was succeeding and was half done with the
hollowing when this happened.

In a high risk/high payoff venture such as this there are bound to be
disappointments. What do you do to alleviate the pain and get back on
the horse?

I find sometimes it's good to have another piece nearby to get working
on it right away.
Sometimes I see that my shop has become so cluttered with the tools I
got out for the project I have to clean up before I can work ,but in
doing so, I make room, clear my head and sometimes find things I
thought were missing, or forgot about, and find new inspiration there.

What about resurrection of the exploded piece? I have so much work in
this, and it is so unusual and spectacular I think it's worth
finishing and gluing the jigsaw puzzle back together. Even with scars,
I'll enjoy having it around. I have done this before and have not
regretted the repair work, even though it won't be as valuable as a
pristine piece. What do you do?

I usually go to the house, pull out the hotdogs and marshmallows, and call
the kids over for a good fire.

JD

"Mark Fitzsimmons" wrote in message
...
I would like to hear comments from people what they do when a hollow
form shatters on the lathe. I had my Sorby "Texan" tool break between
the shaft and the handle on Saturday and it exploded half the top off
my latest hollow form which was gargantuan, and I was really looking
forward to the new masterpiece. It is large, unusual, difficult,
pushing my abilities, but I was succeeding and was half done with the
hollowing when this happened.

In a high risk/high payoff venture such as this there are bound to be
disappointments. What do you do to alleviate the pain and get back on
the horse?

I find sometimes it's good to have another piece nearby to get working
on it right away.
Sometimes I see that my shop has become so cluttered with the tools I
got out for the project I have to clean up before I can work ,but in
doing so, I make room, clear my head and sometimes find things I
thought were missing, or forgot about, and find new inspiration there.

What about resurrection of the exploded piece? I have so much work in
this, and it is so unusual and spectacular I think it's worth
finishing and gluing the jigsaw puzzle back together. Even with scars,
I'll enjoy having it around. I have done this before and have not
regretted the repair work, even though it won't be as valuable as a
pristine piece. What do you do?

While I understand the appeal of turning BIG and the appeal
of turning hollow forms and the appeal of what Jimmy Clewes
calls "Hero Cuts" - the ones that put most turner's teeth on
edge and make the hair on the back of their necks rise - I
can't understand why avoidable risks are taken. Hand held,
and hand CONTROLLED tools have limits - as you discovered.

With the various "captured" rigs out there, with an attachment
for just about anything you can think of, and as beefy as you
want to go and let the "capture" of the rig take the brunt of
a mishap - rather than your hand, forearm, arm, shoulder - or
in one case I've heard of - a few ribs - why "fly without a net"?
And most of these rigs have a laser pointer option so you can
tell where the cutting edge is inside the hollow form - that you
probably can't see - so you can turn thinner walls without
wondering "Is this pass going to cut THROUGH the wall?".

Call it "a healthy respect for" or a "justified fear of" but
there's a fine line between "fearless" and "dead". The
trick of differentiating between apprehension and warranted
fear is the tricky part. I'm betting you've already got a
pretty good idea of what went wrong, and maybe have come
up with ways to avoid what went wrong this time. Walking
away after an incident like this and doing something else
will allow the adrenaline - and disappointment - to diminish
and allow the rational, problem solving part of the brain
to do its job. Some lower risk turning may keep the muscle
memory tuned up and let the brain generate some chemical
amnesiacs that will overcome some of the mental impediments
an "unpleasant experience" might cause that can get in
your way.

But - if every cell in your body is yelling DON'T! it's probably
best to listen - and figure out another way.

If the pieces I found by "googling" your name (actually
I used www.alltheweb.com) are representative of the
pieces you turn, you clearly have the skills to turn BIG
- even in less than perfect wood. So I'm guessing that
you were either just unlucky - or dropped you concentration
for a fraction of a second. I'm glad it was the tool that
broke and not any parts of you. To avoid damage to
your self maybe a "captured system" might be worth
looking into.

charlie b

On Mon, 17 Mar 2008 11:57:14 -0700 (PDT), Mark Fitzsimmons
wrote:

I can't really relate to hollow form turning, Mark, but I can maybe explain my
outlook on my stuff...

You say that the piece was "large, unusual, difficult,
pushing my abilities", right?
I think that's a good thing and I try to do it often...
I also know that either my shape or whatever might be ugly, or my idea might not
work... or that the technique I tried might not be the right one or maybe I'm
not ready for it...

Some of my turnings come apart or just are not things that I'm happy with, but
IMHO, if you're not pushing the edge and learning, it's no fun...
You have to expect some failures on new things, just like you have to expect a
new turner to fail on some easy things... I guess that's how or skills and
creativity evolve...
Or, OTOH, we can be very safe and conservative and have no failures, and become
bored or stagnated..
Just plan another project that's a little farther out of the box and go for it..
Oh.. after explaining to your kids that you didn't fail, you just found another
way that it didn't work...

/soapbox

I would like to hear comments from people what they do when a hollow
form shatters on the lathe. I had my Sorby "Texan" tool break between
the shaft and the handle on Saturday and it exploded half the top off
my latest hollow form which was gargantuan, and I was really looking
forward to the new masterpiece. It is large, unusual, difficult,
pushing my abilities, but I was succeeding and was half done with the
hollowing when this happened.

In a high risk/high payoff venture such as this there are bound to be
disappointments. What do you do to alleviate the pain and get back on
the horse?

I find sometimes it's good to have another piece nearby to get working
on it right away.
Sometimes I see that my shop has become so cluttered with the tools I
got out for the project I have to clean up before I can work ,but in
doing so, I make room, clear my head and sometimes find things I
thought were missing, or forgot about, and find new inspiration there.

What about resurrection of the exploded piece? I have so much work in
this, and it is so unusual and spectacular I think it's worth
finishing and gluing the jigsaw puzzle back together. Even with scars,
I'll enjoy having it around. I have done this before and have not
regretted the repair work, even though it won't be as valuable as a
pristine piece. What do you do?


mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

"Mark Fitzsimmons" wrote in message
...
I would like to hear comments from people what they do when a hollow
form shatters on the lathe. I had my Sorby "Texan" tool break between
the shaft and the handle on Saturday and it exploded half the top off
my latest hollow form which was gargantuan, and I was really looking
forward to the new masterpiece. It is large, unusual, difficult,
pushing my abilities, but I was succeeding and was half done with the
hollowing when this happened.

In a high risk/high payoff venture such as this there are bound to be
disappointments. What do you do to alleviate the pain and get back on
the horse?

I find sometimes it's good to have another piece nearby to get working
on it right away.
Sometimes I see that my shop has become so cluttered with the tools I
got out for the project I have to clean up before I can work ,but in
doing so, I make room, clear my head and sometimes find things I
thought were missing, or forgot about, and find new inspiration there.

What about resurrection of the exploded piece? I have so much work in
this, and it is so unusual and spectacular I think it's worth
finishing and gluing the jigsaw puzzle back together. Even with scars,
I'll enjoy having it around. I have done this before and have not
regretted the repair work, even though it won't be as valuable as a
pristine piece. What do you do?

Are you serious? I cuss like a muleskinner!

B.

A quote from Bill Grumbine "bad words were said". Mostly I get a bit
peaved because I know I made a mistake that I probably shouldn't have.
So, I get back on the horse again and work at it until I get it right.
Like the old saying, we learn from our mistakes, which makes me the
smartest person on earth. Maybe this is similar to when people ask me
if I ever get so attached to a piece that I can't sell it. No, I can't
wait to see what the next piece will look like.
robo hippy

Mar 17, 3:35*pm, "Buddy Matlosz" wrote:
"Mark Fitzsimmons" wrote in message

...



I would like to hear comments from people what they do when a hollow
form shatters on the lathe. I had my Sorby "Texan" tool break between
the shaft and the handle on Saturday and it exploded half the top off
my latest hollow form which was gargantuan, and I was really looking
forward to the new masterpiece. It is large, unusual, difficult,
pushing my abilities, but I was succeeding and was half done with the
hollowing when this happened.

In a high risk/high payoff venture such as this there are bound to be
disappointments. What do you do to alleviate the pain and get back on
the horse?

I find sometimes it's good to have another piece nearby to get working
on it right away.
Sometimes I see that my shop has become so cluttered with the tools I
got out for the project I have to clean up before I can work ,but in
doing so, I make room, clear my head and sometimes find things I
thought were missing, or forgot about, and find new inspiration there.

What about resurrection of the exploded piece? I have so much work in
this, and it is so unusual and spectacular I think it's worth
finishing and gluing the jigsaw puzzle back together. Even with scars,
I'll enjoy having it around. I have done this before and have not
regretted the repair work, even though it won't be as valuable as a
pristine piece. What do you do?

Are you serious? I cuss like a muleskinner!

B.

On Mon, 17 Mar 2008 19:28:45 -0700 (PDT), robo hippy
wrote:

A quote from Bill Grumbine "bad words were said". Mostly I get a bit
peaved because I know I made a mistake that I probably shouldn't have.
So, I get back on the horse again and work at it until I get it right.
Like the old saying, we learn from our mistakes, which makes me the
smartest person on earth. Maybe this is similar to when people ask me
if I ever get so attached to a piece that I can't sell it. No, I can't
wait to see what the next piece will look like.
robo hippy

I learned today that it can help to get attached to a piece, Reed...

I did an ironwood freeform kind of thing a few months ago that Nan & I really
liked...
I priced it at $185, over twice my normal, figuring that it would look cool at
shows and then we could put it on our coffee table..

Damned if some lady that came to the house with a friend of ours didn't buy it
today...
I still can't believe that folks spend that kind of money on a chunk of wood..


mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

Mac,
I've done the exact same thing. My wife and I fell in love with a spalted
maple bowl. I priced it 2 1/2 time more than my normal price. Some lady my
wife works with saw it and bought it without hesitation.

so it goes.
JD

"mac davis" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 17 Mar 2008 19:28:45 -0700 (PDT), robo hippy

wrote:

A quote from Bill Grumbine "bad words were said". Mostly I get a bit
peaved because I know I made a mistake that I probably shouldn't have.
So, I get back on the horse again and work at it until I get it right.
Like the old saying, we learn from our mistakes, which makes me the
smartest person on earth. Maybe this is similar to when people ask me
if I ever get so attached to a piece that I can't sell it. No, I can't
wait to see what the next piece will look like.
robo hippy

I learned today that it can help to get attached to a piece, Reed...

I did an ironwood freeform kind of thing a few months ago that Nan & I
really
liked...
I priced it at $185, over twice my normal, figuring that it would look
cool at
shows and then we could put it on our coffee table..

Damned if some lady that came to the house with a friend of ours didn't
buy it
today...
I still can't believe that folks spend that kind of money on a chunk of
wood..


mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

When people ask me how I price my work, I tell them that wood type and
rarity are part, size, and difficulty in turning it, and how much I
like it.
robo hippy

On Mar 18, 4:31*am, "JD" wrote:
Mac,
I've done the exact same thing. My wife and I fell in love with a spalted
maple bowl. I priced it 2 1/2 time more than my normal price. Some lady my
wife works with saw it and bought it without hesitation.

so it goes.
JD

"mac davis" wrote in message

...

On Mon, 17 Mar 2008 19:28:45 -0700 (PDT), robo hippy

wrote:

A quote from Bill Grumbine "bad words were said". Mostly I get a bit
peaved because I know I made a mistake that I probably shouldn't have.
So, I get back on the horse again and work at it until I get it right.
Like the old saying, we learn from our mistakes, which makes me the
smartest person on earth. Maybe this is similar to when people ask me
if I ever get so attached to a piece that I can't sell it. No, I can't
wait to see what the next piece will look like.
robo hippy

I learned today that it can help to get attached to a piece, Reed...

I did an ironwood freeform kind of thing a few months ago that Nan & I
really
liked...
I priced it at $185, over twice my normal, figuring that it would look
cool at
shows and then we could put it on our coffee table..

Damned if some lady that came to the house with a friend of ours didn't
buy it
today...
I still can't believe that folks spend that kind of money on a chunk of
wood..

mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

On Tue, 18 Mar 2008 06:31:27 -0500, "JD" wrote:

Mac,
I've done the exact same thing. My wife and I fell in love with a spalted
maple bowl. I priced it 2 1/2 time more than my normal price. Some lady my
wife works with saw it and bought it without hesitation.

so it goes.
JD

Amazing, isn't it?
I have my wife price most of my stuff because to me it's just a chunk of wood
that I had fun with, and when it's done my head is already into the next piece..


"mac davis" wrote in message
.. .
On Mon, 17 Mar 2008 19:28:45 -0700 (PDT), robo hippy

wrote:

A quote from Bill Grumbine "bad words were said". Mostly I get a bit
peaved because I know I made a mistake that I probably shouldn't have.
So, I get back on the horse again and work at it until I get it right.
Like the old saying, we learn from our mistakes, which makes me the
smartest person on earth. Maybe this is similar to when people ask me
if I ever get so attached to a piece that I can't sell it. No, I can't
wait to see what the next piece will look like.
robo hippy

I learned today that it can help to get attached to a piece, Reed...

I did an ironwood freeform kind of thing a few months ago that Nan & I
really
liked...
I priced it at $185, over twice my normal, figuring that it would look
cool at
shows and then we could put it on our coffee table..

Damned if some lady that came to the house with a friend of ours didn't
buy it
today...
I still can't believe that folks spend that kind of money on a chunk of
wood..


mac

Please remove splinters before emailing


mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

On Tue, 18 Mar 2008 08:19:10 -0700 (PDT), robo hippy
wrote:

When people ask me how I price my work, I tell them that wood type and
rarity are part, size, and difficulty in turning it, and how much I
like it.
robo hippy

Yep.. I find that a lot with pens, a big seller down here.... The less I like
it, the lower the price..

Hey dude, the Baja 250 crowd went home, spring break is starting, and the
striped bass are hitting like crazy... when you coming down??


mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

"mac davis" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 17 Mar 2008 19:28:45 -0700 (PDT), robo hippy

wrote:

A quote from Bill Grumbine "bad words were said". Mostly I get a bit
peaved because I know I made a mistake that I probably shouldn't have.
So, I get back on the horse again and work at it until I get it right.
Like the old saying, we learn from our mistakes, which makes me the
smartest person on earth. Maybe this is similar to when people ask me
if I ever get so attached to a piece that I can't sell it. No, I can't
wait to see what the next piece will look like.
robo hippy

I learned today that it can help to get attached to a piece, Reed...

I did an ironwood freeform kind of thing a few months ago that Nan & I
really
liked...
I priced it at $185, over twice my normal, figuring that it would look
cool at
shows and then we could put it on our coffee table..

Damned if some lady that came to the house with a friend of ours didn't
buy it
today...
I still can't believe that folks spend that kind of money on a chunk of
wood..


mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

Well MAC if you don't feel right about taken all that money just send me
whatever you feel is too much. I promise that it will all be spent on wood.

Marty

On Mar 17, 10:57 am, Mark Fitzsimmons
wrote:
I would like to hear comments from people what they do when a hollow
form shatters on the lathe. I had my Sorby "Texan" tool break between
the shaft and the handle on Saturday and it exploded half the top off
my latest hollow form which was gargantuan, and I was really looking
forward to the new masterpiece. It is large, unusual, difficult,
pushing my abilities, but I was succeeding and was half done with the
hollowing when this happened.

In a high risk/high payoff venture such as this there are bound to be
disappointments. What do you do to alleviate the pain and get back on
the horse?

I find sometimes it's good to have another piece nearby to get working
on it right away.
Sometimes I see that my shop has become so cluttered with the tools I
got out for the project I have to clean up before I can work ,but in
doing so, I make room, clear my head and sometimes find things I
thought were missing, or forgot about, and find new inspiration there.

What about resurrection of the exploded piece? I have so much work in
this, and it is so unusual and spectacular I think it's worth
finishing and gluing the jigsaw puzzle back together. Even with scars,
I'll enjoy having it around. I have done this before and have not
regretted the repair work, even though it won't be as valuable as a
pristine piece. What do you do?


Hello Mark,

A number of years ago, I was testing the Kelton Hollowers and was very
pleased with the way the hollowing was going. I had a little ridge in
the piece and went back in to remove it. You guessed it I removed it
right through the side. Like you I was disgusted. Then I looked and it
and cut away the top to clean it up and had a nice end grain bowl with
very thin walls. I finished it up and turned away the foot to make it
a round bottomed bowl. At the next craft show I attended it was the
first piece to sell, so it really wasn't a failure at all simply an
opportunity for re-design. Since that time, I've considered all
problems in turning to be simply an opportunity for redesign.

Fred Holder
www.morewoodturning.net

On Tue, 18 Mar 2008 15:43:22 -0500, "MGIB" wrote:


"mac davis" wrote in message
.. .
On Mon, 17 Mar 2008 19:28:45 -0700 (PDT), robo hippy

wrote:

A quote from Bill Grumbine "bad words were said". Mostly I get a bit
peaved because I know I made a mistake that I probably shouldn't have.
So, I get back on the horse again and work at it until I get it right.
Like the old saying, we learn from our mistakes, which makes me the
smartest person on earth. Maybe this is similar to when people ask me
if I ever get so attached to a piece that I can't sell it. No, I can't
wait to see what the next piece will look like.
robo hippy

I learned today that it can help to get attached to a piece, Reed...

I did an ironwood freeform kind of thing a few months ago that Nan & I
really
liked...
I priced it at $185, over twice my normal, figuring that it would look
cool at
shows and then we could put it on our coffee table..

Damned if some lady that came to the house with a friend of ours didn't
buy it
today...
I still can't believe that folks spend that kind of money on a chunk of
wood..


mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

Well MAC if you don't feel right about taken all that money just send me
whatever you feel is too much. I promise that it will all be spent on wood.

Marty

Damn, what a nice guy... lol


mac

Please remove splinters before emailing