I've raised this question in another turning forum and figure there are
some here who might want to think about this one.

As newbie turners most of us started out turning between centers and
eventually graduated to face plate turning, then bought a chuck and
started turning all sorts of hollowed out things.

Somewhere along the line we found something that was both interesting
and fun to turn - and may have gotten stuck with that - even after most
of the fun had been wrung out of it. Seriously, how many variations of
a plate or bowl or hollow form can we turn before repetition sets in.
Sure, we can improve techniques with turning tools and we can refine a
shape or form ‘til the cows come home.

At some point it’s going to become Auto Pilot Mode - I Do This, then
This, then This - and I’ve Got - another bowl, or lidded box, or plate
or platter or vase or . . .

After a while, it becomes just so easy - to do basically the same thing
- over and over and over again. We feel like turning - so we turn what
we’re comfortable with. It’s so EASY to stay with the familiar, to
remain in our Comfort Zone - which may, in fact, have become a RUT - as
in “stuck in a rut”.

But there are so many other possibilities, so many other tools and
techniques, shapes and forms - that aren’t familiar - that aren’t The
Same Old Thing.

Think about it. Are YOU in a rut? Have you thought about trying
something new - to you - but, for one reason or another (we’re all good
at excuses), haven’t tried it - yet?

Remember back when you first started turning? Remember the anxiety -
and the anticipation - when everything was out there to discover, and
explore? Remember that AH! Feeling when you figured out how to use a
technique or keep tuning a shape ‘til it looked just right? Remember
when you took a piece off the lathe and said “Damn! Did I actually just
make THAT?!”

That feeling is still out there - waiting for us to step out of our
Comfort Zone - out into the new and unfamiliar - where that BUZZ sits
waiting for us.

What’s on your Someday I’m Gonna Try ____ List?

The BUZZ is waiting for you. You going to go for it - today?

charlieb wrote:
The BUZZ is waiting for you. You going to go for it - today?

Rutting can be fun too!

--
Gerald Ross
Cochran, GA

One who has both feet on the ground is
not moving forward.

"Gerald Ross" wrote in message
.. .
charlieb wrote:
The BUZZ is waiting for you. You going to go for it - today?
Yeah! ...but don't forget the fun of finding news ways to make the same
form.

During the Easter season,I wonder how many of you Dads and Grands are
turning out either a very fancy Faberge' Egg or churning out dozens of
simple (as if turning a properly shaped hen egg is ever simple)
unfinished eggs to be painted by your young genius at his/her day care
school.


Along with Charlie's question about getting out of the comfortable rut
and back on the hiway by turning new and innovative pieces, another way
of refreshing our turning life might be for hobbyists to try turning the
same ole at production speeds as fast as we can. That can be a very
uncomfortable pleasure.


Striving for perfection is good and it's necessary for growing as a
woodturner, but it can become a rut in itself. By taking the ruts we
might avoid the holes and rocks between, but nothing ventured nothing
gained (oh no! not another cliche)


It's surprising how interesting testing the limits of our turning speed
can be and amazing how fast we can become when we get out of our
'perfectionist rut' even if only for warming up before nervously and
often with little or no fun, turning that masterpiece from that
outrageously expensive exotic blank.


Last couple of days I've been turning eggs from 3in. blocks of squared
off white wood stud cut offs as fast as I can. I am getting a few
abortions that no hen would admit to laying and I'm still not timing
with a stopwatch, but neither with a calendar.


Developing speedy production techniques to crank out our same ole _small
spindles as fast and as decently as possible can be fun for a hobbyist.
Techniques like grinding special tools, turning several objects along
the same cylinder, cutting many blocks from free wood, using only one
tool, very fast speeds, centering by eye, banging the block onto the
drive center or cranking it on a spinning center, locking the tailstock
and using only the tail ram to mount and dismount, etc. can get us out
of the ruts safely and is a turning (not a political) _change for some
of us.


I often turn batches of fan pulls of the locally famous Jupiter
lighthouse by the dozen to give to local charities to sell to tourists
and to keep in my truck to give to the nice people I run into. I wrap a
printed history of the Light around the pulls, hold them with a rubber
band and put them into plastic baggies. The 'devil may care' turning
experience is fun, the gifting is satisfying and I'm not repeating the
boring compulsions of trying to make sure not to
mess up what I hope will be a nice bowl.


OTOH, driving in the ruts can lead us to new places. Good question,
Charlie. Sorry I got carried away.


Turn to Safety, Arch
Fortiter


http://community.webtv.net/almcc/MacsMusings

here's how I avoid a rut

1. I don't buy wood (well, very very very rarely)
2. I don't generally start with "clean" wood cut to a round "blank", instead
I start with a gnarly thing with branches and holes and bark and worms and
whatever else nature gave it.
3. I spin it up and remove all that doesn't belong. Each time I get a
different result. sometimes the result is just dust and scrap, sometimes it
is a "clean up the shop" event, but if the result exits the lathe with
finish on it and in one piece, it is definately not a copy of whatever I did
before.

root balls are good for this (pick ones small enough for your lathe) - use
plastic (pourable, clear) to fill in gaps and make it hold together (I'm
still working on one of these) - goblets from fresh wood that moves a lot
(eucalyptus is interesting), you get the idea

This thread got me to again pull a book from the shelf. The back
cover said: "In the case of archery, the hitter and the hit are no
longer two opposing objects, but are one reality. The archer ceases to
be conscious of himself as the one who is engaged in hitting the
bull's-eye which confronts him. This state of unconsciousness is
realized only when, completely empty and rid of self, he becomes one
with the perfecting of his technical skill, though there is in it
something of a quite different order which cannot be attained by any
progressive study of the art" -- from the Introduction by D.T. Suzuki
to the Eugen Herrigel book 'Zen in the Art of Archery' (a pun waiting
to happen in this group?).

Like releasing angels from blocks of marble, finding bowls hidden in
trees and releasing them without any sign you were there sounds like a
zen practice.

Bill Noble wrote:

2. I don't generally start with "clean" wood cut to a round "blank", instead
I start with a gnarly thing with branches and holes and bark and worms and
whatever else nature gave it.

root balls are good for this (pick ones small enough for your lathe) - use
plastic (pourable, clear) to fill in gaps and make it hold together (I'm
still working on one of these)


I'm new to this group and a total neophyte to wood turning in general.
Right now, I'm just in the reading and planning phase, so I have a lot
of questions to ask of you experts. Your idea of working with root balls
sounds very interesting. How do you prepare a root ball for turning? I
would think it would be difficult to remove all the soil and rocks and
stuff that would instantly dull a cutting tool. Once clean, how do you
mount a root ball between centers? The trunk end seems easy, but what
about the root end? Or maybe you just chuck up the trunk end and not use
the tailstock? Around here, stumps are basically junk wood that are
difficult to dispose of -- they don't even split easily for firewood. As
is, they are much too big for a lathe. Is there a "best" way to cut them
up into lathe-size pieces? Is there anything special you have to do to
deal with the wild grain, or is it just not a problem? Starting with
root balls, what shapes have you ended up with?

I am giving turning a rest. It was my prime recreational activity for
about 8 - 10 years, but I have had enough for a while.

We have enough bowls, Christmas ornaments, lamp pulls, oil lamps,
pens, spoons, spatulas, potpourri holders, candlesticks, tool handles,
offset turned objects d' art, mallets, lidded boxes, gavels and mulch
to last for a long time.

It is a shame. I have four lathes, including one I bought for
teaching. I used to stand at the lathe for as much as 12 hours,
turning away. I went into the shop and turned whenever I got a
chance, just to grind up some wood. I was totally consumed with
turning, and even while driving I would stop anytime I saw a piece of
wood that looked "interesting" and throw it in the back of the truck.
I don't know where all of that energy and interest went.

Since my occupation is hands on remodeling/woodworking, I work with
wood all the time so I don't miss the woodworking aspect of turning.

I have now dusted off my ancient hiking and camping equipment (how do
things get 25 - 30 years old so damn fast?) and have started hitting
the trail a bit again. Of course now, with hiking and camping comes
digital photography...

I think my next woodworking skill to learn will be veneering.

My next craft skill to learn may be knife making.

Not sure when I will get back to turning. I think I rolled out of the
rut and went right on off the farm...

Robert

wrote:

I am giving turning a rest. It was my prime recreational activity for
about 8 - 10 years, but I have had enough for a while.

snip

Not sure when I will get back to turning. I think I rolled out of the
rut and went right on off the farm...


You'll be back - even if you get rid of your currents lathes and
tools.
Who knows what amazing piece of wood you might find on - or near
- the trail. And since you'll have to pack it out - I see small
lidded
boxes in your future.

Enjoy!

Hey Robert old friend, I know about burn out. Got the scars to prove
it. Give up turning for a while if you must, but don't give up your many
friends on rcw. If you do I just might have to tell you to go take a....
hike!


Anyway do whatcher doing in good health and having fun and keep in close
touch. Bet you aren't tired of barbecuing. Where you gonna get the
mesquite without picking up turning blanks? Veneering, eh? I dunno,
but I'll go along with it.


All best, Arch

On Mar 26, 3:17*pm, (Arch) wrote:
Hey Robert old friend, *I know about burn out. Got the scars to prove
it. Give up turning for a while if you must, but don't give up your many
friends on rcw. If you do I just might have to tell you to go take a....
hike! *

I heard Ed McMahon's " HIYO!!!!" along with the "badabump - crash!"
as I read that.

I'm not going anywhere, but not you either, OK? Radio silence from
sunny FL can be troubling....

I am at the same point with woodturning as I am with my flat work. I
would rather teach it than do it.
I like helping people learn.

As for me, I tend to tackle something really hard for as long as I
think I should to achieve a modicum of proficiency. Then I beat the
snot out of it to make sure I am comfortable with it, and I move on.

I don't know what it is... I feel like I have to try something
completely new every once in a while or things just ain't right. Long
term repetition isn't my strong suite.

Bet you aren't tired of barbecuing.

NEVER!! I still get that hankering for good smoked brisket or pork,
and fire up the smoker on a moment's notice. I keep about 2 pounds of
my rub mix on hand (one for pork, one for beef) for the time that urge
hits.

I still barbecue in the dead of winter (which is the 30s here!) or at
the century mark whenever I feel like it. The latter just requires
more cooling fluid for the operator.

One of the other things I am eyeballing is stabilizing wood.
Interesting stuff, and even in these nasty economic times, there is a
market for it. That ties into both wood turning and knife making for
me.

All of the things I do seem to just lead me to other things. I just
kind of follow along sometimes.

I do a lot of cabinet and fine finishing in my business, and in
teaching myself dyeing and staining, I found a lot of techniques I had
never heard of. That led me into experimentation on burled woods,
which in turn is what we turners like.

I have done all my own finishing and refinishing of cabinetry for
years now.
As far as the veneering project goes, I have a friend of mine that
will get me some veneers at a great price if I will teach him how to
dye wood. He saw a front door of extremely curly birch I dyed then
sealed with a conversion lacquer for a customer, and he went nuts. I
was surprised myself at this particular piece. With the veneering on
the door, it looked like a big mahogany colored satin bed sheet. The
folding and swirling in the grain was fantastic. I was a great piece
of wood to dye, no doubt.

But he doesn't have the patience for upscale finishing. It has taken
me years to get completely comfortable with finishing and he is
thinking that after a couple of weekends, he is "there". I am really
hoping to get some nice veneers before he loses interest!

I am not sure when I will get to this stuff though, as is prime season
for hiking around here. And in two weeks, the boys of summer will be
back, and I will be out at the open air stadium enjoying bad beer and
worse hot dogs watching my favorite AA team.

I will always be interested in woodturning, and consequently will
continue to haunt this venue. At this particular chapter of the
woodturning book, I like the people more than the process.

Back here soon!

Robert

No hats ? My uncle turns hats.

Martin

wrote:
I am giving turning a rest. It was my prime recreational activity for
about 8 - 10 years, but I have had enough for a while.

We have enough bowls, Christmas ornaments, lamp pulls, oil lamps,
pens, spoons, spatulas, potpourri holders, candlesticks, tool handles,
offset turned objects d' art, mallets, lidded boxes, gavels and mulch
to last for a long time.

It is a shame. I have four lathes, including one I bought for
teaching. I used to stand at the lathe for as much as 12 hours,
turning away. I went into the shop and turned whenever I got a
chance, just to grind up some wood. I was totally consumed with
turning, and even while driving I would stop anytime I saw a piece of
wood that looked "interesting" and throw it in the back of the truck.
I don't know where all of that energy and interest went.

Since my occupation is hands on remodeling/woodworking, I work with
wood all the time so I don't miss the woodworking aspect of turning.

I have now dusted off my ancient hiking and camping equipment (how do
things get 25 - 30 years old so damn fast?) and have started hitting
the trail a bit again. Of course now, with hiking and camping comes
digital photography...

I think my next woodworking skill to learn will be veneering.

My next craft skill to learn may be knife making.

Not sure when I will get back to turning. I think I rolled out of the
rut and went right on off the farm...

Robert

"whirled peas" wrote in message
...
Bill Noble wrote:

2. I don't generally start with "clean" wood cut to a round "blank",
instead I start with a gnarly thing with branches and holes and bark and
worms and whatever else nature gave it.

root balls are good for this (pick ones small enough for your lathe) -
use plastic (pourable, clear) to fill in gaps and make it hold together
(I'm still working on one of these)


I'm new to this group and a total neophyte to wood turning in general.
Right now, I'm just in the reading and planning phase, so I have a lot of
questions to ask of you experts. Your idea of working with root balls
sounds very interesting. How do you prepare a root ball for turning? I
would think it would be difficult to remove all the soil and rocks and
stuff that would instantly dull a cutting tool. Once clean, how do you
mount a root ball between centers? The trunk end seems easy, but what
about the root end? Or maybe you just chuck up the trunk end and not use
the tailstock? Around here, stumps are basically junk wood that are
difficult to dispose of -- they don't even split easily for firewood. As
is, they are much too big for a lathe. Is there a "best" way to cut them
up into lathe-size pieces? Is there anything special you have to do to
deal with the wild grain, or is it just not a problem? Starting with root
balls, what shapes have you ended up with?

well, since you asked - my lathe can turn about 40 inches in diameter, but
for root balls I wouldn't go that big

You have two approaches -
1. wash, wash wash (pressure washer helps), then dry it out, cut to some
reasonable shape with a saw and clippers, make a paper form and pour in
casting resin, then turn the mess

2. wash, cut off unintersting parts, mount remainder between centers and
turn it a bit to see what needs to come off - remove, cut it off, repeat.
In a limiting case, cut the roots off the ball and just use the solid wood -
you will get great grain. Like a crotch only better.

and yes, it will dull your tools - that's why you learn to sharpen (or use
carbide for the roughing)

you can hold the trunk end in a chuck for a small root ball, but supporting
with the tail stock is a good idea.

Bill Noble wrote:
You have two approaches -
1. wash, wash wash (pressure washer helps), then dry it out, cut to some
reasonable shape with a saw and clippers, make a paper form and pour in
casting resin, then turn the mess

2. wash, cut off unintersting parts, mount remainder between centers and
turn it a bit to see what needs to come off - remove, cut it off, repeat.
In a limiting case, cut the roots off the ball and just use the solid wood -
you will get great grain. Like a crotch only better.

and yes, it will dull your tools - that's why you learn to sharpen (or use
carbide for the roughing)

you can hold the trunk end in a chuck for a small root ball, but supporting
with the tail stock is a good idea.


Thank you for your straight-forward answers to my questions. I learned
something. I'm going back to lurking now.

"whirled peas" wrote in message
...
Bill Noble wrote:
You have two approaches -
1. wash, wash wash (pressure washer helps), then dry it out, cut to some
reasonable shape with a saw and clippers, make a paper form and pour in
casting resin, then turn the mess

2. wash, cut off unintersting parts, mount remainder between centers and
turn it a bit to see what needs to come off - remove, cut it off, repeat.
In a limiting case, cut the roots off the ball and just use the solid
wood - you will get great grain. Like a crotch only better.

and yes, it will dull your tools - that's why you learn to sharpen (or
use carbide for the roughing)

you can hold the trunk end in a chuck for a small root ball, but
supporting with the tail stock is a good idea.

Thank you for your straight-forward answers to my questions. I learned
something. I'm going back to lurking now.

let me add one more thing

Once you get a modest level of skill - so you are good enough to usually
make something that is kind of like what you thought you were going to make,
you don't have serious tool trouble, and you don't inadvertently launch your
work piece too often, then try to find the worst looking gnarly, cracked
knotty piece of wood in your pile and make something with it- learn to see
what will work and what will not. I was just playing with some terminte
eaten mystery wood - not much could be saved, but I made a small really
attractive little box - the termintes and the rotting/spalting really make
the grain colorful and gave it nice features - if it had been fresh cut
there would have been nothing interesting to see when it was done.

I'm not denigrating beautiful rosewood, just pointing out that for "art"
damaged goods are your friend.