I have a friend who mentioned that he liked Cherry as a wood once he knew that I made wood bowls. I bought a set of four kiln dried Cherry bowl blanks from the guys at Got Wood? in South Carolina. Their quality is always excellent and the blanks are pre-cut to round as well. I figured I would make one or two for my friend and still have some extras for other interested people.
Two of the blanks were 7″ x 2″ and two were 9″ x 2″. While not deep they are a nice size round.
Cherry is one of my all-time favorite turning woods. It cuts cleanly and easily, it smells delicious when cut, and it takes a very fine sanded surface with a nice medium luster. It finishes beautifully with a Watco oil finish that penetrates and hardens over time, making the bowl more durable to wear.
All bowls were turned on my Robust American Beauty lathe, using Easy Wood Tools, held in Nova Chucks, sanded with Green Wave paper from Packard Woodworks, and finished with Watco Cherry Danish Oil.
Bowl # 1:
This bowl is 7″ x 2″. It was a dream to make, taking just about an hour from start to finish. The Cherry cut so easily and cleanly that it was a pleasure to work with it.
Cherry Bowl 1 Interior
Cherry Bowl 1 Sidewall
Cherry Bowl 1 Reverse
Bowl #2:
Bowl 2 is incredibly similar to Bowl 1 which isn’t that surprising since they are the same wood and the same size. I didn’t notice any difference in the experience of turning number 2 compared to turning number 1.
Cherry Bowl 2 Interior
Cherry Bowl 2 Sidewall
Cherry Bowl 2 Reverse
Bowl #3:
This platter, or shallow bowl, is much the same as the previous except that it is 9″ in diameter instead of 7″. This piece has a small bit of sapwood on the edge which makes it interesting with the color contrast.
Cherry Bowl 3 Interior
Cherry Bowl 3 Sidewall
Cherry Bowl 3 Reverse
Bowl #4:
The fourth and final of the Black Cherry bowls is practically a twin to the the third bowl, being of the same dimensions and having a sliver of sapwood. This one also has a slight bark inclusion in the bottom of the piece as well to lend it distinction from the third piece.
Bowl 4 Interior
Bowl 4 Sidewall
Bowl 4 Reverse