In the unlikely event that anyone can find Royal Poinciana wood to try I would recommend it for the ease of turning, despite the difficulty in sanding the cross grain areas, and especially for the color and figure which reminds me most closely of Persimmon.
Royal Poinciana
This particular blank started life at 12” x 3” but ¾” was lost to warping during drying leaving the finished bowl at 11.25” x 3”. This is the largest piece I have completed to date.
All work was done on my Robust American Beauty lathe.
Almost all of the cuts were made using Easy Wood Tools but I did use a Robert Sorby bowl gouge in an attempt to clean up the end grain mess. I found it to be of little assistance.
Nova Chucks were used for holding the piece during turning. I attempted to use the Longworth Chuck for the reversing work, but again found, as I have in the past, that the Longworth is a great tool unless you want it to work. It won’t and I am now in the process of replacing it with Big Easy Jaws from Easy Wood Tool.
I used my go-to finish, ShellaWax although, for the first time ever, I had some difficulty with it. I think the finish remaining in my bottle is old and too thick so it didn’t spread easily over a large area. I had to remove some streaks with acetone at the end. But overall I am pleased with the finish.
As always, I wish all my readers a great experience in whatever their wood working interests happen to be and to those who like working with lathes especially, do a good turn today!