I turned this good sized, 10″ x 3″ Sycamore bowl this afternoon. It was meant to be 4″ thick but it flew off the lathe twice because of a large void that goes through the entire piece. The void was hidden underneath the wax that the seller had applied to keep it wet until it could be turned or allowed to dry. I think it was a bit of a dirty trick since it certainly compromised the turnability of the bowl as well as the finished appeal of the piece. And speaking of finish, the finish went on strangely in that it wasn’t even. It was darker wherever it first touched the wood and in some places appears as the though I forgot the finish completely. I’ve worked with Sycamore in the past and I’ve never had that experience. Maybe it is because the piece had spalted over the years of drying in two different garages of mine. Whatever it was, between the uneven finish and the void this is what I would consider an orphan bowl that may not find a home.
Sycamore Bowl Interior
That said, I am pleased with the shape. I sloped the sides nicely instead of the usual straight sides that I have made in the past. I’ve worked a lot on this shape with smaller and shallower pieces and I am glad to see it translate to something larger.
Sycamore Bowl Side View
All cuts were made using the Easy Wood Tool system. Forward chucking was in a Nova Chuck, while reverse chucking was done using a Nova Chuck with Cole Jaws. Sanding was with Gold and Green Wave sanding discs from Packard Woodworks. Final finish is Shellawax.
I have a similar sized piece of Holly for tomorrow. Stay tuned to see what turns up next! FYI: The Holly was rotten 🙁