The turning revealed a beautiful contrast between the dark rusty red of the hardwood and the lighter, almost pink, color of the sapwood. The contrast particularly highlights the torsional grain pattern and highlights why the wood is nicknamed “waterfall.” I felt myself fortunate to have been able to work with a piece of wood that featured both sap and heartwood.
Encountering a Problem and Solving It
Having completed the front and the edges, I confronted a problem about how to complete the back of the piece where the mounting tenon was located. The piece at this point, at 1115/16 inches (I preserved quite literally everything I could from the original 12 inches!), was considerably too large for the Nova Chuck Cole Jaws system which holds at maximum a 10 inch diameter piece.
I then recalled a demonstration I had seen at Ideal Saw in Fresno, California where a turner constructed a jig to hold an oversized bowl using plywood and a few bolts. I decided to try this method myself. I started with two pieces of ½ Baltic birch plywood in 12 inch squares that I happened to have. I would have used ¾ inch if I had had it handy but I didn’t, and as it turned out, the ½ worked just fine. At this point I screwed the two pieces together and mounted both sheets on the lathe. Using a parting tool, I inscribed and cut out an opening in the top sheet of plywood that was just slightly larger than the platter I was working on, say about 1113/16 inches, which would leave an overlap between the plywood and the finished edge of the platter. I angled the opening back with the parting tool and then beveled it outwards with a skew chisel.
Then, working VERY carefully, I centered the platter in between the cut and the uncut pieces of plywood, effectively creating a sandwich that allowed access to the exposed rear of the platter. Now, while carefully maintaining centering, which is admittedly not a simple task, I screwed the two pieces of plywood together, creating enough pressure to keep the platter firmly in place. In the demonstration I had seen, the jig was held together with bolts but in this case the overall lightness of the piece didn’t seem to warrant that level of holding power and as it turned out I was correct and the jig worked just fine. I was then able to mount a face plate on center to the uncut piece of plywood, mount the entire assemblage on the lathe, and using light cuts, finish off the rear of the platter, including the application of finish.
Finishing the Wood and Finishing Thoughts
Bubinga is a dense hardwood that turns beautifully, cutting cleanly and taking a polished finish quite easily. The wood is naturally colorful and requires only a minimum of finishing product, in this case paste wax.
Overall, the platter was a joy to turn and I greatly enjoy the finished product, especially for the fantastically unusual grain pattern, the contrast between heart and sap woods, and yes, I enjoy the natural edge effect even though some viewers misunderstand its origin. I view it as the natural and logical outcome of working with a natural product such as wood that is prone to revealing its unique surprises and beauties to those who can appreciate them on their own terms, a skill I believe most wood turners possess in abundance!
