No. 21 - Red Cedar Vase - "Critique Requested"

[James Combs]

The Mini Monster is at It again. Here for your review is a small HF in the form of a vase.

Stats:

Material - Eastern Read Cedar
Height - 4-7/8"
Width - 2-7/8"
Wall Thickness - 1/8"-3/16"
Mouth OD - 2"
Mouth Opening - 1-1/8
Finish (to date) - 3 Coats of rattle can lacquer (will be waxed & buffed later)

TBD bottom details. Not enough room for my branding iron, will probably just write the date and initials with an archival pen.

The bluish highlights are caused by my shop lights. I usually turn them off when taking pics but forgot this time.

[Bernie Weishapl]

Great looking vase James. I really love the cedar.

[Jim Burr]

Nice work sir! The line has a nice curve to the bottom and the mouth looks in proportion to the rest of the body. I'm not a fan of gloss finishes, and with the amount of oil in Red cedar, it should buff out nicely...Bravo!!

[Ken Hill]

Looks great! Cedar and I are not on speaking terms after a few turkey pots desinigrated on me

[Roger Chandler]

JD,

That is a nice form on some pretty wood. Nice finish.......and so far no cracks!

I just posted about red cedar cracking a while ago, and from what I have been told, it is pretty much inevitable, so I hope this nice form of yours does not follow that pattern........

I guess if it is kiln dried, it would be stable.

[Ron Mckinney]

Very nice and a great shape. Sure hope that it dosen't crack on you.

[David E Keller]

I think it looks great! Cedar has given me fits with finishing, but I haven't had the cracking problems that others have described... Of course, I've only turned old, dry wood. Nicely done.

[Robert McGowen]

Very nice, James. Not much to critique that is negative. I like the continuous curve from the base and your proportions look right.

[Baxter Smith]

Very pretty wood and finish. Shape looks good. Maybe a little narrower on the neck? Sometimes I wonder about the proportions of the neck to the base as to what looks good.

[John Keeton]

JD, very nice work. So far as critique, my comments wouldn't mean much - no experience with the vase form. All the lines look good, the tool work looks great, and good finish. I would say - job well done!

[Christopher K. Hartley]

James, very nice form and finish. I have found that the folks that wanted cedar works here around the Houston area prefer the high gloss finish. The only area you may want to work on is the interior. with an opening large enough for people to look into it you want to get the interior as smooth as possible. Remember, I can only evaluate from the photos but it does appear a little more sanding inside on the bottom would present much better. I had problems with this until I started using forceps. You can also use long nose pliers.[see attached] They hold the sand paper or steel wool very well and improve the interior considerably. Again, I think this is a beautiful vase and can be displayed proudly. Keep up the good work.

[John Keeton]

Another tip for sanding the interior is a few 1/2" dowel sections of appropriate length. Hot glue a piece of sandpaper to the end, or bandsaw a flat spot at a 45* (or other appropriate angle) for doing the sides. It has really helped clean up the bottom on some HFs.

[Christopher K. Hartley]

Another tip for sanding the interior is a few 1/2" dowel sections of appropriate length. Hot glue a piece of sandpaper to the end, or bandsaw a flat spot at a 45* (or other appropriate angle) for doing the sides. It has really helped clean up the bottom on some HFs.

Great tip John. I like that.

[David Walser]

You nailed the form. The finish looks nice (always hard to judge from photos). The color and grain of the wood is spectacular. I particularly like the contrast between the sap and heart wood. All in all, a very nice vase.

[steven carter]

Very nice vase JD. Gotta love the color variations in cedar, I can almost smell it.

Steve