How thick?

[Daniel Gross]

Hi turners,
I'm turning a black walnut bowl I roughed out in march and was wondering how thick the walls
should be, right now it's 6 3/8" across and 2 3/4" tall and 1/2" thick.
Should I stop there or go thinner? It still looks a bit thick to me.
Thanks in advance
Dan
black walnut.jpg

[Wally Dickerman]

I think that you already know the answer. For a small bowl like that, turn it thinner. Since you roughed it first it's not going to move much. About 1/8 inch would be my choice. It'll look better and feel better when picked up. 1/2 inch walls are okay for a bowl over 10 inches. You'll no doubt get some answers that'll disagree with me.....

[John Keeton]

Ms. Keeton has a bowl in the kitchen I did a while back - about 7.5" diameter and about 1/4" thick. It has a nice feel, but some might like it a little thinner. Wally has turned more and seen more than a dozen of us put together will turn in a lifetime - go with whatever he says!!

[Daniel Gross]

Thanks guys,
I was thinking 1/8 -3/16" but wanted to be sure before I went that thin.
I wet turned to completion this bowl from the same tree, it warped a bit
but still looks nice I think.
black walnut 1.jpg
Thanks Dan

[Daniel Gross]

Well, That didn't go so well, I got it too thin towards the bottom (paper thin) and while trying to
thin out the rim a little it decided it didn't want to be a bowl.
Fortunately I was out of the line of fire.
oops.jpg

[John Keeton]

...and while trying to
thin out the rim a little ...

Daniel, the general rule is one can rarely go back to the rim after turning away the inside. Not only did you have insufficient support in the bottom area, but the rim will nearly always move a little when the support and stress of the interior is gone - a great recipe for a catch!

Sorry it didn't work for you and glad that you were not hurt. The other one looks very nice.

[Daniel Gross]

Thanks John,
Live and learn, already have another rough out on the lathe.

Dan

[Reed Gray]

Glad you were standing out of the line of fire as well. I don't like bowls less than about 1/4 inch thick. Mostly they feel too light for daily use. When I was at shows, with any wind, they were the ones that would blow off the shelf. I used to keep juggle balls handy for them.

robo hippy

[Jack Gaskins]

IMHO, If you want a bowl that will float to the ground turn it thin but if you want a bowl that FEELS like you are holding a wooden bowl than turn it to 3/8ths or so for a 7" dia bowl. Clearly my opinion though. It truly is a personal choice and you will come to find the thickness you like after turning a few dozen bowls. When I hold a piece of wood I like the weight to be relevant to the size of the turning but more so on the heavier side, especially on bowls.

[Faust M. Ruggiero]

We all blow up bowls now and then. I like to tell myself, "it's only wood". John gave you a good tip. Begin at the rim and work down to the finished thickness for only an inch or less. Then do the next inch making sure there is a perfect transition between the first and second pass. Move down the bowl and never return to a place you already finished. If the wood is thin enough you often have to support the area you are cutting on the outside of the bowl. Light cuts, sharp tools. Try another one. It's a fun process to learn.
faust

[Daniel Gross]

Thanks for the info guys.
This was free wood from the neighbors wood pile, he needed a lot cut up to fireplace size
and I got a few to turn. I may see if there is any more I can use, the one I have ready now is
a lot smaller around 5 1/2" across. It's a shame the other one blew up, it was looking very nice.
I have decided I need some more light at that end as it is very hard to see inside the bowl while turning.

Dan

[Thomas Canfield]

I like to turn some bowls with a thick rim area to give the appearance of being thick wall, and then have a thinner wall below that. You can either flare out the outside or undercut the inside to get the thick rim face area. Lately, I find that my bottoms are getting too thin and need to leave more thickness. I do not have a vacuum system and use a jam chuck with live center pressure and have cracked a couple when the nub gets small. A little extra in the bottom also helps for stability on smaller base bowls.

[Mike Cruz]

Daniel, I have a one word answer to your question... thicker.

[Jeff Moffett]

When the question of thickness comes up, I'm always reminded of a story the late Dale Nish told. During one of his demonstrations, a man raised his hand and asked, "How thin do you make your bowls?", to which Dale replied, "As thin as I want."

[Dan Forman]

My choice would be something closer to 1/4 or 3/8", especially if you are just starting out. As you progress, it will get easier to obtain an even thickness from rim to bottom, but in the beginning it's common to have certain areas of uneven thickness, which will make themselves known in the manner you just experienced if you try and go really thin. In my view, it's better to get consistent before trying to go thin.

Dan