Confessing is good for the soul, they say....

[Russell Neyman]

SUBJECT: MY RE-TURN POLICY.

This is one of those currently sad tales that will, hopefully, end up with a happy result. I am a bit chagrined to tell it, because it exposes my neglect and laziness, but I'm pretty sure a good discussion will come from it.

So last Spring I was displaying my wares at an art show here on the West Shore, with my stuff arranged under an awning. It was typical Pacific Northwest weather: a bit spotty, but nice enough for the show to go on. As the afternoon wore on, it sprinkled a bit, so I packed things up, placing all my bowls in custom-made pockets I had sewn from an old blanket. (See the "Nifty Shop Tips" thread for more details.) The protected bowls went into two large plastic bins. I thought I ducked the rain completely.

The bins, tent, and a couple of chairs ended up in the back of my Ford Bronco, where they sat for a month while I got around to transferring them to my shop, which never happened. I was just plain lazy. That would have been okay, but then the Bronco's trans blew up, so I parked it. Long story short: those once-pristine bowls, platters, lidded jars and urns all sat in ever-so-slightly damp wool bags for a year, and when I took them out (finally) today i found many of them moldy and most of them slightly shopworn.

The damage is done. What's next is a process that I'm not really looking forward to, but it must be done. I'm going to pull each one out, clean it off, and do what I can to restore them to show quality. In most cases, this means simply polishing them with my Beall System, but in other cases I'll need to sand to bare wood (lots of time using flap sanders at slow speeds because many aren't perfectly round any more) and refinish. I might even re-chuck one or two of the thicker ones and see if I can turn to fresh wood. Some of the lids no longer fit very well and might involve making a new top for the jars.

As you know, some finishes "freshen" more easily than others. Lacquer emulsifies itself, so the ones I did that way will be slightly easier after a light sanding, but the poly ones are going to be a bear.

I'm sure some of you will think I'm an idiot for neglecting them and others will say I'm crazy for trying to salvage them. Luckily, they're a small part of my inventory, but I certainly have a ton of work ahead. I'll keep you posted on what works and what doesn't, taking before/after photos when appropriate.

PS. Here's the link to the Nifty Shop Tips http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthre...ip#post2634084

[John Keeton]

Russell, I certainly hope you can and do reclaim all the pieces with substantially less work than you anticipate. While I haven't experienced the same or similar circumstances I certainly can understand how it happened. I wish you the best.

[Mike Nathal]

Instead of a flap sander, you might try the standard 2" or 3" pads mounted in a drill press. If the paper gets clogged up with the finish, I use a combination of a steel brush and/or the crepe blocks. But wet sanding with walnut oil is even better, it keeps the paper lasting quite a while.

[Russell Neyman]

Instead of a flap sander, you might try the standard 2" or 3" pads mounted in a drill press. If the paper gets clogged up with the finish, I use a combination of a steel brush and/or the crepe blocks. But wet sanding with walnut oil is even better, it keeps the paper lasting quite a while.

I bet before this ordeal is over, I will have used every means at my disposal: sandpaper, steel wool, emulsifiers, thinners, card scrapers, flap sanders...heck I might even grab a fistful of ordinary sand and spin it in the interiors of the hollow forms. Thanks for your suggestion.

[Reed Gray]

Closest to that I ever came was leaving some myrtle once turned bowls in the wet shavings. They got some very ugly orange spots all over them... Never more!

robo hippy

[Jim Silva]

Mike is Right. Drill press (soft rather than firm pads) and start with a coarse enough grit to get rid of the old finish (abranet discs are your friend as they can be rinsed with water or mineral spirits to unclog them). Lets you follow the contours of even very warped bowls and is great for preserving the sharp bark edge on natural edge bowls. Combine drill press with a Drillnado attachment and extraordinary results with very little airborne dust can be achieved.
Rarely if ever sand on a lathe any more, only for <5" pieces or spindles.

Jim

Instead of a flap sander, you might try the standard 2" or 3" pads mounted in a drill press. If the paper gets clogged up with the finish, I use a combination of a steel brush and/or the crepe blocks. But wet sanding with walnut oil is even better, it keeps the paper lasting quite a while.

[Jon McElwain]

If you have a vacuum chuck system, it seems like it would be pretty easy to vacuum mount and sand with a 2-3" disk. I've got a dedicated close quarters angle drill that I use for this as well as a Festool RO 90 sander for the outside of bowls. If you turn at really slow speed (like 50-100 rpm), you should be able to sand over any minor warps with no problem at all. Finish will come off easily with the right grit paper, and after it is off, you can sand back to finish grit and refinish while it is still mounted.

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