Ash vase roughout

[Roland Martin]

This is the largest HF for me so far, not really all that big I guess, but still a first for me. Seeing Steve S. turning logs, I wanted to give it a try with a piece of ash I cut this past weekend. It started out 8" x 11", ended up roughed out at 6" x 9" x 1/2" so I could get heartwood & sapwood variations. Also, I'm giving dish soap soaking a try rather than the DNA I've been doing, it does smell a lot better and obviously safer, so R&D starts. Not sure what's going to happen with the pith, wait and see I guess. Just wanted to share another first. Thanks for looking and suggestions are always welcomed.

[Roger Chandler]

Nice form, Roland.........looking forward to your assessment of the dish liquid drying process..........I heard it does well, but can dull the grain in the final form a bit.

If it keeps the form from cracking, then it will be good, that is for sure. I wonder if it would work well on this SJPT white oak I have? Of course, most of it has already cracked!

[Rich Aldrich]

Nice work. Grain looks like it will be decent.

[David DeCristoforo]

I think Steve would be happy with this one. It's a great form and the coloration of the ash looks promising. I've only turned one piece of ash that had the heart running right through the center and what happened was that nothing happened. It was just fine. Of course it was not anywhere's near this big!

[Jon McElwain]

I was just putting the last sanding touches on the bottom of an otherwise completed mountain ash bowl a couple of weeks ago. Just as I was turning down the vacuum to release it, I heard a POP. I thought the vacuum suction broke causing the sound, but when I looked at the bowl, it had a 4" long crack. The wood had been drying for 3 years, and the cracks had plagued me for the entire turning process. The blank started out almost 22 inches in diameter, but the finished bowl was less than 12". I don't know if mountain ash is much different than your variety, but my experience was a bummer. I can't speak for the pith, but I know I am not the only one to have trouble with ash.

[John Keeton]

Roland, I like what you have done, but I am curious as to how you are going to remount the vase for finish turning/hollowing?

[wes murphy]

john, that was my first thought. Beautiful form though.

[Bernie Weishapl]

Really nice form on this Roland. I have to ask the same question. How are you going to remount it?

[Reed Gray]

Keeping the pith in is always a guess. You never know. I do wrap the bottom, at least in plastic stretch film, and some times the whole outside. I also some times will dip the bottom in a danish type oil. The bottom does seem to bow outwards/convex rather than inwards/concave.

Turned 1/2 inch thick, the only thing the soap does is make it a lot easier to sand out. No effect on stability, warping, drying time, or cracking. I use it on almost all my bowls. The technique was developed by Ron Kent for dealing with Norfolk Island Pine. It works great on cherry or maple which tend to glaze over or burn more easily than other woods. When fresh, it adds no color, but after a while, it can add whatever color that is in it to the wood. When it gets nasty, I use it for walnut, or find an ant hill or weed patch to dump it on.

The Mountain Ash is not an Ash tree, but some thing else. Most of the ash I have turned is very stable.

robo hippy

[Roland Martin]

Roland, I like what you have done, but I am curious as to how you are going to remount the vase for finish turning/hollowing?

Not having turned anything prior to this, leaving the pith, I figured getting rid of some of the bulk of the large tenon would decrease the likelyhood of cracking at the pith. The bottom, as it is now, is large enough to use smaller jaws when I remount the blank. My plan when I re-turn it is to use a jam chuck at the mouth of the vase and turn a new 2" tenon at the bottom for remounting. I did leave enough thickness at the bottom to add a tenon.

Are large tenons like this typically left on for the drying process?

[John Keeton]

Roland, that should work! I didn't realize you left enough thickness for another tenon. I am sure you are better off with as little wood in the bottom as you can leave as far as drying.

[Michelle Rich]

I don't know if it will crack or not, but I know black ash doesn't split a lot in my firewood pile...does that hold true with white? I have no clue..hope it holds together for you, the color variation looks promising.

[Steve Schlumpf]

I like it! Real nice form! I look forward to hearing how your Dish Soap process works for you!

About the only thing I do different when turning large chunks like this one is to remove as much bark as possible before mounting it on the lathe. Helps cut down on the flying shrapnel! I also leave whatever tenon I have on the roughed out blank and just re-turn a new tenon on it.

Good luck! Looking forward to seeing this one finished!