3/20/2005 06:37:00 PM|||Badger|||

This evening I decided to try making a "platter" as inspired by the article I recently linked to in this Blog. I don't have the same set up as the article, so I tried out a new technique to hold the plate/platter in the lathe that I will write up properly in a later post, but basically I made a jig that I mounted to my turning faceplate, and glued sandpaper to it to grip the back of the plate. Then I just pinched the pine blank between the jig, and my live center. this way I don't have any unsightly holes in my plate bottom, and I can mount the blank very quickly. More on this later, when I get a chance to do a full write up, it worked very well, so it is worth sharing.

For this experiment I used a piece of scrap Pine 1" x 12" which yielded about a 8" circle of wood. I shaped the blank by first drawing the diagonal lines from corner to corner, and using a compass to draw the circle out. I then used my table saw to cut off the corners, and then the resulting corners again till it was very roughly circular. The bandsaw in my shop is currently non-functional, so I just did it quick and dirty style.

This being the first time I've done a flat disc of this size, I experimented a bit with different techniques, and found new and exciting way to cover myself in sawdust. I found the best too was my diamond shaped scraper, it did an excellent job of the shaping of the plate surface and bottom. The round nosed scraper was good for finishing the inside curve of the lip. I left a nub in the center of the face of the plate where the live center was, and just worked around it, a technique I learned from reading about old style bowl turning. This whole experiment was about quick and dirty, and trying it out.

After the shaping, since this is a softwood, I had some grain tear out that needed to be cleaned up so I hit it with successive grits of sandpaper till it was very smooth. Then I start cutting into the center nub with an eye towards removing it. I cut a little too deeply in, and the plate came flying off at full speed and impacted my lexan face shield. Which is exactly why I wear that thing, it's not the first time I've had something hit it, and I will always wear while working on the lathe. The impact chipped the nice thin edge I had built up, but that was OK because this was an experiment after all. If I had been finishing this completely I would then have worked on sanding the bottom smooth by hand, and doing the same where the nub would have been cut off. I finished it with Mahoney's Fine Finish Walnut Oil to see how it absorbs, and looks finished.

All in all I learned a lot on this, and I am pretty happy with the results of this experiment. I might try one more, and then possibly work on a bit of Cherry or Maple for some nice plates to give as gifts.

-- Badger

|||111137445294894991|||The Pine Plate Experiment.