Turning a bowl is the most popular project in the turning seminars that I run. My five-day workshops start with spindle turning; and after two days of spindle exercises, there is a buoyant mood when students chuck up bowl blanks and take bowl gouges in hand. It is much like watching traditional Olympic ice-skating. After the compulsory figures program, the free skating is a joy. People get excited and really start having fun. There is something magical about turning a bowl, because it is both creative and useful. In this age of mass-produced, plastic look-alike housewares, the knowledge that you have produced something real, artistic, and unique is a splendid touchstone.
Most beginners are daunted by the prospect of turning a bowl and dont know where to begin. The act of turning a bowl is easy, but the tools and procedures to do the job are not generally understood. Without guidance, the beginner starts with a scrap of 8/4 dry wood, a 6-in. faceplate, and a gouge that is not properly sharpened. He or she may even try to use a spindle gouge rather than a bowl gouge; and either tool, as delivered from the factory, will not be sharpened correctly.
The experienced turner starts with a better-prepared blank, mounted on a 3-in. faceplate (or a variety of other chucks), and uses a properly sharpened bowl gouge. The 3-in. faceplate allows you to form a base that is proportionally correct, whereas the larger faceplate makes for a clunky, oversized base. Properly prepared wood is much easier to work with, and a properly sharpened bowl gouge is a joy to use. This is all to say that having a teacher to guide you through the initial steps and set you on the right path saves time and frustration. After all, the idea is to have fun.
This book is an action manual for anyone who wants to turn a bowl. I have taught hundreds of people to turn bowls, and I can teach you. We will accomplish that end with a roll up your sleeves and lets get to work approach. This book is short on text and long on photos and illustrations. It is really a series of photo essays, which explain all aspects of bowl turning from the simplest to the most advanced. Whats more, you dont have to read the entire book to get started. You may skip the chapters on tools and equipment and get right to the first bowl-turning essay, which will then direct you to the sanding, finishing, and reverse-turning sections. Once you have mastered this basic technique, you can move on to more advanced techniques, which in turn cross-reference appropriate basic information.
Ive even covered pewter spinning, which, to my knowledge, hasnt been covered in any other book written in recent times. Although this was an active hobby use of the wood lathe up through the early 1950s, it seems to have since been largely forgotten. When I was a boy, I watched my father spin a set of pewter plates after we returned from a trip to Colonial Williamsburg. The price in the gift shop stopped him from buying, so he spun his own, which were indistinguishable from those at Williamsburg. Spinning pewter does not require sophisticated tools. My dad made his from old broomsticks, and you can do the same. Bowl turning is many faceted. It runs the gamut from simple, functional bowls that the baby-sitter can run through the dishwasher with impunity to ultrathin art forms that demand to be held but that are not functional beyond holding peanuts. I offer many options in this book, and it is up to you to find the style that is right for you. So take off your watch and ring, roll up your sleeves, and lets get turning.
