In an abridged extract from All New Turning Projects, Richard Raffan makes these simple handled bowls.
In this project you have two bowls emerging from one turned form. The bowls could be a matching pair or they could have completely different handles. This project involves some large spindlework as you turn a spherical form with handles between centers. This is split in half lengthwise to create a pair of half-turned hemispherical bowl blanks. Each half will be remounted a couple of times before you refine the handles to complete the bowls. The largest I’ve made is 8 in. (200mm) wide and a foot long, but I suggest you work through this basic example before moving on to variations.
The blank for this pair of bowls should be slightly over 4 in. (100mm) square by 8 in. (200mm) long. The grain runs the length of the blank. This can be a single lump, although a better option is to glue two pieces together. This is mostly because thinner material is easier to come by, but also because it will make the initial turning easier to split accurately into two halves. So the joint is easier to spot, I have ash on one side and oak on the other. Glue the two pieces together using wood glue and enclose a sheet of newsprint or absorbent paper in the joint.
Turn a gauge for spheres
Mount a square of scrap plywood or MDF on a screw chuck and lay out the required diameter. Then use a 3⁄8-in. (10mm) fingernail-ground gouge to cut through the plywood. As you cut through, the outer ring will usually end up spinning on your gouge. Cut this in half to use as a gauge. Burnish marks will indicate high points on the spheres you are working on.
Beginning the turning
Mount the blank between centers, ensuring that the drive and tail centers are in the center of the glue line. Check by holding a pencil against the end grain as you rotate the blank by hand. Turn a 4-in. (200mm) cylinder. I’m using a 4-in. (100mm) gauge to ensure an accurate cylinder.
Mark off an 8-in. (200mm) length in the middle of the blank and part in at right angles to the lathe axis to define that length. Next divide the 8 in. into four equal parts and reduce the diameter of each end to 2 in. (50mm). In the top photo on the facing page the handles are sized and the central portion is divided into four equal parts in preparation for turning a sphere between the handles. The spindle gouge is poised to cut the first of the facets; you can see them completed in the middle photo on the facing page.
Turn away the waste between the outer lines and the top corner where the handles meet the emerging sphere. Then round over the corners, working away from the centerline and checking the curve as you go. To create a spherical surface right to the handles, you’ll need to increase the length of the handles.
Check the length of the handles, and adjust as necessary. A 3⁄8-in. (10mm) fingernail- ground gouge is the safest tool to use across the end grain, being least likely to catch while cutting cleanly.
Shape matching handles. An advantage of laminating the blank is that you get a better idea of the thickness of each handle than when turning a solid blank.
Sand the spindle. Heavy sanding removed the slight bulge on the upper left of the sphere.
Split the spindle by tapping a chisel into the glueline at one end. A solid blank will need to be mounted in a carrier to be cut on a bandsaw. Never attempt to split a rounded form using any other sort of power saw. The rest of us need to find the center of each half. You can do this by eye, scribing circles with dividers or a compass, but a center-finder makes life a lot easier. (You can make one by marking concentric circles on a sheet of clear plastic, drawing a line across the sheet through center, and drilling a small hole at center.) Align the centerline of the center-finder with the cones made by the lathe centers, then use a circle on the center-finder to locate the center on the blank and mark that.
Drill a hole at the center of the blank and mount the blank on a screw chuck so you can turn a small foot on the base. For me this is a temporary foot that enables me to grip the bowl for hollowing. I make it as small as I can get away with, but there is no reason why you shouldn’t flatten the base and turn a more refined foot to retain on the finished piece.
Mount the blank for hollowing. Here I’m using 13⁄8-in. (35mm) Vicmarc Shark Jaws to grip the 1⁄16-in.- (1.5mm-) high foot. Drill a depth hole so you’ll end up with a base 1⁄4 in. (6mm) thick. The handles whirring around are an obvious hazard, so position the rest before switching on the lathe and make sure you keep your fingers on the tailstock side of the rest.
Turn the handles. If this looks a bit scary, that’s because it is. The good news is that the handles can be sanded or carved with the lathe off, or even off the lathe. To turn the tops of the handles you need a delicate touch, as there’s not much wood spinning around. I remove the bulk of the waste using the left wing of a 3⁄8-in. (10mm) deep- fluted bowl gouge, which must be rolled over at least 45° to avoid a severe catch. Refine the surface using a shear scraper on its edge. Never use a scraper flat on the rest in this situation or something similar like a natural-edge bowl rim.
Sand the inside and the handles. The handles are best power-sanded with the lathe turned off.
Mount the bowl over a jam chuck so you can remove the foot and finish the base. Use the tailcenter to ensure the bowl stays on the chuck. Here I use a flat center rather than a cone so the center doesn’t penetrate the wood. This base remains rounded, but near flat at center so it won’t roll over. All the turning can be done using a 3⁄8-in. (10mm) spindle gouge (my favourite detailing tool). Initially pull cuts remove the bulk of the waste and develop the curve, then after sanding all you can reach, take a shear cut towards the center, leaving a miniscule supporting nub that can be sanded away off the lathe. Alternatively you can use a skewed scraper flat on the rest.
Refine the handles and clean up the base. A small disk sander on the lathe is ideal for this task.