Locust Burl Bowl
Bill Grumbine, Kutztown PA
>Greetings all
Between flat work and being a movie star, I haven't gotten a lot of real turning done, but I have done some. Here is one of my latest efforts.
This is a black locust burl cap that was given to me by a local tree guy. I have not always been wild about the color of black locust, as a lot of times it is sort of a sickly greenish black with black streaks running through it. Even though that color often mellows to a nice tan, the fact that it is like turning concrete makes it good for the firewood pile. Burls are a different story though, and this one proved to be a very nice piece to turn indeed.
Here is a shot looking down on it. I turned it while it was still wet, reasoning that if I waited until it was dry, it would be like the aforementioned concrete, and I would have a few years to wait, since it had been freshly cut when I got it. Iturned it down to 1/4" all the way around, and within a couple of days it was nice and dry.
The hardest part was picking the bark out of all those teeny tiny points. This thing has some truly miniscule points covering it, so I spent a few hours with a dental pick, a brass brush, and finally a dremel with a small wire wheel.
The bowl is 11 1/2" in diameter, and 2 3/4" high. The rim is 1/4" in diameter, with the wall thickness and the wing thickness both being 1/4" as well. It is finished with Watco Danish oil. I have not yet buffed it, and I do not know if I will. With all the points and the inclusions, I do not really want to spend several more hours picking lint like I did bark. I may oil it up a bit more to get some more shine, but then again I might leave it like it is.
Thanks for taking a look.
Bill
