Knowledge You Can Build On — Est. 1998
Piercing Technique
Sean Troy
>Hey all, I,m finishing a platter and have a recessed area around the shallow bowl like center I would like to do a piercing design. The wood thickness in this area I hear should be less than a 1/4" thick. How to start this and the best tools are what I'm looking for. I have the rotary tools and bits, drill press ect... if thats what I need. Any info would be appreciated. As you can see, this is my first attempt at this. Thank you, Sean
Re: Piercing Technique
Mark Kauder. Phenix City, AL
>Sean,
Happy Thanksgiving - Hope the weather is nice in the Valley of the Sun.
I have no personal experience doing piercing, But I have set through two rotations at symposia with Binh Phao. He stresses that the thickness of the wood should not be more than 3/32", 1/16" being better. Othewise you will burn the wood with whatever tool you use. The super high speed tools are best, though you can use a Dremel I suppose.
Isn't J. Paul Fennell a member of your club? I would think he would help you.
Mark
Re: Piercing Technique
Sean Troy
>Happy Thanksgiving. Yes Paul is a member and he just did a club demo for us last sat. He didn't do the piercing though. he has helped me with other things before and as the saying goes, I don't want to go to the trough to many times. Thanks for the thickness info. I was thinking it should be pretty thin. Have a safe Holiday, Sean
Re: Piercing Technique
John Lucas
>Sean
I assisted Binh Pho at a workshop in Tennessee and got to play with a lot of different piercing tools. Then I went home and tried it with my array of less than adequate tools for that purpose. Here's what I learned.
Binh and others use high speed dental type tools that spin at 300,000 rpm. They actually burn the wood as well as cut. The combination of high speed and very thin wood make them controllable. It's a lot like writing with a pen. I turned a goblet and the top was 2mm thick. It pierced quite well. The foot was more like 4 or 5 mm thick and it was quite difficult to control the cut. This is a hair less than 1/4" thick.
When I got home I tried to do some piercing with my Dremel and my flex shaft machine. The Dremel goes to 25,000 rpm and the flex shaft goes 10,000 rpm. I turned the piece to roughly 2mm thick. It was tedious and difficult to control the cut. The slow speed makes the tool try to follow the grain so when you cut something like a circle you have to change your cutting speed and how you grip the tool each time the grain changes direction. It can be done but be ready for a long stint at the carving bench.
I've played with the 56,000 rpm pencil type air grinders. They really aren't much better than the Dremel although the grip is smaller. I prefer a larger grip because I'm fighting Carpel tunnel.
For a one time piece I'd go ahead and give it a try. Use a small cutter. Take your time and frequent breaks and turn the wood as thin as you dare. The thinner it is the easier it is to control.
Re: Piercing Technique
John Lucas
>I forgot to mention. If you ever get to see Binh Pho or take a class from him do so. He's a great guy and a really good instructor. He teaches piercing, Metal leafing with patina, airbrush techniques and of course really thin turning.
Re: Piercing Technique
Sean Troy
>Thanks for the great info, I can't learn if I don't try. Thanks, Sean
air grinder
Pascal Oudet
>John,
could you elaborate on pencil type air grinders?
do you find the speed is still too low, or they lack power ?
Sean, if you want to cut (rather than to pierce), the drywall cutting bit (dremel #561) works fine, though 1/4" might be a bit thick.
Pascal
