June 7,2011 Jimmy Mac, Chris, Paul, Robert, Miles
1 Firstly Leo discussed the compression chuck that we had made for hollow turning a vase. Paul had his and the process to align it correctly with the tail stock was reviewed:
Mount the plywood disc, which has been screwed to the faceplate and has had a hole drilled in it for the large bushing.
Screw this large bushing into the hole, which has been filled with eopxy.
The fit needs to be a bit loose.
Screw the small “split” bushing (2 inch) into the big one.
Mount a wooden turning into the 2 inch split bushing and center the opposite end to the tailstock.
Jam the tailstock against the assembly and lock it there until the epoxy has dried.
The result should be a chuck that aligns with the tailstock every time.
2 Next Leo discussed circular saw blades. They are not flat.
They have an area that has been “hammered”, resulting in a “wavy” blade.
When the saw revs up to full speed, this area actually flattens out due to centrifugal forces.
The blade will have a critical speed..at that speed it will begin to wobble out and shatter. This is not necessarily the fastest speed. This issue is more critical with large blades such as are used in saw mills.
3 Finishing:
A) Shellac
White shellac is bleeched orange shellac.
Shellac is best if flakes are freshly dissolved. Otherwise the mixture does deteriorate over time. There is a special solvent but alcohol is the original one.
Water and alccohol will blemish shellac so it is not a good finish for items that will be handled or table tops. Best for things like a grandfather clock or wall hanging.
Use a good brush. A good one will cost $200.00 or more! Artist shop brushes are good to use.
Finish sand the wood
Apply a layer of shellac with a brush. At first the result is wavy ridges.
Keep the brush moving back and forth for a long time to smooth the finish. Continuous brushing causes the shellac to meld better (it dissolves into itself so to speak) and eventually the finish is smooth and free of wavy lines.
Let the finish dry and harden (24 hours).
Sand it off.
Then you can stain the shellac!
Apply a layer of oil stain with a foam brush.
Wipe if off with a cloth.Then use a clean dry brush and brush repeatedly , wiping off the brush periodically, until you have an even stain. This is “dry brushing”.
Once the stain is even, Let dry and harden (24 hrs)..
Overcoat with another layer of Shellac.
VERY IMPORTANT!
This time use one brush stroke only.
Do not go back over this stroke.
If you missed a spot wait until everything is dry before coating that spot.
Dry 24 hours for maximum hardness.
You can repeat the whole process to darken the stain.
Last coat is the shellac which is rubbed and polished.
A water based finish like Acrylic can be used in the same fashion as the Shellac process.
Apply finish, using same tecchnique of brushing repeatedly until smoothness has resulted.
Dry
Sand
Apply Stain, wipe it off, and using “dry brush” technique, smooth and even the application.
Repeat the finish layer once dry and sand again.
Re-apply more stain to darken..dry brush technique.
Last coat is the finish and then polish it up.
Coloured Lacquers are another option but they take “Leo-like” skill to apply evenly.
(Not for amateurs)
Paul had two small vases that were stained using aniline green, which highlighted the grain of the ash but the end grain in the top recess, where the candle goes, was blotchy. Leo suggested using a red lacquer to coat the inside of the vases.
The result was striking!
Learning Points:
Shellac is NOT resistant to water or alcohol.
“Dry brushing” is a way to get an even stain.
Keep brushing until you have a smooth result in tone and eveness and USE a good brush.
“Layering” is a technique of applying finish, applying stain, overcoating with more finish, applying more stain to darken and repeating the process until the colour is achieved.
One can’t apply Lacquer over shellac
TIP
Wrap your brushes in tin to preserve shape. The tin is folded around the business end (bristles) of the brush.
4 Leo went over how to hand sharpen an auger bit, which Miles brought in.
File the blade part, the outside round and the spur, using a hand file.
We agreed to meet again in two weeks to get the wood from the Kiln.
