gluing wet curved insert into turning blank

This is a forum for intermediate to advanced woodworkers. Show off your projects or share your ideas.

Moderators: HopefulSSer, admin

Post Reply
hfmann
Gold Member
Posts: 268
Joined: Fri Dec 08, 2006 9:04 pm
Location: Perrysburg, Ohio

gluing wet curved insert into turning blank

Post by hfmann »

The other day I saw a video where the turner made a curved cut to separate two pieces of the blank. Then he glued a damp strip of mahogany into the blank. He claimed the moisture made it more pliable and able to bend to the curve. He also said he just took longer to dry before turning.

Have any of you done this?

thanks

hal
Mike907
Platinum Member
Posts: 548
Joined: Fri Nov 09, 2012 2:02 am
Location: Anchorage, AK

Re: gluing wet curved insert into turning blank

Post by Mike907 »

I took a class from John Beaver, and we wrapped the thin piece of wood in soaking wet, not damp, paper towels and heated them in a microwave oven. When the piece was soft, we then clamped it between the cut pieces until dry. We glued and reclamped later.

Mike

http://johnbeaver.net/wood-turning.html
hfmann
Gold Member
Posts: 268
Joined: Fri Dec 08, 2006 9:04 pm
Location: Perrysburg, Ohio

Re: gluing wet curved insert into turning blank

Post by hfmann »

Hi Mike,

Wow - those are awesome looking bowls on his website. It's pretty clever to use the parts to mold the insert and use only after dry. Thank you for sharing that.

hal
hfmann
Gold Member
Posts: 268
Joined: Fri Dec 08, 2006 9:04 pm
Location: Perrysburg, Ohio

Re: gluing wet curved insert into turning blank

Post by hfmann »

Mike907 wrote:I took a class from John Beaver, and we wrapped the thin piece of wood in soaking wet, not damp, paper towels and heated them in a microwave oven. When the piece was soft, we then clamped it between the cut pieces until dry. We glued and reclamped later.
Hey Mike,

The more I think about this, the more intrigued I am. Approximately how thick were your thin pieces of wood and how long did it take to get them soft in the microwave. And then after clamping how long did it take to dry?
So fascinating and those bowls are gorgeous.

thanks,
hal
Mike907
Platinum Member
Posts: 548
Joined: Fri Nov 09, 2012 2:02 am
Location: Anchorage, AK

Re: gluing wet curved insert into turning blank

Post by Mike907 »

We used 1/8" thick material for the "wave", and it only takes about a minute in the microwave. Just make sure it is hot enough to bend without breaking. The dowels help to keep things aligned for gluing. They are in the interior of the bowl and will be turned away.
Glued up blank.
Glued up blank.
Blank.jpg (192.03 KiB) Viewed 2566 times
Mike
hfmann
Gold Member
Posts: 268
Joined: Fri Dec 08, 2006 9:04 pm
Location: Perrysburg, Ohio

Re: gluing wet curved insert into turning blank

Post by hfmann »

Thanks Mike. Very interesting.

so, I take it the dowel holes were drilled before you cut the blank into two pieces? Hmm, maybe only after you mated everything up?

Intriguing.

hal
Mike907
Platinum Member
Posts: 548
Joined: Fri Nov 09, 2012 2:02 am
Location: Anchorage, AK

Re: gluing wet curved insert into turning blank

Post by Mike907 »

I can't remember the exact order, but you can drill the blank before slicing, and drill the contrasting piece through the blank when it is clamped up for bending/drying. With the dowels, you keep the grain on the blank aligned and keep everything from slipping when the glue is applied. Glue on the curved faces makes everything want to slide.

Mike
hfmann
Gold Member
Posts: 268
Joined: Fri Dec 08, 2006 9:04 pm
Location: Perrysburg, Ohio

Re: gluing wet curved insert into turning blank

Post by hfmann »

Great info Mike.

It's interesting because I had been thinking about trying that very technique to glue straight but angled cuts. The slipping had been severe and I built a jig to fix that. Haven't tried it yet but I love this dowel solution. Looks like the dowels are situated to be in the middle of the bowl that gets removed during turning.

Much, much thanks,

hal
Mike907
Platinum Member
Posts: 548
Joined: Fri Nov 09, 2012 2:02 am
Location: Anchorage, AK

Re: gluing wet curved insert into turning blank

Post by Mike907 »

For anyone interested, John Beaver will be doing an online demo of his "Wave" bowls on Feb. 27. $15 is a pretty good deal ($10 if you are an AAW member).

https://www.woodturner.org/Woodturner/E ... -Page.aspx

Mike
hfmann
Gold Member
Posts: 268
Joined: Fri Dec 08, 2006 9:04 pm
Location: Perrysburg, Ohio

Re: gluing wet curved insert into turning blank

Post by hfmann »

thanks Mike,

I joined and signed up for the demo. Such beautiful work. Can't wait to see how it's done.

hal
Post Reply