# Here is a challenge for all turners



## Chris Knight (5 Apr 2004)

I am not a wood turner but I am intrigued by what you guys do - especially this http://www.woodcentral.com/shots/shot553.shtml

I emailed the maker asking how he did it (it was the holes through the spirals that really bugged me) and this is his reply 

"Hi Chris, 
It took me three years and $75,000 and a lot of engineering. Sleepless nights, and frustration, But it was a labor of love."


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## Signal (5 Apr 2004)

Chris

OH MY GOD!!!!!

That is superb, thanks for posting

Signal


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## Chris Knight (5 Apr 2004)

Dan sent me another message - still does not really explain how he did it though! You can find more pictures on this page 
http://home.bellsouth.net/p/s/commu...d=135666&groupid=171027&folderview=thumbs&ck=

QUOTE
----- Original Message ----- 
From: daniel morton 
To: daniel morton 
Sent: Monday, April 05, 2004 12:14 PM
Subject: Re: Four Spiral lamp question


It took me three years and $75,000 and a lot of engineering. Sleepless nights, and frustration, But it was a labor of love. To make each spiral round is as difficult as boring the whole. Go to this site for more pitchers. http://tinyurl.com/2jo47 

UNQUOTE


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## Anonymous (5 Apr 2004)

That looks incredible. I cut and pasted the "Cutaway" picture for a closer look using a photo editing package. After lightening it up and magnifying it a bit, it seems to me that the grain follows the line of the spiral, so my guess is that he uses straight stock, bores the centre out, packs the middle with something like a plumbers pipe-bending spring, and then somehow steam-bends the spiral into it. 

He could do all of this while the timber is still green. The plumber's spring would prevent the sides of the bored hole from collapsing during bending, but it may not even be necessary if the timber's green.

However he does it, the final effect is incredible and it's WAYYYYY beyond anything I'm prepared to attempt.

Cheers,

AG - thinking of cancelling his order with Axminster for a lathe...


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## trevtheturner (6 Apr 2004)

Marvellous!

Exactly what I had planned to do three years ago but unfortunately I fell just short of the $75,000, and couldn't find a large enough corkscrew to bore the holes for the flex.  

T.


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## Aragorn (6 Apr 2004)

Hi AG
I would have to disagree with you there!
The grain appears parallel because it is turned from a single log, and the spirals naturally follow the growth rings. You can see from the photo of the completed piece that the grain is consistent with a single log across each spiral. Also, if the hole _were _bored out of a straight turned piece it would be a clean hole, not all wonky and coarse.

Mind you - good initiative doing photo manipulation!!

And I can't offer any better explanation. It is a technical marvel! Perhaps his 3 years development and $75,000 was invested in a radio controlled wood boring "robot" not unlike the sort of earth-boring "mole" swimming pool installers use to bore through the garden to get the plumbing and electrics out to the pool without digging up the garden.

Am I the only one that thinks it looks quite ugly though! ops: 

Aragorn


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## Adam (6 Apr 2004)

Aragorn":3bc7718z said:


> Am I the only one that thinks it looks quite ugly though! ops:
> 
> Aragorn



I wouldn't let something like that in my house. It might be a feat of woodworking "engineering" - but it's horrible - all out of proportion with the light bulbs.

Sure it's pretty complex - and an amzing thing to make - but as you say quite ugly. (IMHO)!

Adam


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## Neil (6 Apr 2004)

No, Aragorn, you are not the only one...  

NeilCFD


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## Alf (6 Apr 2004)

Phew, Aragorn, I'm glad you said that. :roll: Amazing technique, but the final product...  

Cheers, Alf


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## SimonA (6 Apr 2004)

I too have to agree with everybody else here......its bloody horrible, but technically superb.

On a nicer looking note, but still as complex.....

http://www.woodcentral.com/cgi-bin/turn ... read=33371

http://www.woodcentral.com/cgi-bin/turning.pl

http://www.artliestman.com/puzzlingillusion.html

Does anybody know what kind of prices these things go for.......I've seen a few in the last couple of days that I would really like!!

SimonA


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## Anonymous (6 Apr 2004)

Aragorn,

You've had me studying this even more closely. And I thought I was being soooo clever last night too. I think the gin obviously colours my analytical skills. Well, that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it.

I had another look, and the picture down the middle of the 4 spirals certainly seems to show the structure of the grain as cut from a single piece. Very, very clever stuff, and I'm stumped as to how he's done it, although I suppose that's the $75,000 question isn't it :lol: 

Oh, and gotta agree, it's pug-ugly.

AG


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## Steve (7 Apr 2004)

I think it's quite beautiful, but then it's the kind of thing I knock out every Sunday whilst SWMBO is replacing head gaskets on the Maserati or tinkering around with the solar panels, you understand.

Steve


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## mudman (7 Apr 2004)

I had to have a think about this.
I think the clue is where he states that the spirals have been put back within 1/16" of the original postion. This means that each spiral has been created separately.
I think it could be done as follows:

1. Turn a cylinder
2. Cut off the base.
4. Mark out the spirals on the remaining cylinder (I think each ends above the starting point).
4. Drill a large hole through the middle.
5. Using a hand-held jig-saw, cut out each spiral.
6. Round off each spiral using a sander.
7. Reattach the finished spirals to the base.

I can't prove it would work as I'm a long way from any tools but it seems a feasible way of doing it to me.

And yes, it is ugly.

Regards,
Barry


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## Anonymous (7 Apr 2004)

Barry,

Neat thought, but how do you reckon he drilled the spirally holes down the middle of each one for the wires? :lol: :lol: :lol: 

I think the approach of splitting the log down with the jigsaw might work... For profiling each spiral, he could have used one of the "Routerlathe" variants that synchronises the rotation of the workpiece to the cutting position of the router. I've seen these do simple variants of this spiral, but nothing quite as dramatic!

Whatever he did, it has a touch of the Paul Daniels about it :? 

AG


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## Signal (7 Apr 2004)

AG,

well trained wood worm is my guess

Signal


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## mudman (7 Apr 2004)

Afterglow":1y082zin said:


> Neat thought, but how do you reckon he drilled the spirally holes down the middle of each one for the wires?



:shock: Never thought of that. 
But hang on, look at the picture again. Those light bulbs ain't lit and you can't see any wires coming from the base. :? 

Could me have a bit of legerdemain? Would truly be a bit of the ol' Paul Daniels about it. :wink: 

Cheers,
Barry


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## Alf (7 Apr 2004)

Signal":1vi4m6qq said:


> well trained wood worm is my guess


 :lol: :lol: :lol:


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