Figgy pudding??

[boysie39]

No need to worry Gordon ,I've been insulted by worser people than him .
If your as thick as I am and live in as remote an area as I do it's nice to have somebody to even trade insults with .
Me auld Granny used to say To be a giver you also have to be a taker . :twisted: A great woman was Gran, especially with the bowsaw and an axe ,when she was lopping a bough off a tree she'd always get you to sit out on the end of the branch to keep the saw from jamming, :lol: .
Thanks for the invitation Gordon ,but I'm afraid my travelling days are over, back in the '70/'80s I spent the best part of 15 yrs driving around France ,Sunday night in Rungis market and off down the country for a back load of fruit or wine.
I liked the Wine runs :mrgreen: Stories ,Stories , :roll:
Anyway back to base again are you entering the challenge this month or are you on flower duty full time . Wish you well at the show. =D>

 

[gus3049]

Thanks for the invitation Gordon ,but I'm afraid my travelling days are over

Anyway back to base again are you entering the challenge this month or are you on flower duty full time . Wish you well at the show. =D>

Its never too late for travelling. My wife's brother is 82 and is threatening to come down from Gloucester on his 1920s Rudge motorbike. Thats if he gets time in between the go-kart races of course. Actually, its a breeze getting here from England as it one stop on Eurostar at Lisle and then direct by TGV to our nearest big town. Not sure about the links from you though.

Its flowers coming first this month as the income side of things is mostly down to Ronnie now. The show this weekend is the major one in our area and she was lucky to get a place as the competition is very high. However, it tends to be a salesfest and we have high hopes of 'turning' a tidy profit over the three days.

I was given a couple of big slices of some wood or other (!) and I may well get enough time to produce a nice big platter. Have to turn the head sideways though which always makes me nervous as I can't use the tailstock as support.

The FIG....... it both cracks and moves!! The 'leaves' are beginning to twist nicely and there are some interesting cracks opening up - don't know where that bit of bark is going though!! - its about 5mm longer than the edge it came off already. Don't really care for the shape but as I said Ronnie has claimed it as a flowerpot holder so I didn't get a chance to develop it.

 

[gus3049]

It appears that the answer to my original question was:
YES it splits
YES it cracks
YES it shrinks
and YES its a really nice looking wood.

Must try and get some more and leave it to dry tis time. The pot holder is now going to take a smaller pot but I really like the way it has moved. Its definitely an 'interesting' one. Praps its art.

With the fig I was also given some other wood (any ideas??) which has obviously been left out for a long time in slices. Rotten to the core and cracks everywhere. Still, nothing ventured, nothing gained. This one is 400mm diameter so had to swing the head which I never like doing very much. I left it 'rustic' and also didn't bother doing anything about the bottom so it shows what I had to cope with.

Two strange ones that I actually rather like.

 

[Alli]

=D> Absolutely stunning. =D>

I think it looks all the better for the movement in the wood

Cheers Dave

 

[Jonzjob]

Gordon, I hate to say this, but they look the real dogs bits mate. I would have loved to have had something turn out like those pieces. They really hit the spot for me.

I have only ever turned one really wet lump of wood, rhodenderum (?) and I got a shower for my workings.. It is on our coffée table and if I ever tried to get rid of it then OH would be stood on my neck. It's all shapes and cracked, but lovely and a total one off

 

[MattF]

double post admin please delete

 

[MattF]

That's very nice Gordon =D> and the pot holder looks nice I like the look of the wood with all the markings in it.

Matt

 

[boysie39]

is'nt it marvelous what happens when you let nature do it's thing . Can you imagine trying to turn those pieces to that shape. :roll:
I love rustic or whatever people want to call it .You could never in a hundred years Gordon set out to deliberetly make those pieces to the shapes you and nature created . There will never be a subtitute for timber IMO.
Absolutly brillent ,thanks Gordon.

 

[gus3049]

=D> Absolutely stunning. =D>

I think it looks all the better for the movement in the wood

Cheers Dave

Thanks for he comment, as Boysie says later, it would have been impossible to actually intend the result. Serendipity indeed. The main problem for me with a piece like this is to sell it, 'normal' turnings I can reproduce but how on earth do I do this again? Fortunately the wife wants this one - and she is always telling me off for keeping stuff!!

is'nt it marvelous what happens when you let nature do it's thing . Can you imagine trying to turn those pieces to that shape. :roll:
I love rustic or whatever people want to call it .You could never in a hundred years Gordon set out to deliberetly make those pieces to the shapes you and nature created . There will never be a subtitute for timber IMO.
Absolutly brillent ,thanks Gordon.

Indeed, where wood we be without it?
After six or seven months doing bugg.r all, I am really just trying to get the feel of the lathe and tools again before continuing to develop my style with all the piercing and carving. It just shows how the basic stuff can still be interesting and exiting though.

I've forgotten enough to try a turn a piece of non-dry yew though. Lovely shape (he said modestly) and of course, it cracked in all the wrong places - more firewood.

 

[boysie39]

Gordon , I have said many times before ,it's easy for me to rattle on about different aspects of turning re- shape ,size colouring, texturing ,and all the things turners do to enhance a piece . I am not trying to sell anything I do. If somebody wants what I do it's theirs .
What I have noticed is that almost everything I have turned and finished to my best standards is first to go ,sometimes somebody will see a "what I call " real piece with all it's lumps bumps and inclusions and take it. Apart from some pieces I have been lucky enough to have acquried from other turners and which hold pride of place in my home ,my favorites of my own turnings are Rustic in the main. What gives me concern is how many lovely pieces have I ruined in the quest for what will be pleasing to other eyes .
As I have stated ,I dont sell anything ,I can potter about at my own pace do what I want and enjoy doing it. I am lucky I know .PG it will be like that for a while longer.

 

[gus3049]

I am lucky I know .PG it will be like that for a while longer.

Amen to that

 

[gus3049]

For those thousands interested in the progress of the fig, my advice would probably be - "don't touch it with a barge pole"

I have had another piece delivered and its cracked all the way through and all the way round.

My original pot continued to spread and put some wedges in last week as it seemed to have stopped. Except it hasn't. There is a new crack of about 3mm beside one of the wedges. As they total about 7 or 8cm, it means that a pot of 15cm diameter is not considerably more with no end in sight. This stuff MOVES. I suspect that no amount of careful storage will sort it.

If someone offers again I reckon its thanks but no thanks. AS this one is being used as a plant pot holder here, it doesn't matter but I would have been a bit upset if I'd sold it. I had several requests as it looked great to start with.

Note to self: USE DRY TIMBER

 

[jumps]

thanks for the update

so the philosophical question seems to be - so when cracking and movement too much cracking and movement?

 

[gus3049]

thanks for the update

so the philosophical question seems to be - so when cracking and movement too much cracking and movement?

It rather do, don't it?

Time alone will tell :?:

 

[jumps]

thanks for the update

so the philosophical question seems to be - so when cracking and movement too much cracking and movement?

It rather do, don't it?

Time alone will tell :?:

I guess sitting in the evening sun comtemplating this with a glass of plonk makes a huge amount of sense..... =D>

 

[gus3049]

thanks for the update

so the philosophical question seems to be - so when cracking and movement too much cracking and movement?

It rather do, don't it?

Time alone will tell :?:

I guess sitting in the evening sun comtemplating this with a glass of plonk makes a huge amount of sense..... =D>

It rather do, don't it :?:

I think I'll do it right NOW

 

[MattF]

Its got massive character now with all the movement I still like it a lot

Matt

 

[gus3049]

Its got massive character now with all the movement I still like it a lot

Matt

I agree, thats why I'm pleased we still have it in a way.

Trouble is, i am supposed to be doing this for a living and am not supposed to keep hanging onto stuff!!

Its in my good books though. We have been trying to catch a snail or slug that has gotten into the front room somehow. It has been leaving trails over a bowl or two. Takes the surface right off. Never happened with lacquer but just polishing the wood means that I have to redo them after its been 'walking'

Anyway, it got into the fig last night and didn't find its way out!!

One 'ex' slug.