Getting the wet look!

[KimG]

Finishing is by far the most challenging aspect of turning, so much can, and indeed often does go wrong at this critical stage, and correcting such comes with its own attendant risks and problems, so achieving a high quality finish without having to make minor repairs or corrections is a prize to be enjoyed, because it is also a rare thing! (at least it is to me so far anyway!)

So it was with some trepidation and an element of disbelief that I looked at this finished vase, was it truly done without a hitch? No. But! The outside was! (The interior was a little more troublesome and did require some patching after reverse chucking the vase left some serious marks in the applied finish)
Nevertheless, the crucial part of the item from the standpoint of most visual aspect, the exterior, did indeed go as planned, with a lot of care and much careful hand sanding to denib etc prior to the final buffing and polishing went without anything causing me to bemoan my actions.

The end result is a very high quality gloss finish, glass like even, I finally got the "wet look" I was after.

The Vase is in Sycamore, taken from a small log with three side branches, these provide the "eyes".
To me the impression the colours and overall look of the thing remind me of walking through a deep woodland.

A look inside

 

[yorkshirepudding]

Lovely piece. Are you going to share the secret of your glass like finish? I fail miserably in my attempts but I confess I lack patience and I bet you have bucket loads :lol:

 

[RogerBoyle]

=D> =D> =D>
I like that..Very nice
How did you do the colouring of the piece ??
=D> =D>

Roger

 

[Silverbirch]

What a great effect! I think we definitely need a wee tutorial!

Ian

 

[Graham Orm]

Simply stunning! =D> =D> =D>

 

[procell]

That is beautiful.

I second the request for a tutorial on how its done.

 

[KimG]

Many thanks for the comments!

The colouring was done using Chestnuts wood dyes, as for the process, I am still learning and would not want to attempt to describe it, search for a video on youtube by Andy Coates for a demo on colouring, that will help a lot.

The finish was done using Chestnut's spray acrylic sanding sealer and the cellulose Lacquer, I sprayed on two coats of sanding sealer, cutting back (de-nibbing) between coats, each of which was allowed to dry thoroughly (at least 2 hours) then a coat of the lacquer and hand sanded it back with 400 grit to remove all pits and imperfections, after it too had about 4 hours to fully harden, (I also use a tac cloth between coats to remove any dust, but I don't have a separate spray area, I usually still have the piece in the lathe too) Then a final coat of lacquer which again is allowed a minimum of 4 hours to harden, this is again cut back with the 400 grit by hand (that means I do it in little circles and work my way round the piece, while the piece may still be in the lathe for convenience, the lathe is not switched on at all.)
clean with a tac cloth and check again for any shiny bits, coz that's where you missed it! once it is all smooth and matt, tac cloth, then using a soft cotton cloth I used Brasso as a cutting/buffing compound and cut back to a gloss finish, this removes the scratches and gets the main part of the shine going, but I then finish it off to a high gloss by using the last two of the Chestnut Buffing system using the diamond white wheel first, and this is set to run fairly slowly at around 900 or or so revs with a very light touch, this really brings the shine up well, after going over the whole thing thoroughly checking against a light to make sure nothing is missed, I finish off with the polishing wheel, though I did not add any wax to the wheel, just used it to get that final polish.

Hope that proves useful at least!

 

[mikec]

Well done, that is a fantastic finish and really adds to the colouring effects. =D> =D> =D> =D> =D> =D>

I see what you mean about the illusion of woodland.


mikec

 

[Sheptonphil]

Absolutely gorgeous. Stunning.

 

[yorkshirepudding]

Thanks for the info. Must give it a try.

 

[VikingAl]

Lovely piece, looks almost porcelain with that amazing finish. Definitely something I would like to try, thanks for sharing the pics & the advice!.

 

[stuart c]

a few minutes ago i was quite happy with my third turning session and my humble many flaws bowl but i have now seen your vase and i have started to cry i have such a long way to go

YOUR VASE IS FANTASTIC =D> =D> =D> =D> =D> =D>

 

[Noggsy]

Stuart - every journey of a 1000 miles starts with a single step...

Kim - stunning piece, beautiful in form and finish. Bugger, now I'm going to have to start really practising with my Big Brother!

Edit - haha...a mild swear word usually found in company with 'rugger' is changed by the forum to 'pipper'. I don't why that makes me smile, but it does.

 

[KimG]

a few minutes ago i was quite happy with my third turning session and my humble many flaws bowl but i have now seen your vase and i have started to cry i have such a long way to go

YOUR VASE IS FANTASTIC =D> =D> =D> =D> =D> =D>

Thanks Stuart, but let me assure you, I too see many pieces of work, that also leave me wondering if I will ever achieve the same standard too!
The journey though is great fun, very satisfying and for the vast majority of us, progressive too, you just have to keep at it!

Thanks for the kind words everyone!

 

[stuart c]

i will keep trying but as for a thousand steps can i catch the bus please

 

[Harlequin]

Excellent finishing =D>

 

[EnErY]

That Glass like finish Is What we ALL strive to achieve and by golly you got it nailed the form is superb I love the piece well done =D> =D> =D> =D> =D> =D> a stunning example to us all to follow again thank you for showing your work
Regards
Bill