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18
To Shape the Interior of a Bowl
1. Stop the lathe and move the tailstock away.
Remove the center from the tailstock to prevent
bumping it with your elbow.
2. Adjust the tool support in front of the bowl just
below the centerline, at a right angle to the
lathe bed.
3. Rotate the workpiece by hand to check the
clearance.
4. Face off the top of the bowl by making a light
shearing cut across the workpiece, from rim to
center.
5. Place the 1/2" bowl gouge on the tool rest at
the center of the workpiece with the flute facing
the top of the bowl. The tool handle should be
level and pointed toward four o'clock, see
Figure 22.
6. Use your left hand to control the cutting edge of
the gouge, while your right hand swings the
tool handle around towards your body, see
Figure 22.
The flute should start out facing the top of the
workpiece, and rotate upward as it moves
deeper into the bowl to maintain a clean even
curve.
As the tool goes deeper into bowl,
progressively work out toward the rim. It may
be necessary to turn the tool rest into the
workpiece, as you get deeper into the bowl.
Note: Try to make one, very light continuous
movement from the rim to the bottom of the
bowl to ensure a clean, sweeping curve
through the workpiece. Should there be a few
small ridges remaining, a light cut with a large
domed scraper can even out the surface.
7. Develop the wall thickness at the rim and
maintain it as you work deeper into the bowl.
When the interior is finished, move the tool
support to the exterior to re-define the bottom
of the bowl. General rule of thumb: the base
should be approximately 1/3 the overall
diameter of the bowl.
8. Work the tight area around the faceplate or
chuck with 1/4" bowl gouge.
Sanding and Finishing a Bowl
1. Remove the tool rest and begin with a fine grit
sandpaper (120 grit) and progress through
each grit, using only light pressure.
Coarser sandpaper tends to leave deep
scratches that are hard to eliminate. Use
power-sanding techniques to avoid concentric
sanding marks around your finished piece.
Avoid rounding over the rim and foot with
sandpaper. Try to keep the details crisp. Finish
sanding with 220 grit.
2. Remove sanding dust with tack rags, or
compressed air and, with the lathe turned off,
apply the first coat of finish. Let it stand for
several minutes and wipe off the excess. Allow
it to dry before sanding again with 320 or 400
grit sandpaper.
3. Turn lathe back on and make a separation cut
through the base. Stop at about 3" and use a
small fine tooth saw to separate the bowl from
the waste.
4. Apply additional finish coats and allow to dry
before buffing.
Figure 22