Just a thought

Scott, How did you manage to post this image to the group? My understanding has always been this is strictly a text only group. Am I wrong? I know that UUencode is possible but am surprised it works if that is what you used. This certainly is a lot better than all the attempts in ASCII to draw something. So how did you do it?

You do it the normal way - just attach the image in your email/newsgroup reader. Thing is, many ISPs will strip it out since it is a text group. For instance, it didn't turn up on my system. It's best to post it to a web page or alt.binaries.pictures.woodworking instead and put a notice here.

...Kevin

For (a), it all depends on what look you're after: If you place the heartwood at the bottom of the bowl you'll have the lighter sapwood at the rim. If you place the bark at the bottom, you'll have the lighter sapwood surrounded by heart to the rim. Just depends...

The times I make sure to orient one way or the other is if I'm looking at a burl or if the heart grain is figured or wild. If a burl, I'll usually place the bottom at the bark so that the burl is assured to be in the bottom of the bowl. If you orient the other way, you will very likely cut through all the burl and have a regular grained bowl with burl at the rim. If wild grain, I'll place that at the bottom for the same reason as before - I don't want to run the risk of cutting it all away when I hollow it out.

The above two instances, of course, depend on when you can't tell if the desirable feature extends the complete thickness of the blank.

(b) Hmmm. I'll have to visualize the distortion some.

Yep ... the image was lost to me.

Bill

Thank you for replies, hope someone comes back with comment on cutting for minimal shrinking/warping.

alt.binaries.pictures.woodworking.

Function of the wood, not the cut.