Questions for goblet turners.

I've done a lot of goblets/wine glasses/tulip glasses and I prefer to round the stock, make a basic shape on the bowl and hollow, then let the wood, my mood, etc. decide how the bowl connects with the stem, (or just a tulip shape), final outside shaping of the bowl and design of the stem and base..

Shape, bowl-to-stem ratio, etc. is up top you and what looks right.. this is art, not science.. I seem to like the bowl about the same height as the stem length, but that depends a lot on bowl shape, bead or no bead where bowl becomes stem and stem thickness... longer stems tend to appear thinner... Stem shape, angle and thickness, along with bead/ no-bead where the base/step meet are again personal choice..

Any finish is food safe if they don't drink it out of the can, providing it's properly dried and cured..

On all but oily woods, I finish with Natural Danish oil and buff, which also adds a thin layer of carnauba wax.. Both are "food safe" AFAIK..

I find that most people like a heavier feel, so I don't go very thin on the bowl sides... The tendency seems to be thin walls and a thick bowl bottom, not a look or feel that I like.. YMWV

I take them down to what's comfortable to me and then use the 80 grit gouge to do the final shaping and thinning.. I do the bowl shape and sanding before I do the stem.. just works best for me and I get less vibration...

As to lighting, I will rough turn any time I get the urge, including at night, but I'll only finish turn or sand under natural light... I've done too many pieces that looked great under florescent and incandescent light and truly sucked the next day in the sunlight..

mac

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Thanks for the info. I decided to go ahead and turn one and just ease into a good wall thickness that I liked. The first one I did came out to my liking. The second one . . .S*IT! I had it all hollowed out and was satisfied with the wall thickness. I just needed to get a scraper and even out the inside a little.

I was scraping the inside and the next thing I know, the vessel looks sorta transparent. That's weird, says I. WTF??? Next thing I hear is the sound of the pieces hitting the floor. WTF??? How does that happen when you are just taking a very light pass with a scraper??

Well, the scraper I was using was one of those with the replaceable multi-profile tip. This tip was shaped sorta like a pointed egg. The screw holding it down had come loose and the tip swiveled the pointed part into the wood. Since the wood was pretty thin at that point I hardly even felt the catch and didn't hear the explosion at all. SOB!!! I guess I'll be making a new blank today and starting over. Again.

Wayne

Though I like using scrapers, IMHO the evening out of the inside of a goblet is a job for the "80 grit gouge".. I never get a catch, it's a fine cut and easy to control depth of cut..

mac

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I would prefer a fingernail ground gouge, or a 90-degree gouge such as a ring or hook tool oriented to shear. Allows a start at less than 80 grit, and I HATE sanding.

He didn't say it was spelled right, he just said he's allowed to use it.

B.

Yep.. I'm doing 3 large cocobolo goblets now and the process is bowl gouge, Termite and sand paper.. I use the term "80 grit gouge" because most folks know the term, but actually use 120.. On my last bargain box order, I screwed up and instead of ordering the "turners" bargain box, I just ordered the bargain box.. ended up with a box of huge pieces instead of roll ends, and most of them were 120... been trying to use it up for almost 2 years now..

Thanks again for turning me onto Klingspor way back when..

mac

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For a moment, I thought you said Thermite......

I've had those days....

Only when I can't get C-4... There are few problems that can't be solved with the proper amount of high explosives..

BTW: I should have said "Oneway Termite"

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