50 x 50 x 100mm blank for the wheels (or cheat and get 40mm dowel)
Making the body:
The height of the turtle body is 40mm, width 30mm and length approximately 200mm but if your blank is a bit shorter you can adjust the length of the tail.
Mark the centre on one end of the body blank, the other end will go in a chuck.
Using a drill press (or guide to ensure your holes are vertical) drill two 8mm holes in the centre line of the top of the body (that is the 30mm width) for the dowels that will hold the shell. These should be at least 10mm deep. Position the first hole 50mm from the tail end and the second a further 60mm in (110mm from the tail end) – see project sheet.
Now drill two 9mm holes for the axles. These are on the side of the body 45mm from the tail end then add 70mm to the next hole (115mm from the tail end). The holes should be centred at 10mm from the base – see project sheet.
Now mount the tail end in the chuck. Bring the tailstock up to the centre mark on the head end, tighten the chuck and turn the head round – leaving the sides flat for the eyes, mouth and to put the pull cord through. Turn the shoulders. Remove the tailstock to finish shaping the head. Paint or draw on the eyes and mouth and drill a hole for the string. This is towards the front of the base of the head – see project sheet.
Use a bandsaw or Japanese saw to shape the tail.
Push the 8mm dowel into the two holes on top of the body and cut off approximately 10mm above the body to attach the shell. Add the pull string and secure (important that no parts can come off for a child to swallow).
Wheels:
Either use the 50mm x 50mm blank and turn it round or use the 40mm dowel. Mount in a chuck (turn a spigot if using square blank) and dress the end of the wood then sand. Bring up the tail stock and part off an 18mm wide wheel. Sand the parting on both sides. Repeat three more times.
Note: if you want to add “tyre treads” using an embellishing tool, this should be done before parting the wheels.
Mark the centre on each wheel (if using red Nova centre finder, use the 45o side as 90o side doesn’t work). Now offset each hole by a couple of mm so the turtle will wobble as pulled along – see project sheet. Using the drill press drill an 8mm hole through the offset point at 90o angle. Sand. Paint if desired. Put axle through the body and glue on the wheels at each end.
Shell:
Find the centre of the blank. Mark a diagonal line through the centre and mark 30mm either side of the centre for the dowels.
Drill an 8.5mm hole in the centre for a screw chuck. Drill 8mm holes for the dowels to hold the shell to the body.
Round the blank, turn into a flying saucer shape. Undercut slightly. If you wish you can remove a portion of the edge (in line with the dowel holes) so that the shell sits nicely over the head. Sand. Now the shell is ready to draw, carve or pyro a turtle pattern on top (can get a pattern from Pinterest).
Put the shell on to the dowels and once happy with it, glue the dowels into the shell and the body.
Club Meeting: 22 July 2026 Report by: Kieran FitzGerald
On a cold winters evening, on a train bound for nowhere, I met up with …… oops, wrong song.
On a cold winters evening, too cold for the two Jims, the Ngatea bus trundled into Papatoetoe and unbundled its scruffy load. No gun totin’ gamblers these, just hard livin’ turners from the hinterland folks call the Hauraki Plains, a low lying flat countryside where the fog nourishes everything and the sun struggles to send its rays to the cold earth.
Bryan steps down from the bus, hefts his toolbox from the boot and carries it into the clubrooms. The audience waits in wonderment and anticipation, because although Bryan is listed as the demonstrator for the evening, he has not disclosed what he is about to do. “It’ll be an easy cleanup” he announces. For Bryan is going to demonstrate the project called “Simple Pen” on the SAWG project pages. But wait, there’s more – for Bryan will add some novel and creative features to improve the basic pen. Lets get under way.
Some informal chatter preceded the demo, as members discussed the use of pens in the visitors packs, pens as complementary gifts, the origins of the pen tradition, and the tricks played on former member Rex H. The casual talk set the tone for a boisterous and fun demonstration.
Bryan started with a blank which looked to be about 20 x 20 x 220. Just guessing here. It was slim enough to be held securely in the centre of a 50mm chuck. Bryan brought up the tailstock and knocked the corners off the blank with a spindle roughing gouge. He jacked up the speed and rounded it down to near finished size with a skew. The length of the pen will be approx. the length of the refill plus about 10mm. Without turning off the lathe he turned the speed down to about 1500 and gently withdrew the tailstock. It is important that the piece continues to run true.
The next step is the tricky part and the key to a successful pen. With a long series 3.5mm handled drill make a hole down the length of the blank which is slightly longer than the refill. About 130mm should do it. The drill will be very inclined to wander off centre as it follows the grain of the wood, so hold it parallel to the bed and on centre, and push it gently in just a few mm at a time before withdrawing to remove the swarf. Doing it by hand is easier and more successful than using a Jacobs chuck. Then drill a 4mm hole into the first 10mm of the wood to accommodate the shoulder just beyond the nib of the refill. This will hold the refill securely.
To complete the turning, Bryan took a 4mm drill bit and put it into the Jacobs chuck backwards, and brought up the tailstock again. The drill bit slots into the hole and holds the blank nicely. (An alternative is to use a 4mm pop rivet as described on the project page, but Bryan reckons his way is better.) Turn the pen down to its finished shape, sand and part off. Insert the refill, put a finish on, and that’s your job done. But here’s where Bryan added extra oomph by showing us several ways of enhancing the concept of a simple pen. These certainly raised the bar.
First off, he passed around several pens which he had previously made, and these were totally original. Number 1 was a pen made from a small branch of apricot tree and it still had all the bark and growth nodes. It was very cool. Next up was a figure of a man with a hat turned into the end of the pen, and painted. Anyone would love that. There were a few pens with different designs turned on the end, and even a pen with a Woolworths giveaway figure on the end. Bryan was very excited about that one. “It was free!”
To cap it off (note the pun), Bryan demonstrated how to turn a cap for the pen he had turned. Taking the parted offcut, Bryan turned it around and slotted it in the chuck. He made an entry hole in the end with a gouge, and then drilled in about 40mm with an 11.5mm drill (use a drill sized to match the diameter of your pen). With the live centre in the tailstock just kissing the end of the blank, Bryan turned it down to a thin wall of approx. 1 – 1.5mm. He parted it off at about 50mm. Next he test fitted it on the pen – it required the pen to be re-inserted in the chuck and carefully sanded down til it fitted smoothly. Then he superglued on a clip that he had already fashioned, and secured it with a pin made from a toothpick. The end result looked really classy and lifted the basic pen to another level.
This was a very enjoyable demo with a lot of crowd involvement and laughter. Bryan generously gave away 5 packs made up of the long 3.5mm drill bit and a bunch of refills. These all went to some of the newer turners with a hope that they will enjoy making pens and perhaps make some for the club’s visitors packs. Bryan also donated a handful of refills to the club.
Club Meeting: 24th June 2026 Report by: Jacqui Oxenbridge
The plate has a lot of detail on the base, 4 feet on the corners and then the top can be embellished with pyrography, acrylic paints, pencils. A square or round border can be added to frame the art, or the art can extend outside part of the border.
The turning on the base varies depending on whether a tenon or recess is used. For a recess often use a 100mm chuck but 50mm also works.
All pieces have a lacquer finish.
Start at the table saw, cut squares from 20mm board approximately 170 x 170. Check for blemishes and decide top and bottom. Mark the centre on the bottom with an awl. Roughly sand the top to provide adhesion for the glue.
Mount a round glue block approximately 100mm diameter in a 50mm chuck. Face off the front of the glue block.
With the live centre in the previously marked centre hole on the base, bring up the tailstock to secure the board hard against the glue block.
With a hot glue gun hold the board in position with 5 large blobs of hot glue. For best results ensure the glue is very hot when applied and is allowed to cool thoroughly.
The tail stock is not required.
When the glue is dry, face off the bottom of the blank – use a draw cut to ensure the bottom is flat – particularly all 4 corners which will form the feet and must be flat. Tool rest is low, handle is low.
Now lift the tool rest to work on centre and make the base slightly concave so only the feet will sit on the table. Need to go from the very outside so need to eyeball the corner and push cut to the centre.
Use calipers to mark out for the recess – tool rest on centre, measure 97mm to fit 100mm chuck.
Mark the inside edge of the feet.
Grab a pencil and decide on the decorations for the base, mark the cut lines for domes and beads. If lines are to be erased later, use a soft lead like a 6B.
Drop the tool rest, cut the dovetail recess – initially with a parting tool – 2 to 2.5mm deep and approximately 10mm wide. Cut dovetail with homemade scraper tool – hold the handle slightly above horizontal to make the dovetail.
With a 35o bowl gouge, start at the centre shaping domes and beads across the centre of the plate. Width and position can be quite random.
Outside this embellishment need to cut away any excess timber to form the 4 feet which must be proud – check this before proceeding.
Now use a round nose scraper to refine the concave area working towards the outside of the base.
Sand this area (hand sand on lathe). Note that oak is quite coarse, so you do not need to be so fussy with grain.
Use a heat gun to soften the hot glue and remove the waste block from the plate. Remove glue from the glue block so can reuse it.
Remount the piece on a 100mm chuck using the recess on the bottom.
Note: if using a recess this can weaken the piece so care when removing wood around it.
Check the front is flat – it is important that each corner is at the same height. Use a draw cut to make the front true if required.
Carefully start at the corner, cut a concave shape with a bowl gouge. If you leave the centre in this gives a visual guide as to how thick you are getting at the edges. Aim for 4mm thickness between the feet.
Remove the centre excess, clean up the surface with a scraper.
Sand – either with an electric drill and mandrel with lathe turning or it may be necessary to sand with the lathe stationary. Recommended to sand to 240 then a light touch with 320 grit before pyrography to make it easier to apply burn patterns.
If you want a round frame for the art, draw this in now with pencil using the lathe. For a square frame place plate flat and eyeball with a ruler and pencil.
Remove from the chuck and sand the edges.
The detail on the back is the first embellishment, the second is the drawing.
Choose your image. If it is a photo it can be helpful to divide the image into quadrants so when you draw on your plate you can retain perspective.
Mark the quadrants on the plate (within the frame) then draw the shape with soft lead pencil.
Using a pyrography pen, follow the pencil lines.
Kieran uses a Razertip burner which doesn’t burn as hot as the Burnmaster but is suitable for finer art. Can use a rice bag to stabilize the piece. For straight lines uses a medium size rounded skew or rounded knife point nib.
Pyrography lines do not need to be exact.
Draw the burner nib in towards your hand.
Hot tip is cutting in to the wood which helps stop the shading nib from going over the line in a later step.
Change to a writing or drawing nib and make a series of dots moving along the pencil line initially then fill in the centre.
Change to a spoon shader nib to fill in shapes – can use a swirling motion or dab the nib. To darken, just go over the area again.
Any overburn can either be sanded away or removed with nail polish remover.
Rub out any pencil markings and bush the rubbings away before colouring.
For the sea Kieran used 2 colours of acrylic paint (purchased from $2 shop) cream and teal. Blend the colours to get the shade you want, apply with a damp sponge – this gives a texture to the finish. If there is excess paint, over lines etc, remove with a damp cotton bud. Dry (to speed up process can use a heat gun). If the cover is splotchy, recoat when dry.
For the turtle body make a white wash with white paint and add water from a spray bottle to get very dilute paint. Using a clean sponge, dab it over the turtle to have an overall painted look while retaining the “character” of the turtle. Dry the white wash.
Now can dab on another colour over the water section – Kieran used deep blue mixed with white to subdue the intensity. Dab on with a damp sponge, spread the colour around to make it look like water.
Coat with 30% gloss lacquer.
Once piece is lacquered and dry you can go over the surface with 0000 steel wool but NOT on any coloured areas.
Club Meeting: 17 June 2026 Report by: Kieran FitzGerald
Tonight Jon captured our attention by:
demonstrating how to turn wood with a banana
exhibiting several beautifully crafted woodturning tools that he had made at home, including two scrapers, a skew, a parting tool, a knife and two captive ring tools.
However the tone of the evening changed as Jon morphed into mad scientist mode and delivered a full on lesson on metallurgy as it relates to various types of steel. Let’s unbundle some of what he told us and try and make sense of it.
The underlying theme throughout the presentation was making woodturning tools at home. But first there are some basics to understand.
What is steel? Jon advised that while iron is the key component of tool steels, carbon the element is an important component which determines its hardness and therefore its suitability for tool making.
Type Of Steel:
Iron (Fe)
Wrought Iron
Low Carbon Steel e.g. 1018
Medium Carbon Steel e.g. 1045
High Carbon Steel e.g. 1095
Cast Iron
% of Carbon:
0%
Up to 0.03%
Up to 0.3% 1 HRC
0.3 – 0.6% 10-55 HRC
0.6 – 2.0% 11-66 HRC
2 – 4%
Simply put, the more carbon the harder the steel can be made by heat treatment processes. The Rockwell scale is used to measure the hardness of steel, expressed in terms of HRC. For example 1095 steel is purchased in an annealed (soft) state which is around 11 HRC. However it can be hardened up to 6 times that hardness with heat treatment processes. 1095 is a good candidate for making woodturning tools.
How do you know what type of steel you have? Compared to identifying wood, it is very hard to identify unknown steel that you have found under the bench in the workshop. A metal analyser costs between $30,000 – $60,000 and is out of reach for home users. A magnet will stick to carbon steels, but it can also stick to some stainless steels. A spark test can be used to get an idea if a piece of steel has high or low carbon content. When putting steel to the grinding wheel, a low carbon steel produces longer, quite straight sparks, while a high carbon steel produces sparks that burst and fork like fireworks. That would indicate a higher carbon content, but it will not tell you the actual percentage of carbon in the steel. For that reason it is recommended to source your steel by name from a known steel company.
What is heat treating? Whilst the amount of carbon determines how hard a piece of steel can be hardened, too much carbon (over 2%) would move it into the category of cast iron. Cast iron may be hard, but it is not tough. In fact it is quite brittle, and therefore unsuitable for making woodturning tools.
When making tools you need to consider both hardness and toughness. The hardness of steel is altered through a heat treatment process called hardening. The steel is brought to a specific temperature where it becomes non-magnetic, and then cooled rapidly. This process makes the steel very hard, but it also becomes very brittle. Another heat treating process called tempering is required to take away some of the brittleness and to give the steel more toughness.
Jon talked about four heat treating processes:
Normalising returns the steel’s grain structure to its normal state. For example, steel from a blacksmith’s forge is hammered into a particular shape. During that process the grain in the steel becomes ununiformed in size. To normalise the steel it is heated close to its hardening temperature and then air cooled. This creates a uniform grain structure and relieves the internal stresses caused during fabrication.
Annealing is similar process to normalising but the steel is usually cooled very slowly in the forge once the heat is turned off. Annealing makes the steel soft so that it can be easily worked, shaped and drilled if required.
Hardening involves heating the steel to a high temperature where it becomes non-magnetic. Then the steel is cooled rapidly by quenching in solution of water, brine or oil. This locks the carbon into the iron’s grain structure making it very hard, but very brittle. The cooling solution depends on what type of steel you are hardening.
Tempering is an important process which takes away some of the brittleness and gives the steel more toughness. With tempering, the steel is held at a set temperature (200C) for two hours and then air cooled.
Jon used an HRC hardness testing file set to do a scratch test on a sample piece 1045 steel rod. He heated the tip of the rod with a gas torch until it was cherry red (at which point it became non-magnetic). Before heat treating, the HRC40 file could cut into the rod, showing that the rod was lower than HRC40. But after the heat treatment process the rod tested between 55 and 60 HRC with the files.
Jon also demonstrated with de-galved fencing wire how the qualities of the wire were affected by different heat treatment processes. Wire samples were heat treated to show the normalising, hardening and tempering processes. Unfortunately the piece for the tempering process did not work well and while his assistant should have struggled to straighten out the wire, he broke the wire in half. The wire broke where there were no temper colours and therefore it was still brittle in that area.
Steel responds to heat by changing its colour as it gets hotter. Jon showed us a piece of flat steel plate which he had heated earlier and the temperature colours ranged from straw (around 200 degrees C) through to grey (above 350 degrees C). Each colour change occurs at a definable temperature. During the tempering processes the temperature can be observed by the straw colour of the steel.
Having talked through the heat treatment process, it was appreciated that most of us do not have a forge. Jon introduced us to a source of steel which is already hardened and readily available at home. This is the humble file. The home-made tools that Jon passed around at the beginning of his demo were all made from files. He explained that not all files are suitable but it is easy to work out which ones are by gripping the file in the vise and trying to bend it. It will either break cleanly or it will bend. If it breaks you will be able to see if it has a fine grain structure or a coarse grain. The file you should use should have a fine, even grain structure. For the record, files are described by their types as follows:
The through hardened file – clean break with very fine grain, this is the file you want to use for the tool.
Fools through hardened file – clean break but coarse grain, no good.
Soft as butter file – bends easily (typically rasps), no good.
Case hardened file – bends easily. These are typically files that cut metal, but are no good given their soft as butter interior.
How do you shape your tools? Use your angle grinder with a cut-off or skinny disc to make the basic shape. Use a grinding disc to tidy up the cuts and to add radius curves as required. Finish by using a flap disc or belt sander to remove mill scale and to make everything flat. If shaping a file it is very important to keep the file cool during these processes. Files are already hardened and any heat over the tempering temperature of around 200 degrees will soften the file and the tool will not hold an edge.
Once you have made your tool from a file, it still needs to be tempered. Jon’s suggestion is that this can be done in the home oven by heating at 200C for two hours and then allowing it to cool naturally in air on the bench.
Other suitable materials for tool making are HSS hacksaw blades and planer blades etc.
What is HSS? HSS stands for high speed steel. It is a high carbon steel with a range of additional elements such as tungsten, chromium, vanadium, cobalt, molybdenum etc. It is very hard, retains a good cutting edge (although it cannot achieve the sharpness of carbon steel), and it is more forgiving when overheated compared to carbon steels.
Jon’s presentation was successful in maintaining a very high level of audience interest throughout. It was delivered with high doses of humour and audience involvement, used easy to understand terminology and was well structured. Thanks a heap Jon.
To say Pete’s got wood, is like saying the ocean is wet. True, but it is an understatement of all understatements. Pete has done most things with wood, and has several firewood yards to go with full sheds at home. The quote of the night was “you gotta have a wood cutter, to have a wood turner”.
Pete told many stories, funny and in some places illegal stories that explain the man and couple. He has borrowed wood, cut wood with everything you can think off and builds benches, table tops, to works of Art. Developing from Wood cutting to wood working with turning a part of the journey he has spent many hours in the shed like most of us. He is also a proud home kill butcher and a proud member of the Geyserland Guild of Woodworkers (https://www.ggw.nz/) in Rotorua.
His partner has helped him on the way and allowed him to store many of his works in the house including some of his 650 axes’. He may have the best and biggest axe collection in NZ, including many rare early NZ made.
While the stories were very entertaining what stood out was Pete’s willingness to share his knowledge. This included many learnings around what to take in your chainsaw kit.
A Chainsaw Bar vice, which can be found for as cheap as $20, used to help with sharpening.
Chainsaw spanner, wedges, blocks etc
Sharpening Guide and tools
Oil, a mixture of used compression oil/vegetable oil, with a ratio of 30 to 1
If you are ever in the Rotorua area or in the greater Bay of Plenty and in the need of firewood, give him a call.
Jonathans demo of doing inlays into the lids of lidded boxes was creative and practical.
The Box
Jonathan started with a 90×90 block of Macrocarpa. This had the centre of each end marked and was placed between centres on the lathe and rounded off.
The rounded blank was then marked up where the tenons for the lid and base would be and where it would be paired off to separate the lid and base (Note the lid needs to be extra thick so was made about 12mm). A parting tool was then used to make the spigots at both ends and the lid and base of the box were then separated using the parting tool where he had previously marked it. Jonathan then brought out a pre-turned box base, mounted the lid in a chuck and turned this to have a tight fit on the box, but ensuring the lid was about 10mm thick at this stage.
The Box was mounted in the chuck and the lid fitted on and taped into place for added security. He then turned off the tenon from the top of the lid and cut the rebate for the inlay. This rebate left a 5mm rim and was about 5mm deep.
The Inlay
The inlay was glued to another piece of wood that was to be a spigot for the inlay. This had been pre-turned to size. Once the glue had set the inlay was placed into the chuck.
The inlay was then turned to size checking regularly with the rebate in the lid. You need to make sure the chisel is very sharp so that if the inlay wood is ply or spalted, it will not tear out. Taper the inlay slightly to get a tight fit. The inlay was then glued into place using Tightbond (or another similar glue can be used). Once set the lid was put back onto the box and taped for safety and the waste wood (the spigot for turning the inlay) was turned off.
The inlay was trimmed up to flat, in this case as Jonathan was using spalted wood superglue was dripped into it first to stabilise the wood, but sanding sealer can also be used. Jonathan also showed a few other inlay lids he has completed. Some of these were done with soft grain woods (such as Norfolk Pine) where some of the grain is burned away first and brushed or sanded out the burnt soft wood. These can then be coloured or finished with wax or oils depending on the look desired.
Jonathan did an awesome demo and really showed great ways to make a box look special and have some additional artistic flare.
Dave Anderson, Life Member of West Auckland Woodturners Guild, demonstrated how to make a Baluster. It was Dave’s third demonstration on this subject to our Club and 18 years since his last which saw members, both past and present, make the Balusters that adorn the wall and sides of our demonstration seating area.
Dave served an 8,000-hour apprenticeship followed by 19 years working in the furniture industry before seeing the relaxation of import restrictions on the importation of furniture and the demise of domestic production. Dave now spends his time producing replacement Balusters for the restoration of older villas and buildings plus bespoke balusters for new builds. Regulations have seen changes to heights of stairway rails and gaps between balusters so if we are thinking of doing any check the regulations – replacement is different from whole new staircases.
The profile of a Baluster is either symmetrical or asymmetrical. The asymmetrical bottom half tis a mirror image of the top. The squared end at the top is shorter than the bottom.
The wood used in demonstrating the process was H3 pine dressed 4 sides and 75mm square. Dave uses supplied timber at 75, 65 or 58mm square and 950mm in length for standard balusters. Bespoke dimensions are determined according to need.
The wood is mounted between centers and alignment defined by visual and adjusted by tapping with a hammer. The top end of the baluster is at the Headstock end. Mark the length of the top end by putting a notch/cut with the skew.
Using the Roughing Gouge round the between section. Mark the profile change points. Working along the rounded shaft mark all the high points. Shape using a combination of Roughing Gouge, Spindle Gouge. Leave the low points last to ensure strength. To assist making a smooth cut. Dave used the thumb of the hand nearest to the cutting edge to hold the tool onto the wood. The design is a combination of fillets, coves, beads and tear shaped curves.
Tip from Dave –
To determine the balance and esthetics of items such as table legs to make and stand it up: step back and view from a height and distance appropriate for the finished product. Adjust profile to achieve balance then proceed to produce the remaining 2/3.
View Balusters and Finials on the old Villas in the older suburbs to get an appreciation of what works,
Dave used a spigot gauge to ensure that the spigot was constant in diameter (an open-ended spanner will also do), Chamfer the end and cutting a groove in the spigot will allow trapped air in the drilled hole escape when the baluster is inserted.
Project –
Members are challenged to make a Baluster to be added to the existing. The specifications are:
Finished length 500mm; squared ends 75 x 75mm; 20mm spigots at each end.
Club Meeting: 27 May 2026 Report by: Jacqui Oxenbridge
This term’s theme is “added value”. Demo was around embellishing. The first piece was influenced by Pop Art and Minimalism.
Pop Art was a push back against abstract expressionism (pale colours, minimal shapes) and was about making art out of everyday life. It is bold, bright, eye catching. Emma mentioned that also likes to leave the raw natural wood exposed for contrast.
Minimalism crosses over with Pop Art, uses primary colours, very precise, clean-cut lines to look good. It is art stripped right back.
Emma had a bowl she passed around – the shape reflected the 50’s and 60’s with black pyro lines and blue, yellow, red sections (being the primary colours). When considering the embellishment, it is important to look at the grain direction, work across lines to highlight.
The demo was on Box Elder which is a pale timber.
In the demo Emma was asked how she does the black line & pyrography from the rim to the centre. Emma used a ruler to draw parallel lines approximately 50mm apart. Use a soft pencil and do not push too hard as this can bruise the wood. Draw more lines at angles. As a rule, start the new line from the centre of an existing line and rule out to the outside. If you are using several colours, it can be helpful to create a numbered grid before you commence painting to avoid having two sections with the same colour next to each other.
With a Razertip blade tip (HD14L – heavy duty) pyro the lines. To get an even line determine the heat required, try to keep constant movement, burn well down on the blade to avoid “blobs”. If you get blobs, go back with the blade and smooth the line/blobs out. If possible, it is best not to cross over the lines.
To fill in between the two edges of the lines Emma uses a bent nichrome wire to dot the space. On the Burnmaster she turned up the temperature to 6, using her “pinky” on the bowl to stabilise Emma randomly filled in the space (even though only a couple of dots wide do not want to be uniform).
Any overburn can be removed with acetone, nail polish remover or 400 grit sandpaper. It was noted that if you are painting the item most paints (not yellow) will also cover overburn.
Dots are common in Pop Art (Ben-Day dots) so this fits with the theme very well.
If desired, you can paint over the pyrography with black.
Remove any remaining pencil marks.
Painting: need clean water, paint, palette, brush and a dabbing cloth.
The primary colour paints Emma used are “Golden Soflat Acrylic Paint” which are matt and aligns with the Pop Art movement.
Brushes are important – get a good quality brush. Hog hair bristles are for oil paint, synthetic, soft bristles are for acrylic paint. Always clean your brush after use, remove from the water, squeeze out excess liquid, reshape and dry flat. The shape of the brush can also be important. For this demo Emma used a square ended brush with a slight angle so that she can get a clean, crisp edge against the pyrography lines.
To avoid contamination of the paint it is best to use a clean stick and put a small amount of paint on a palate. For a matte, opaque finish need to apply 2-3 coats.
The consistency of the paint is important, and it may be necessary to add water (or acrylic medium) to get paint that is “relaxed”.
The Golden Soflat is a good consistency out of the bottle (Gordon Harris stocks) but acrylic in tubes often needs water. Dip brush in water, mix paint on palette, repeat up to 6 or 7 times until consistency is softened – but not runny.
Wet the brush, dab on cloth, pick up paint with the brush. Starting in a corner, go along the edges of the line. Turn the brush as required when the paint is depleted. Use the pinky to steady the hand. If paint does overlap the black lines it is possible to go back & reburn.
Emma was asked about sanding sealer – she does not use this as it can interfere with some products.
Finish with lacquer or other wax.
Dragon Egg
This technique can be used on the outside of hollow forms, vessels, on the rim of a bowl or on a dragon’s egg.
First step is to lay out the pattern – this should be random and drawn with pencil. Look for any interesting wood features which you want to highlight or anything you want to hide. Cover the entire surface with the shapes. Some shapes can be closer together, all are nonuniform.
Using the Razertip at 2-3 temperature, use the pinky on the wood for stability, go over the pencil lines. Going around corners – go up on to the tip of the blade to keep the line smooth. Move the piece and the Razertip together. Aim for a consistent speed to give consistent heat and smooth lines.
Smaller blades can bend; however, they can be carefully straightened with narrow nose pliers.
Once all shapes have been outlined remove the pencil lines with a rubber. Then with a Dremel “scoop out” the centre of the shape. Trace around the edge first then remove the middle. Emma was using a “green hedgehog” bit. Smooth out the indented surface.
Option 1 – Dots:
With the nichrome tip put dots in the shape. Start around the edge to make a border and keep the edge clean. Note: a writing tip could be used for the dots.
Any patterning can be used in the centre once the border of dots is complete. A sample board can help with working out which pattern to use, how quick it is, whether it is suited to a larger area.
Note: gummy timbers can result in inconsistent burn, so it is important to have a wire brush handy to clean the tip.
Paint – use metallic paint. Remember to look at the consistency. Emma used a Size 0, round brush with a fine tip.
As this is dots in the shape the painting will move in rings around the shape, move from the outside to the inside. Blend them together in a more circular motion.
Option 2 – Star:
Using the Razertip blade go from the centre of the shape and make a basic star shape within the indented area. A light touch gives a finer line. Keep drawing the lines until the space is nearly full then go from the outside into finish. This avoids going over the edge of the shape.
Heavy pressure will give texture, and this is required for any paint application.
With a very fine drill bit you can add a hole at the centre of the star for a focal point.
Paint – use metallic paint. Remember to look at the consistency. For this piece Emma used a Size 0, round brush with a fine tip.
Wet the brush, dab dry, start with black and do the outline. Will be painting dark to light. Apply a light coat around the edge. The next colour was Verde green. Apply carefully trying not to touch the black. Wash the brush and dry then with light touches blend the two colours together moving out on the lines of the star. Add more colour as required. Now add the third colour to the inside. It should still be possible to see the texture. Blend the colours, working with the star, brush the colours together.
Add a dot of gold to the central point with a very fine brush then move towards the edge. The aim is to lead the eye into the centre.
Blending must be done while the paint is still wet, so it is necessary to complete each shape one at a time.
Possible colour combinations:
Black Dark Blue Light Blue White
Black Dark Purple Light Purple White
Interference Paint
This is more vivid on a black background. Only a very small amount is required, and it is best to water the paint down to avoid a “white” look. These paints can be used over other colours for a flash of colour e.g. purple over green. Not much is achieved by putting gold interference paint over gold metallic paint.
Gold patina in centre of bowl
This is a fake patina that is possible using a variety of colours. Emma used bronze, gold, sunset pink, purple, green. Copper and Rose Gold are a good combination to try.
Often done over black gesso base. Using a round nose brush dab on some gold paint. Do not paint the entire surface. Next dab on some purple, then green then blend slightly. Try to avoid making brush marks. Pull up from the middle. This is not about mixing the colours, rather blending them. With a wet brush blend as the paint dries. Dry with a hairdryer then repeat going up to the edge of the centre.
Very gently brush up to the lip to highlight the lip. Finally add interference paints. Again, it is best to use complimentary colours. Use a small brush, minimal amount of paint. Remember to wet the brush then dab. Layer until happy with the look. Note: can use fingers to blend.
Club Meeting: 20 May 2026 Report by: Jacqui Oxenbridge
Yuri’s demonstration was showing inside out woodturning technique to place the shape of a heart inside the wood. For a beginner turner with NO spatial awareness this was all a bit overwhelming and I hope this makes sense! As for the “I have notes and they are in English…”
To begin, Yuri showed us a teardrop decoration and then showed us how to create the void – “straight-backwards”.
First find identical sized straight blanks. Generally, these pieces are made from 4 blanks joined together but it is possible to use 3 or 6.
The blanks are temporarily joined together then turned then separated and joined back together “backwards” to create the void. Finally, the shape is turned on the new blank complete with void.
In its simplest form:
side view: top view: once temporarily stuck together turn out a semi- circle then separate and re-stick together to get a circle void
Remember to finish the “inside surface” before permanently gluing the pieces together.
Heart Shape Void made with 4 pieces of wood.
Chamfer both ends of the blanks so that it will be possible to insert a chisel to separate the blanks. Yuri used sandpaper on a stick.
The blanks are glued together ONLY over a short section at the top and bottom of the blank so that they can be separated without tearing the fibres.
Use PVA glue and paper. A brown grocery bag works well as it does not have a gloss surface and will absorb the glue.
Spread the PVA on the end of 2 sticks then put the paper on the glue. Glue the paper in the same way and then add the 2 sticks with no paper to the other side of the paper.
Repeat gluing process at the other end.
Align the tops of the blanks and clamp together top and bottom – 4 clamps used in pairs at right angles to one another.
Once completely dry, trim the tail stock end if required as it is important to have a flat end.
Considering the new blank and how to turn it safely: one end will be placed inside the jaws at the headstock and is unlikely to blow apart. The other end needs more thought. If a live centre is used it is likely to split and separate the 4 blanks, so a Steb Centre is preferable.
To make the tailstock end safer Yuri used filament tape which contains fibreglass strips (available from Blackwoods). To avoid the tape being cut by the blank he removed the sharp edges with sandpaper. Another important consideration was the direction the tape was applied in – wrap around in the opposite direction to the direction the lathe turns in to avoid it catching.
Now the blank is ready for “Open Heart Surgery!”
Because this is inside out turning, we need to keep the edges as sharp as possible – any wood that is knocked off the edge can be visible when the blanks are reglued backwards. If the edge is damaged, but can be repaired by gluing the piece back, this should be done.
With the parting tool cut the middle of the blank. Turning at 1400RPM. As the blanks are not glued in the middle a sharp tool, reasonably high speed and a light touch are required.
Cut a groove approximately 1.5 times the width of the parting tool (allow some clearance) down to 15-16mm diameter. Measure with callipers. Once at this diameter begin cutting the reverse heart profile.
Begin with the top of the heart on the top side of the groove. Using a bowl gouge Yuri shaped the top half – lie a very short cove that incorporated the 16mm diameter shaft.
To complete the second half of the heart required a hollowing tool to do an undercut on the bottom side of the groove. Remember to move the tool rest away so that the Swan neck scraper is well supported. It is important to cut deep enough that the heart will be in proportion.
It is recommended to sand with the lathe turned off. Repair any damage to the edges. Mark each piece 1,2,3,4.
Separate by placing a chisel in the chamfer between two blanks. Repeat on the other end. Then repeat on the two pair of blanks. Be gentle as the blank is quite thin in the centre.
Rejoin the blanks rotated 180 degrees so see the heart shaped void, glue together with Titebond, align the tops, clamp.
When dry need to drill out a hole for the candle insert (cup) (required for safety compliance).
Drilling in the lathe may cause the item to break. Instead put the blank in a vice, use a square to ensure it is upright, then with the vice tightened hold the blank at the top with an F-clamp or other tool (adjustable spanner) and use the drill press & a Forstner bit to drill the hole the required size.
At this point it is easier to sand the areas that will stay flat around the heart void.
Now the blank, with heart shaped void, can be shaped – this is basically spindle turning.
Bottom end is in the chuck, bring the live centre up – can use the centre mark from the Forstner bit to align. Remember the weak point in the centre and at the tailstock end. Use light cuts with a roughing gouge or spindle gouge. Make the top end round, add beads, coves etc.
Once the top is shaped work out where you are going to part off and using the parting tool cut down far enough to allow you to shape the bottom half of the candlestick.
Can add texturing, frame with a cut then burn with wire. Can colour the textured area with a vivid marker.
Part down to around 5mm then cut with a saw.
Sand the surfaces. Finish and insert the candle cup.
For a history lesson on Steb Centres, Forstner Bits and Callipers please speak to Yuri directly!
Blank size for the body of the Angel: 55 x 55 x 280
Blank size for the wings: 160 x 160 x 30mm blank
It is important to remember head and foot placement, and also the front and back as you work, or you’ll get a deformed angel, Picasso style 😊
Mark where the front will be on the first blank (Body)
At the foot end mark the centre (P,B,N) mark. Place the next mark 8mm from centre towards the back (F) and label marks with appropriate letters shown in brackets.
At the head end mark the centre at Head (P) end, Place the next mark 8mm from the centre towards the front (B) and then mark 8mm from centre towards the back ((F), then mark halfway between front and middle marks (N) label with appropriate letters shown in brackets
Round the blank to 50mm diameter (this is the widest measurement at the base) Turn speed approximately 1750-2000 rpm
Mark 10 mm up from the foot end. Using this 10mm mark as zero, measure and mark the following lines: 85mm, 136mm, 165mm, 195mm, 208mm, 227mm, and 240mm. (this should leave 30mm spare at the top of the form)
Turn down to the correct diameter at each point with a parting tool.
85 mm = 26mm diameter (knees)
135 mm = 36 mm diameter (hips)
165 mm = 20 mm diameter (Waist)
195 mm = 34 mm diameter (Shoulders)
208 mm = 20 mm diameter Will be narrowed off centre later
227 mm = 20 mm diameter
Define underneath the base with parting tool (10mm deep)
Using a spindle roughing gouge, shape the body from base to neck using these marks as a guide (refer to the Blue line on the plan)
Move centres to the F marks for turning the Front
Shape the front of the body – base to neck (refer to the green dotted line on the plan)
Place back between true centres to turn the head (the head is basically like making a large bead)
Now for the fun stuff – not much left to remove, but they are the narrow bits
Move centres to the B marks for Back – turning speed approximately 1250 rpm
Shape under the bum and take approx. 5mm off the shoulders as per the red dotted lines on the plan
Move centres to the N Marks for the neck (neck is turned as a cove to 10mm diameter)
Next make the wings
For the wings turn a thin shallow plate with a thin dowel left at the centre for attaching the wings to the body
Create a 50mm spigot for chucking
Mount in the chuck and turn another 50mm spigot on the other side.
Shape the outside of a shallow bowl and round to approx. 150mm diameter
Remount on the second spigot and turn the inside of the bowl, turning to 4mm thickness, leaving enough thickness in the centre to make a dowel.
Cut out the wing shape either:
on a bandsaw (this will need a narrow bandsaw blade),
on a scroll saw
with a coping saw or jigsaw.
Drill a hole in the back of the body and attach the wings
This was an excellent demo from Holm, showing the precision required for Off-Centre Turning, while also demonstrating it’s fun and versatility.
