Brandon really enjoys turning bowls because they really show off the natural beauty of the wood. You never know what you're going to find when you start turning a bowl! Below are pictures, step-by-step of how Brandon "roughs out" bowls. "Roughing a bowl" is turning the wood while it is still wet (freshly cut). This lets the wood dry a lot faster, with less chances of cracking and warpage. It saves space in the drying room too! Once the bowl has been "roughed out" and allowed to dry, it can then be turned to the final thickness, removing any warping that may have occured. Click the images to view them larger. Start... ...To Finish! Cutting a large 24" diameter Walnut log in Iowa. Slabbing the log lenghtwise. You ask: "Why cut a log that way when it's already round and you're going to make a bowl?" Because if it's cut the other way it makes the bowl very hard to turn and not as pretty because of the way the grain is running. When you enlarge the picture by clicking it on the left, you can see Brandon brought his helper, Ozzie, the Golden Retriever. Am I in Heaven? No sir, this is Iowa! Screwing faceplate on. Threading faceplate onto lathe. Bowl blank is ready for turning. Turning away rough edge and making the bowl blank round. Bowl blank is round. Beautiful Walnut! Turning corner away from bottom of bowl. Beginning shape of bowl. Stop lathe and check the shape. The tool I am using for this bowl is a 3/8" gouge. Need to keep the tools sharp for safety and ease of turning! Checking the shape again... ... and again. The outside of the bowl is done. Taking the faceplate off. Putting the chuck onto the lathe. The chuck will allow Brandon to later take the point away and remove the wood from the inside of the bowl. Putting the bowl into the chuck nice and tight. Start turning away the chainsaw marks on the top of the bowl. Just need to remove the chainsaw marks from the rim since the rest of the inside will be turned away. Starting to hollow the center. Keep working further out. Define the thickness of the bowl. Checking the thickness... perfect! Start working deeper in the bowl. Checking the thickness again. Bowl is done! Taking the bowl out of the chuck. Brandon puts the date of when the bowl was "roughed out", the species of wood and who he got it from. He marks where the wood came from because when he gets wood from someone, he always makes them something out of it as a thank you. Sealing the bowl with a waxy sealer. The sealer will make the bowl dry slower and more evenly throughout, reducing the chances of getting a crack and the amount of warpage. A bowl this size will create quite a pile of shavings! Don't worry, the shavings are recycled. Check back late summer of 2006 and the bowl will be dry and ready to be finish turned!