Improve Your Bowl Feet: A Simple Guide
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 13 มิ.ย. 2024
- Are you tired of those clunky, uneven feet on your turned bowls? Don't let them ruin your beautiful creations! In this video, I'll show you how to transform rough bowl feet into stunning, artistic bases.
Discover easy-to-follow techniques for refining shapes, adding delicate details, and achieving a professional polish. You'll be amazed at the difference!
Scraper hack for bowl feet:
• Simple notch makes tur...
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All sound advice and facts. What I have learned is no right and no wrong way to wood turn. I have been doing this craft for a few decades now. I have given many away and sold many. No one has ever complained so far. I appreciate every TH-cam artist good or bad advice. Thanks.
You remind me of me Bruce
I worked as a wood patternmaker so a lot of what I do are tricks of my trade. There are plenty of ways to get things done.
I have always left a recess to be able to remount for refurbishment or fixing small defects etc
You still can! Just put a foot around it so your bottom isn't so thick!
Precisely 👍🏻
I like a heavy bottomed bowl. My preference is that all bowls should be able to be a blunt force weapon in a pinch.
Fun video 👍✌️
Thanks for watching! I don't mind a heavy bottom from time to time, myself
I'm in the recess is just another style camp. It doesn't make you a beginner or lazy or a bad design . It is good to review alternatives and for that thanks.
Thanks for watching, Bill! ❤️
Lots of great advice that I can use. Thank you!
Thanks for watching, Len!
I always liked the bottom of the bowl to be flat as described in the first part of the video. The trick to doing this is to make sure the bottom is a little concaved towards the center to ensure the outer edge of the base is the only thing in contact with the table top. Otherwise, as the wood moves in the center, there will always be some part of the base that does not contact a flat surface and the bowl will rock slightly.
Agreed, and that's a great point that I should have included in the video. Thanks for watching and commenting!
Thanks for the information.
Sorry, I don´t agree. We´re talking aestetics here so I don´t concur that recessed is wrong or bad, just different or not the way YOU like it. I sell my bowls for hundreds of dollars with the recess. A non-turner probably doesn´t know that leaving in the recess is bad or wrong. Now add the fact that you have to add the extra step to re-turn and re-finish the bottom of the bowl. Not much value added in my humble opinion. Just my two cents worth of rant.
Thanks for watching!
I provided an alternative which hides the mortise inside a foot, which I'd recommend, since it keeps the bottom from being too thick. "People don't know better and I keep getting away with it" isn't a great excuse for slacking on the design!
Thanks for watching, Sam! ❤️
I agree. I turn my bowls with the recess and it is just fine. Also, this leaves a space for a custom logo insert.
You still can, just hide the mortise inside a foot so that the bowl isn't a bottom-heavy mess!
Thanks for the info 👍 good job 😊
Thank you Brad, lots of great information. I am new to turning and have not turned a bowl yet. but just learned another lesson.
Thanks for watching, Leonard, and good luck with that first bowl! You'll be hooked!
Looking forward to trying some of these out now, thanks!
Thank you for watching! I appreciate it!
Great information -- always like to see what others are doing
I'll try this. Thanks so much.
Thanks for watching!
Great video. Thank you for sharing your knowledge.
Thanks for watching, John! I appreciate it!
Great video and equally great job teaching! Thanks for sharing!
Thanks so much for watching, I really appreciate it!
Thank you for making this video yes it makes a lot of sense what you are saying I will be changing from now
Regards
Steve UK London
Thanks for watching, Steve, and good luck on your future turning!
Great video with tons of good how to steps! My personal favorite is the shouldered tenon. It’s still a double flip method, but turning the tenon and then the foot above that gives total freedom for the foot, the tenon gets completely removed, and if you get a little carried away on the inside you have a small cushion to dodge the funnel club
The device you referred to as calipers is actually a pair of dividers. Calipers have curved legs. Outside calipers have the ends pointing towards each other; Inside calipers have the ends pointing away from each other.
I agree with you that the bare mortise is the mark of a novice and applaud your efforts to bring attention to refining a foot.
Thank you for clarifying, I'll be sure to use "dividers" going forward!
Mortise on the inside of the foot-love it. Wish I'd thought of it before I started that platter out on the lathe. Great idea especially the tip on mortise depth below the level of the foot. Thanks for the vid!
Thanks for watching! I hope it's helpful in the future ❤️
I Love my vacuum chuck. I made it with a bit of Aggie-Engineering after watching an instructional TH-cam video. I turn 16” bowls with a mortice, and when the finish is on the inside, I turn it around and use the vacuum. I can then soften the recess and put my laser-engraved logo on it. I’ve never had one spin off, even though these are fairly heavy bowls.
My preference is to use a tenon mounted on a Oneway Chuck with their profiled serrated jaws. All methods shown here to remount and finish turn the bottom will work. I personally use vacuum but some forms require a different innovative approach. Use of a mortise in inexperienced hands can easily lead to the infamous turned funnel. Turners looking at your work will most always turn it over to see how well you have designed and finished your foot. Happy turning!
Great video!
Thanks for watching!
Nice piece of wood 😍😍
Thank you! Cheers!
I have used the "fancy mortice" as you call it since day one. In my experience a mortice looks better, holds better and is altogether a more efficient method.
Agreed! It's my favorite style, too. Thanks for watching!
I was at a craft fair several years ago and a turner was selling bowls that had the recess unfinished. You could see drip marks from his shoddy spray finish as well. Yet they were selling. The local turning club had some really professionally finished turnings selling for upwards of $300.
I've seen this foot way more than I care to, unfortunately
I found that right from the beginning of my bowl-turning experience, I didn't like the incompleted look of the simple mortise grip that was mentioned at the opening of the video. I instinctively went with what he called a "fancy mortise", although I didn't know it had a name. I just thought it looked more "finished". Glad to know that I had the right instinct from the beginning.
You've been on the right path for a while now, Rob - thanks for stopping by my small channel, and godspeed with your bowl feet
I have developed a system to clean up a recess so you never would no it is a recess. I do not have a vacuum chuck. You can see this many times in my videos.
Thanks for the info. I have been turning for 16 years. Each craftsman has their own preferences, mine is the recess. I usually burn my brand in and sign each piece in the recess.
Thanks for watching, Don!
Excellent video!! Thank you for taking the time to produce this very informative video for our benefit.
My pleasure, David - thanks for watching!
I’ve seen beautiful bowls with either foot design. I think this is more an esthetic than functional need.
Thanks for watching!
YES!
🤣🤣 I see we're of the same mind!
@@qbranchwoodworks Im so tired of the simple mortise foot. Great video.
Great run down. Thanks for sharing. I need to get my lathe into use more.
Thanks for watching! Can't wait to see what you turn next!
Wow this video was so informative and also entertaining 😅 Great advice and clear how-to instructions. Thanks!
Thanks so much for watching, Dianne!
Thank you and I have a question. The tool you used in 4:02, how is it called? It was very interesting. I just started with woodturning and I use the first method you show us here. Thank you once again :)
Thanks for watching! It's called the Sorby spiraling tool
Hey Brad, thanks for a fun video. I agree that bottom treatments can be improved on most bowls.
Of the bottom treatments discussed, the best - by far - is the lighter colored bowl with the “fancy mortise” option. The others are too clunky and bottom-heavy for me.
I tend to arrive at a similar appearance when reverse turning a spigot (“tenon”), usually aiming for a thin raised rim that doesn’t break the flow of the outer profile. Since I start and finish every bowl between centers, this becomes pretty easy and efficient with practice.
Makes a lot of sense - thanks for sharing your thoughts, and thanks for watching!
I like that you have given plenty of different options of how to finish the bottom, but I also agree with the above that a recessed bottom is still perfectly fine and finished. You make great videos but I disagree that a remaining mortise is unfinished.
Thanks, Todd, and you're more than welcome to disagree. I'd just strongly encourage you to look at the work of true professionals and every single gallery and museum of wood art and find as many examples of this foot as possible.
It's not a mortal sin, it doesn't make the maker a bad guy, but it's definitely unfinished, and I think we both know that.
Hi, you said that turning a regular mortise leaves you with a thick bowl, at least at the bottom.
Why is the “fancy mortise” different? It is still a mortise, and i still have to account for it with bowl thickness.
Thank you, great video very informative.
Thanks for watching! If you turn the foot around the mortise, your entire wall doesn't have to be the thickness of the wall plus the depth of the mortise - you can achieve even wall thickness for a greater portion of the bowl
@@qbranchwoodworks thanks
What was he using to make the design on the bottom.
Just a Sorby spiraling tool
I enjoyed the video! Question for you. What was that tool you used at the 4:02 mark? I’ve not seen that before. Thanks for sharing your techniques. New follower here.
Ahh good catch! That's a Sorby spiraling tool. It doesn't get much work in my shop these days, but it's a fun little gadget. Thanks for watching and subscribing!
I heard him mention later something called a chatter stick. I don't know what that is but it does sound like it's chattering at that 4:02 spot.
@@qbranchwoodworks thanks for that! Much appreciated. Clever little tool!
Amen
Very well done nice 👏
What was the tool you used to put the design in the bowl. Asking for a friend.😅
Thanks for watching! It's the Sorby spiraling tool
Thanks for the info
You wood hate my chunky oak bowls then !
They're at least inch and a half thick on the bottom, with a nice deep mortice and almost parallel sides. I even sign the bottom. I'm not ashamed of them ! But I turn because it's calming and therapeutic for me, not to sell or one up anyone else 😁
Informative video all the same. Cheers 👍
Thanks for watching! Don't be afraid to stretch yourself, though! If you're not learning, you're dying!
Are the Cole jaws made of cabbage? If you were German, you’d be laughing right now.😊😊
I feel attacked!
But yeah, I have a bad habit of being lazy and falling into the familiar. Granted, I am only getting back up to speed after 3 years off and I am purely a hobbyist and gift maker, but this hits close to home. I actually do have a set of Cole jaws but don't use them as often as I should and do so too fast when I do.
The tip regarding sinking the mortise deeper than the rim is one I had not heard and makes sense. My first two bowls after getting my lathe set up in the new shop blew out on the rim of the mortise and ruined otherwise promising pieces. I think I can mount them on the Cole jaws, make a tenon, and salvage at least one of them.
Good video, thank you!
Glad to hear you can salvage the pieces! The deeper mortise trick works wonders - you'll rarely have a blowout if you do it correctly. Thanks for tuning in, I appreciate it!
I use three lines on the bottom of the bowls I turn, so yeah. I do have to come up with a better, more unique way for the bottom of the bowls.
It's ok to use as a signature if you're the only turner in your area!
All good advice, but I think you forgot to mention a slight concave to the to the base so it sits on a ring rather than flat so it doesn't rock when / if it moves. There is no perfect answer, ask 10 turners get at least 13 answers and none are wrong! personally I dislike fancy mortice's but they are useful if you wish to return the bowl e.g. if I try paint, I always need to turn it off as I am rubbish at colouring 😀
Толковое видео. Спасибо!
Thank you for watching!
I tend to turn bowls using a tenon, then remove it to leave a flat bottom. I don’t like leaving evidence of the attachment point. Just my preference. To do this I use a push plate. Way cheaper than cole jaws and more stable than a smaller friction block. I use a disk of 5/8 MDF cut to match the swing of my lathe mounted on a basic faceplate. I covered it with nonslip shelving material to protect the bowls. In addition I cut 8 one inch square pieces of the MDF with a 10 degree bevel on one side and a screw hole in the middle. You just center the bowl against the plate using a live center then attach the squares firmly against the bowl in an even circle. You can then remove the tail stock and finish the bottom however you like.
This is a great tip, thank you! I'll give this one a go!
Sounds awesome can you send a picture?
Thanks for the tip 👍
Thanks for watching!
In my experience The only people who are bothered about how the bottom of a bowl looks are wood turners
That may be true, but that also means that we know when we're being lazy and not finishing our work ❤️ do it for yourself!
A great can of worms opened up there 😊
As you can see, we've had a spirited discussion 😂
From some kind of foot to no foot? When they dry some more, they will be wobblies, without a simple cure.
This is a fun riddle!
OK, so I've taken another look at the bowls I've made.n After I dried my tears, I turned half of them upside down ...... and glued the other ones on top of them.
🤣🤣I love it! Thanks for watching!
I do a lot of natural and live edge bowls so cole jaws won't work for me and I'm not too fond of jam chucks. I recently put together a vacuum system and never looked back. It's not hard to put together a vacuum system and you don't have to spend hundreds and hundreds of dollars for a pump. The Harbour Freight pumps work well and I spent even less than that. All it has to do is to hold a fairly small piece of wood for fairly short periods of time. Should have done that a long time ago! Good video!
Thanks for watching, David! You should throw together a video on the cheap vacuum chuck - I'll definitely watch!
Nope! I was going to suggest the same for you. You have the channel. Maybe a 2-3 part series.@@qbranchwoodworks
@@daviddejong187 I'll see what I can do!
If its any help I got my pump for 45 bucks on ebay. It is a new no brand pump 3.5 cfm and works just fine for my purposes. The chucks are just a piece of 2 inch thick maple and pvc pipe and a bearing and a lamp rod. I've been using it for about a year and I used it yesterday and will again today. @@qbranchwoodworks
I never heard of the bottom should be 3x the diameter of the bowl
Oh shoot, did I say 3x? I meant to say 1/3
I'd say the first bowl foot looked better and fancier than the bare bottom, just my opinion. I'm guessing those rubber knobs have ruined more than a couple bowls.
The rubber knobs are a double-edged sword, for sure. Very useful, but if you don't take precautions, you'll be scrubbing rubber off a finished piece
This feels like a very dogmatic response to what can be a useful mortice. Bowls which are made to be used a lot, often need to be re-finished. They are a great deal easier to re-mount on the lathe if the mortice remains. It is surprising how shallow a mortice can be and still support the turning bowl. The mortice in the example given in this video as 'wrong', could easily work at 50% or even 30% of the depth shown. I rather resent being told I am doing something 'wrong', so emphatically, when clearly this is a matter of practicality and personal taste.'
The good news is, you can put the mortise inside a foot, lightening the bottom of the bowl and considerably improving the form!
You're capable of producing gorgeous pieces - this foot ain't it.
Wat's the problem?
All is explained ❤️
Who is to say what is good or not. I made lots of my bowls with a mortice and not once did anyone complain. As with anything else it is a preference and sometimes we have to return the bowl to the lathe and without the ability to hold it that is not possible. Not everyone can have access to a vacuum chuck so If necessary I will continue to mortice when needed thank you very much. Show how you do it but do not critisize others who do not follow you.
Sorry I ruffled your feathers, Ronald! I do hope that you think about it in the future, and that you opt to make a foot around your mortise so that your bowls aren't a heavy-bottomed mess. I look forward to seeing your future work!
You can still return the bowl to the lathe if the mortise is inside a foot - it's just as secure if you use the methods I mentioned, and the bowl won't look so amateurish.
Actually I do not use the mortice very much these days as I do in fact have a vacuum set up. But it is not fair to make people who have no alternative and are just starting out feel inadequate with their method of choice. Thanks for the reply though.
@@ronaldcumpsty5605 that's why I provided the hidden mortise option, Ronald - I do appreciate you viewing my video, though! Maybe I'll earn your subscription with another video sometime. Take care out there.
No right and no wrong. I turn it the way that suits the bowl shape and myself.
Thanks for watching, Dave!
Anyone that claims their way is the only way it's not a REAL professional. Has no idea as to what they're doing.
That's why I gave 3 alternatives, John - sorry to hear about your bowls and thanks for watching ❤️
I't obvious that you're a pro, but wearing a ring while turning still bothers me.
Yep, my problem.
Hey I hear you. If it makes you feel better, it's silicone that's scored on the inside with an x-acto. My kids break one off my finger about once a month - it's not gonna yank too hard if it gets caught
Anyone who works so carelessly as to be in danger of getting a ring caught in a lathe should stay far away from machinery of any kind
@@E-Glide couldn't agree more!
@@qbranchwoodworks I'm a keen woodturner and have been married for 51 years to the finest lady on the planet. My wedding ring has been in place since the day of our marriage and it has never been removed. In fact the shape of my marriage ring finger has altered over half a century and I couldn't get it off if I tried. I will therefore continue to turn dangerously and if my ring finger is pulled off, so be it. I was an anti-terrorist detective during my working life so I'm no stranger to danger but am not foolhardy.
@@qbranchwoodworks Thanks, it does.
When I was a kid I saw a guy losing a finger simply jumping off of a bed of a truck and his ring somehow got caught at the frame.
Since then I'm trying not to give a chance for such an accident, like I just dont release the chuck key only at its designated place but never while it's in the chuck.
And I'm not even OCD, have no fear of machines (first thing I remove from a new agle grinder is the guard)... whatever, it's my problem.
Thanks for the explanation and keep up the good work!
Your opinion
Others have different opinions, you could try and accept not everyone is like you.
Feel free to make your own TH-cam video defending this foot as "looks good and isn't lazy"
@@qbranchwoodworks i could.... made more bowls than I can count. Dont feel the need to defend my opinion, it is what it is, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, bond by all sorts of rules and must do this or cant do that, Just hinders my imagination and fantasy when turning wood. Humans wouldnt have Come this far if everyone must do the same thing
@@PhilipRuiterthe problem is that this foot is the thing 80% of turners are doing. It's the antithesis of creative energy and expression - it's lazy and utilitarian.
Personal preference. Its your design
Thanks for watching, George!
Recess is a great place for my medallion. You may be full of crap.😊
It still can be! Just put a foot around it so the bowl isn't a bottom-heavy mess!
Yeah sorry I don’t agree.. your opinion is junk.. I have turned bowls for 55 years..I have Cole jaws that are 30 inches but never think like you on finish ever.. I have made over 1100 bowls over the years and no complaints.. All were given away too!
If you've never sold them, then you don't really know what works, do you? 55 years without testing your take on finishing is absolutely wild. I'll give you credit for longevity, but I'd encourage you to examine your craft a little more carefully.
You have no idea dude.. some of my turnings were recently sold at estate auction.. Folks I gave bowls to for 1300 and 1400$.. Most of my turning have recessed dove tails on the bottom and many do not..
😂😂@@terrytenley9327 alright man, show me your spot in the journals and I'll believe you. I didn't see any bowls with this method at AAW, the Smithsonian, or the Museum for Art in Wood, and I think that speaks volumes. Unless your bowls are huge and expensive because of size, I just don't believe your random dumpy bottom heavy bowls sell for thousands at "estate auctions."
@@qbranchwoodworks boy you just force your ways on everyone don’t you..jerk
@@terrytenley9327Thanks for watching ❤
I disagree, I like this recess. Only turners care or understand why it’s there. I have sold many bowls with a foot like this, no one has ever complained or put it back because of the foot. As for being too thick, again only turners are interested in super thin bowls. We think it shows skill, as it does. However customers don’t, thin equals light, light equals cheap feeling to most customers. Nearly all will pay more for a ‘heavier’ bowl. 🤷♂️
"my customers don't know any better" is rarely a good excuse to do anything. You can make thick walls, but they should be even with the bottom. This recess guarantees that won't be the case. We can do better than thick, dumpy bowls with obviously unfinished bottoms. Hold yourself to a higher standard and your customers will thank you.