I’ve seen hundreds of turning videos, this man knows his stuff . His ability to explain his work is second to none. He could be Richard Raffin’s brother 👍
WOW! Thank you so much! Here’s a more detailed version picked up by the AAW for their Turning FUNdamentsls series: vimeo.com/142137240 I’ve just moved to an area with much better bandwidth, so I plan to record more videos in the coming months.
Turns out, it's really handy to spray the wood with shellac or some sort of clear fixative before cutting the off-center grooves -- and even again before coloring with markers. This helps avoid bleeding into the end grain, which can be a problem with most markers. Basswood and Poplar are also better at this than more porous woods like the Hemlock used here. In practice, if you plan to make a number of these, working in batches can really help with your production time. Turn all the tree shapes, give them all a light spray, then turn the grooves, and give them all another spray (or paint the color on with brush or spray can), wait overnight, and then clean them all up as a batch.
Very cool! First time seeing this design. I've only been turning for a couple years now and haven't tried the off center cut before. Looking forward to it. Thanks for the instruction!
I love these trees with their "off-center" branches !!! It looks really nice on the tree, you did a great job with the idea and the turning. Merry Christmas to you and your family !!! Take care, Morgan
Thanks Morgan -- I hope you try some! I don't remember where I first got the idea, but I certainly got it from another turner -- I'd give them credit if I could remember who it was. After posting this, I saw that Allan Stratton has a video showing almost exactly the same little trees, but I had never seen that before. BTW: I have no idea why some comments get labeled as "spam" -- not by me. Something facebook does, I guess.
Ideal Woods to use: Soft, lightweight and light colored hardwoods will probably work best: Basswood, Boxelder, White Birch, soft Maples (Big Leaf-, Silver-, or Red Maple), and varouus Poplars (Aspen, Cottonwood, etc...). Softwood species are a little more difficult to cut clean, and might chip more, but Pine, Fir or Spruce are readily available for cheap (or free!), and can work well, too -- they are usually lighter in weight, which is good for hanging on trees. Another option is to paint the conical tree shape before you do the off-center turning, then cut through the paint to reveal the wood underneath, and other variations, too. Have fun and experiment.
Those turned out great super simple to. I also think your video skills are just fine I didn't miss anything the angle was right and all is well. Great video!
If using a spindle or detail gouge: you don't want to lever the tool into the cut, as it is more likely to skid to the side. It works best to hold the gouge completely over on its side, like this "(" or this ")", and stab the wood directly toward center, along a radius of the wood.
Hi Brad,, thanks for your video I copied what you did for my very first turn!!! It came out great thanks to you!! But I had one problem,, the red sharp I used bled throughout The pours of the wood and messed up the whole piece!! Any idea what I can use to get the color out?? Thanks, Steve
Justin: I usually use blanks about 3 x 3 x 6. I have used Hemlock (as shown), but the best woods are lightweight, light-colored, fine grained hardwoods, like White Birch, Boxelder, Aspen, Cottonwood, etc... Softwoods will work, too, but they're a little tougher to cut cleanly. I found that many colored markers were thinner, and caused more color bleeding than I was getting with my older markers. I'm now making them in batches, spraying them with Krylon fixative or shellac (to help prevent the colors bleeding into the end grain), then painting the grooves in various colors (no need to be that careful), before returning them to the lathe for the finish pass(es) to clean up all the excess paint. Base and tip (ball shown) are turned last. For final decoration, little squeeze bottles of "puff paint" or fabric decorations can be used. Have fun, Brad
Centers: When starting, I just estimated the center of a chunk that was split out of an old 6" x 8" Hemlock beam -- just looking for the largest circle I could turn out of it while avoiding cracks or knots. No rulers, and not even diagonal lines, just eyeball. This is a pretty country bumpkin answer, but think along the lines of turning a piece of scrap wood found at a construction site -- or maybe a stump ;~) -- eyeball is close enough. (You can tell I don't make fine furniture!) If you are starting with square stock, just draw your diagonal lines if you want to get very close to the center and waste the smallest amount of wood. Then, after the basic tree (cone) shape is formed, I leave the center at the top of the tree alone (headstock end), and offset the center at the base of the tree by a "small amount" -- somewhere around 1/8" or perhaps 4 mm. No measuring anywhere in the project. My tail center creates a little ring I use as a guide, but I prefer to offset the tail center a little less than that distance to get longer arcs that overlap better. I recommend a little experimentation on scrap wood with a cylinder turned smooth and round, trying different amounts of offset to find what works best for you. Small offset = long cuts that go more than 1/2 way 'round, while larger offset makes shorter cuts. Have fun!
I’ve seen hundreds of turning videos, this man knows his stuff . His ability to explain his work is second to none. He could be Richard Raffin’s brother 👍
WOW! Thank you so much! Here’s a more detailed version picked up by the AAW for their Turning FUNdamentsls series:
vimeo.com/142137240
I’ve just moved to an area with much better bandwidth, so I plan to record more videos in the coming months.
@@bradvietje802 Brad great to see you're still at it.
Turns out, it's really handy to spray the wood with shellac or some sort of clear fixative before cutting the off-center grooves -- and even again before coloring with markers. This helps avoid bleeding into the end grain, which can be a problem with most markers. Basswood and Poplar are also better at this than more porous woods like the Hemlock used here. In practice, if you plan to make a number of these, working in batches can really help with your production time. Turn all the tree shapes, give them all a light spray, then turn the grooves, and give them all another spray (or paint the color on with brush or spray can), wait overnight, and then clean them all up as a batch.
You make it look so easy. Im going to try this tomorrow. Gifts for the family next year. Thanks for posting this.
Very cool! First time seeing this design. I've only been turning for a couple years now and haven't tried the off center cut before. Looking forward to it. Thanks for the instruction!
I like that style of tree. Great job.
Alan Stratton
Very simple and elegant design! Thank you.
Love this Brad going to have a go at this, first project at turning .Thanks
That is going straight into my 'try this' list. Thank you!
WOW I like your video's! I have never done bowls but you got me thinking 🙂
Wonderful job Brad, you did a great job on the video as well.
Thank you for entering
Thanks, Carl -- I've wanted to get started making turning vid's, and this is helping to push me to learn how to do it.
Carl Jacobson watching October 2018
I love these trees with their "off-center" branches !!!
It looks really nice on the tree, you did a great job with the idea and the turning.
Merry Christmas to you and your family !!!
Take care,
Morgan
Thanks Morgan -- I hope you try some! I don't remember where I first got the idea, but I certainly got it from another turner -- I'd give them credit if I could remember who it was. After posting this, I saw that Allan Stratton has a video showing almost exactly the same little trees, but I had never seen that before.
BTW: I have no idea why some comments get labeled as "spam" -- not by me. Something facebook does, I guess.
Such a great idea & nicely demonstrated!
getting inspiration for the Christmas tree challenge. This will be my first year entering. thank you.
HA! I made mine to be a how-to video. I think most are a lot shorter, more fun, and more "how-I-did-it" than "how-to-do-it" Best wishes, Brad
Beautiful. Thank you for sharing your skills.
Thanks for sharing, beautiful Piece. Merry Christmas to you and your family. I’m a new turner, this is inspiring
Nice looking design Brad, your explanation of the process and videography was great. Merry Christmas to you and yours.
Fantastic work, beautiful.
Excellent work. Excellent video!
Un adorno muy bonito, y la idea de utilizar el rotulador para dar mas vida al arbol navideño es magnifica.
Awesome video Brad.
Ideal Woods to use: Soft, lightweight and light colored hardwoods will probably work best: Basswood, Boxelder, White Birch, soft Maples (Big Leaf-, Silver-, or Red Maple), and varouus Poplars (Aspen, Cottonwood, etc...). Softwood species are a little more difficult to cut clean, and might chip more, but Pine, Fir or Spruce are readily available for cheap (or free!), and can work well, too -- they are usually lighter in weight, which is good for hanging on trees. Another option is to paint the conical tree shape before you do the off-center turning, then cut through the paint to reveal the wood underneath, and other variations, too. Have fun and experiment.
Great design!
Really enjoyed your video and your style of presentation.
Very well done. Thank you.
Those turned out great super simple to. I also think your video skills are just fine I didn't miss anything the angle was right and all is well. Great video!
Good video, Brad! Nicely done!
Great video. Please create more videos. You are a good teacher.
Gee -- Thanks! I have no camera at the moment, but as soon as I get a new one, I plan to make more turning videos.
Terrific! Thanks so much for sharing your video.....
Thanks -- um, Kay? I'd love to make more vid's, but I don't have a working camera at the moment!
Great job Brad. Still laughing about that "outstanding in my feild" joke.
No -- Out standing in my field -- not outstanding ! ;~)
Thanks for your kind words !
Great vid learned alot thank you
One thing I like about this turning is that you don't seem to need a chuck to do it.
If using a spindle or detail gouge: you don't want to lever the tool into the cut, as it is more likely to skid to the side. It works best to hold the gouge completely over on its side, like this "(" or this ")", and stab the wood directly toward center, along a radius of the wood.
Brad Vietje
Brad Vietje
Hi Brad,, thanks for your video I copied what you did for my very first turn!!!
It came out great thanks to you!! But I had one problem,, the red sharp I used bled throughout
The pours of the wood and messed up the whole piece!! Any idea what I can use to get the color out??
Thanks, Steve
What size block did you start out with?
great video.
I am going to batch out 20 of them for my nieces and nephew's to decorate at thanksgiving what size blanks would you suggest?
Justin: I usually use blanks about 3 x 3 x 6. I have used Hemlock (as shown), but the best woods are lightweight, light-colored, fine grained hardwoods, like White Birch, Boxelder, Aspen, Cottonwood, etc... Softwoods will work, too, but they're a little tougher to cut cleanly.
I found that many colored markers were thinner, and caused more color bleeding than I was getting with my older markers.
I'm now making them in batches, spraying them with Krylon fixative or shellac (to help prevent the colors bleeding into the end grain), then painting the grooves in various colors (no need to be that careful), before returning them to the lathe for the finish pass(es) to clean up all the excess paint. Base and tip (ball shown) are turned last.
For final decoration, little squeeze bottles of "puff paint" or fabric decorations can be used.
Have fun,
Brad
great video mate. I love this Christmas Tree. have to try this one.
Nick Zammeti watching October 2018
what are the measurements, etc?
bravissimo
NICE JOB WELL DONE
how did you find the centre point of that irregular shape
Centers: When starting, I just estimated the center of a chunk that was split out of an old 6" x 8" Hemlock beam -- just looking for the largest circle I could turn out of it while avoiding cracks or knots. No rulers, and not even diagonal lines, just eyeball. This is a pretty country bumpkin answer, but think along the lines of turning a piece of scrap wood found at a construction site -- or maybe a stump ;~) -- eyeball is close enough. (You can tell I don't make fine furniture!)
If you are starting with square stock, just draw your diagonal lines if you want to get very close to the center and waste the smallest amount of wood.
Then, after the basic tree (cone) shape is formed, I leave the center at the top of the tree alone (headstock end), and offset the center at the base of the tree by a "small amount" -- somewhere around 1/8" or perhaps 4 mm. No measuring anywhere in the project. My tail center creates a little ring I use as a guide, but I prefer to offset the tail center a little less than that distance to get longer arcs that overlap better.
I recommend a little experimentation on scrap wood with a cylinder turned smooth and round, trying different amounts of offset to find what works best for you. Small offset = long cuts that go more than 1/2 way 'round, while larger offset makes shorter cuts.
Have fun!
Cut e little trees. Thanks for the video.
Watching in 2019, Id like to see more info about your tool sharpening.
Z
I like you :-)
👍
Watching October 2018
nice ghost turning. or off set turning. if people u tub land to afraid do this way. use hand v carve tool do buy hand. if got lath why not try it.
Nni