I fought the Elm....

[DaveO]

And this time I won:eusa_danc:eusa_danc. I got a few pieces of American Elm from Jeff last year. I tried to turn the first piece and almost gave up bowl turning. The interlocking grain and overall hardness of the wood made turning it green feel like it was petrified:BangHead::BangHead:.

Well today I had the urge to create and only a little time after going to the lake with the family and dinner, so I decided to give another hunk of the Elm a spin.
The gods of wood turning must have been smiling down at me, and I turned the 7" dia. 4" thick blank into a successful soup holding bowl.
This is the thinnest I have turned a bowl to date at a little less than a 1/4" wall thickness. It's finished with BLO, burnished on the lathe, and then a healthy coat of paste wax.

Thanks for looking, comments always appreciated.
Dave

 

[clowman]

I have only 1 comment.... That's excellent Dave! I love it.

 

[Robert Arrowood]

YOU GO DAVE!!! Man thats a beautiful bowl.:icon_thum

 

[jeff...]

Dave, I'm glad you got some of that American Elm turned into a very nice bowl. I really like that butterfly grain, pretty cool.

I know that's some tough stuff to cut, you must have had a steady hand, light touch and very sharp tools today.

 

[DaveO]

I really like that butterfly grain, pretty cool.

I never heard that term before, but you're right there are some areas where the grain of the wood looks like a butterfly. Pretty cool, I'll have to remember that :icon_thum
Dave

 

[Big Mike]

Looks pretty good, Dave. Elm is an interesting wood to turn. If you have a choice the way you orient the blank has a lot to do with how the grain will be displayed. Nice finish on this bowl!:icon_thum

 

[woodArtz]

Very nice bowl Dave. Great job on the finish! :eusa_clap:eusa_clap:eusa_clap

 

[FredP]

kewl bowl dave!
i havent ever turned elm. wonder what a pen would look like otta that?

fred p

 

[skeeter]

Great looking bowl and some interesting grain patterns.

 

[NZAPP1]

:icon_thum:icon_thum:icon_thum Great work Dave :eusa_clap I have a lage piece of that Elm that is waiting to be turned. That is if I can find it once it is delivered to the new shop:BangHead::BangHead::eusa_booh

 

[cskipper]

You certainly did win! That's beautiful:eusa_clap

 

[McRabbet]

Pretty bowl, Dave -- and big enough to hold some nice peaches when they ripen next month...

 

[Dusty Sawyer]

Dave - Sweet work my friend. You really might want to consider putting up that pen habit and turn bowls instead. Elm is pretty hard to find isn't it? I remember as a kid watching the tree guys take down a huge Elm from our front yard that had been infected with the Dutch Elm Disease.

Is there another variety that still grows?

David

 

[toolman]

Beautiful bowl Dave. :eusa_clap:eusa_clap:eusa_clap:eusa_clap :eusa_danc:eusa_danc:eusa_danc:eusa_danc :icon_thum:icon_thum:icon_thum Pens I can do, bowls well I plan too try one. One day :eusa_booh