Richard Raffan turning dry jarrah burl

[@JadenRoseGuitars]

Hello Richard, I am a guitar maker that has taken up wood turning, I just want you to know that your videos have been extremely helpful for me and demystified turning with your no nonsense approach and 'warts and all' presentation. I have a long way to go and I've found turning quite a challenge but wouldn't be where I am without your videos, I still cant use a skew chisel but I'm working on it ! I must have watched your 'catch' video at least 8 times so far. many thanks for taking the time to do these videos, even though I'm sure you don't need to. Jaden.

[@bradbyers6865]

Thanks for actually turning a bowl that is not as thin as a China plate. This burl expresses itself best as a substantial piece. Pieces like this remind me of artifacts excavated from some ancient dig site. Well done, Sir.

[@sethwarner2540]

It never ceases to amaze me that you, sir seem able to do whatever you please with those tools, without a single (well HARDLY EVER), catch! Me; I must approach the wood with trembling trepidation, just to knock the corners off a spindle!

[@craigpennifold3498]

Great form and finish that takes advantage of the beautiful piece of Jarrah Burl. Good to see a master craftsman demonstrating good technique. Thanks for sharing Richard.

[@davidcochran9322]

Wonderful shape that suits the wood beautifully. Thanks for your superb videos in 2023 - Seasons Greetings with Best Wishes for 2024

[@garylawrence7547]

That wood reminds me of Angelique wood. Very hard.

[@colinball1960]

Another beautiful work of art Richard. You do seem to have some lovely rich pieces of wood in Australia and blowing out the dust before oiling is a wonderful tip for us newer turners. love watching you turn and teaching us👍

[@barryhaugen7651]

Love watching you work. I don't understand why you don't have more subscribers.

[@stevenhansen8641]

Very nice Richard. Congratulations on 4 million views. I really appreciate your time and effort.

[@glencrandall7051]

I agree. Heavier designs can work. This one certainly does. Thank you for sharing. Here is wishing you a happy and prosperous New Year. May 2024 be good to you and yours.🙂🙂

[@jeanlong4285]

Absolutely beautiful bowl. The colors in that wood is wonderful. I kind of like the heavier bowl. Great work Richard.

[@MarklTucson]

So many things with this. First, that Jarrah burl is just plain beautiful and the finish really brings out the features. The shape of the bowl is quite interesting and opens up a whole different dimension of possible shapes and designs for future projects. As always, your videos are enjoyable to watch. Have a happy new year and looking forward to your future videos in the new year.

[@jackthompson5092]

Very beautiful bowl Richard.

[@jpncompany6275]

I am a wood guy/serious turner and just love the aussie burls although they are quite expensive in the USA. The figure is beautiful to me.

[@copperowlwoodturning5929]

Beautiful bowl, Richard. 😊😊

[@timofeyzhukov-khovanskiy9173]

Beautiful bowl Richard!

[@henniebasson515]

I love turning heavy, dark, wood to "feel" heavy. Imagine this piece being only 3 mm thick! Heavy wood should feel heavy, light wood should feel light. (Well- most of the time.) I love this bowl. Kind regards.

[@peteranthonyboland750]

Richard that is just beautiful, you always make it look so easy and thank you for sharing it.Wishing you a very Happy New year 👏😉

[@ianbedwell4871]

Really like the shape and I also like heavy looking wood to have some substance. I like turning natural edge motor and pestle sets from dark wood ( more show than functional). Thanks for another great video

[@johnnyb95678]

Another amazing work of art. Thank you!

[@hlcorick]

Wow thanks Richard for sharing with us and teaching.

[@Konst-j9j]

Спасибо, Ричард. Потрясающе!!!

[@SilverBack.]

Really Nice bowl Richard. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

[@ChessTurner]

Perfect job, thank you so much for great video

[@danielspain7231]

Great video, although I’d have gone for 1/2” wall thickness it would still be heavy and substantial enough to feel heavy in the hand…merry Christmas and a happy new year

[@lucyb15]

really beautiful. you are a master. (although I preferred the chocolate stage before the last finish was applied.)

[@cobberpete1]

I have a few Jarrah pieces. I can't say it is my favourite wood. A lot of sharpening and lots of dust.

[@downsouthwoodturning]

Nice work sir

[@markdurant9576]

Hi Richard that’s a coincidence I recently bought one of your Jarrrah burr bowls recently from eBay.

[@amber-tb6se]

Jarrah Burl bowl kzbin.infoXn-7olHsZ7Q?si=yZUYZmiYjlsdxyxV

[@cuddysark1]

Richard I have a spindle gouge but the end of mine looks like a roughing gouge. Do you have a video on how you ground yours? Still admire your work.

[@RichardRaffanwoodturning]

This shows how to develop a fingernail grind: kzbin.info/www/bejne/bZ-rmH1rlquCqMU Basically, you hold the tool in its side and bring both corners or wings of a gouge to the grinding wheel. Then swing the handle back to grind flats on the gouge wings. Grind away the flats and you have a fingernail gouge.

[@nathanaeverson]

Beautiful bowl! With a chunkier or wider rim bowl such as this, how do you determine the thickness of the bottom or base? Just by feel, or is there a rule of thumb?

[@RichardRaffanwoodturning]

It's almost entirely feel and experience these days as I've made so many over the past 40 years. The bottom thickness tends to be at least 20mm (3/4-in.) thick.

[@josephpotterf9459]

Thanks Richard really cool wood. Very well done. What kind of bird is calling at the end of video?

[@jorisdemoel3821]

That is indeed a dusty burl. A bit surprised you didn't turn on the suction while turning! I don't think turning that burl thin would have worked anyway, unless epoxy was injected, which rather defeats the purpose. Though it might contrast well. I like this 'rugged' heavy form, reminds me of some Norse soapstone vessels I've seen. Would you advise vacuuming a piece like this before blowing? Thanks for another interesting and instructive video.

[@RichardRaffanwoodturning]

These burls have a nasty habit of flying apart when turned thin. There's the occasional suck, but blowing seems to be a lot faster ans more effecient. I went through my coloured epoxy phase in 1984: it was a lot of extra work with no financial gain so I gave that up.

[@RTK1948]

I really like your use of the asymmetrical spindle gauge in roughing out a form such as this. What advantages do you see in using this spindle gouge rather than a swept-back half inch bowl gouge? Over 4 million views - now that’s an achievement to be celebrated! On to 5 million.

[@RichardRaffanwoodturning]

You don’t need the strength of a bowl gouge working close to the rest, so using a less expensive tool makes sense, at least to me. But chiefly I find shavings get away faster from a spindle gouge - wide and thick shavings can jam in a deep flute when there’s a hand over the flute deflecting shavings. I developed the asymmetric grinds In the early 1970s, removing the left corner on bowl gouges that were then ground straight across so there was no corner to catch when hollowing. Then I discovered that I could use that left wing for pull cuts and remove waste far more efficiently than using the standard push cuts. That led to me using 1-in shallow gouges to turn bowls for a year or so - I’d purchased these from an army surplus store for £1 each whereas D/F bowl gouges cost £5. I was on a very tight budget at the time.

[@jimstottlemyer9670]

Hi Richard, Is that a Glaser screw chuck? If it is, they are designed so that the screw length can be adjusted without use of a plywood disc. Just screw the faceplate out until the screw projects the length that you want. The difference in thread pitch between the screw and faceplate will prevent any possiblity of it loosening during use. I have used this chuck for many years and really enjoy this feature. Thanks for your great videos.

[@RichardRaffanwoodturning]

This is a 3-in-1 Vicmarc Screw Chuck which is a steel version of the Glaser screw chuck Jerry Glaser gave me in 1983. The simplest and quickest way to adjust the screw length on both is with spacers which is what Jerry used to do. A great advantage is that if the blank spins on the screw it's simple to increaes the length of the screw by removing a spacer.

[@kenvasko2285]

I'm glad you pointed out bowls don't have to be thin-walled. Many turners I know seem to be obsessed with thin walls. I like both! Is the bottom round or did you add a flat?

[@RichardRaffanwoodturning]

The base is slightly dimpled so the bowl sits on a soft rim without wobbling.

[@garyblankenship104]

Did your decision to go with thick walls have anything to do with the fact that it was a burl and might not have had as much integrity to sustain a thinner wall?

[@RichardRaffanwoodturning]

Only in part. I've successfully completed large bowls with 10mm walls using similar material, and I've also had them fly apart under the centrifugal force spinning them a fraction too fast when sanding and finishing so I didn't make too many on economic grounds as much as anything. Thicker bowls like this always sold well to foreign tourists in Sydney and Canberra (where I sold most of my bowls), I'm sure because thick bowls were less likely to be broken by baggage handlers on the way home. I find thicker bowls like this are more of a challenge to get right than something thin where weight distribution and volume are less of an issue.