# Pierced vase



## firehawkmph (Apr 26, 2008)

I just finished this yesterday. It is made of maple, 6" tall x 4"diam. There is a little story behind this. In the past I have stated here that I didn't have good luck with the Easywood carbide tools I bought. Last November, I went to the Hartville Tool show with the intent of returning them. Craig Jackson, owner of Easywood tools was demoing there. I waited till he wasn't busy and pulled him aside to talk to him privately. After explaining I wasn't getting good results, he told me he would be happy to refund all my money if that's what I wanted. But he asked me if he could show me some of his cutting techniques to make sure I was using the tools right. After showing me various ways to achieve different cuts, I decided to keep the tools. He gave me a couple of extra cutters to use for my finish cuts only, which is part of the trick of getting nice finish cuts with these tools. I just want to let you all know what a perfect gentleman he was and showed a genuine concern that I was happy with his tools. He thanked me for talking to him in private and not raising a stink and finished off by saying that if after using the tools at home I still wasn't satisfied, he would gladly take them back, no questions asked. You really can't ask for any more than that. 
Mike Hawkins


----------



## Bill Wyko (Feb 25, 2011)

Now THAT is beautiful


----------



## Dominick (May 2, 2011)

Hey mike that came out awesome. Something different than the norm.


----------



## firehawkmph (Apr 26, 2008)

Further explanation on the vase:
The first pic shows the inside hollowed out with the easywood round roughing tool. That pic is before any sanding. The outside was shaped with conventional tools. I carved out the pattern with a dremel tool with the flexible cable and small handpiece. I had a diamond cone-shaped burr from woodcraft that worked pretty well. After I got done sanding, I used a transtint waterbased amber dye to give the vase a little color. After letting the dye dry overnight, I sprayed three coats of varnish for a finish. My wife will probably put a large candle inside.
Mike Hawkins


----------



## tcleve4911 (Dec 16, 2006)

Beautiful work, Mike.
I'm glad to hear such good things about EZW and Craig.
That tool has changed my entire turning curve.
I still use mine ....a lot.
I bought a separate set of cutters for the finished pass.
I still need lots of practice because I still sand a lot.
Are the pics showing the finish you're getting with the final pass?
How much sanding and what grit do you start with?

Oh yeah...how'd you do the piercing? Awesome.....you are just awesome....

What did Craig show you specifically?

sorry about all the ????? but I get stoked when I see your great stuff and know that I'm using the same tools.

Tom


----------



## tcleve4911 (Dec 16, 2006)

sorry I was posting at the same time...........:yes:


----------



## firehawkmph (Apr 26, 2008)

tcleve4911 said:


> sorry I was posting at the same time...........:yes:


No problem TC.
I started sanding at 240 grit. Basically Craig showed me how to take very light, slow, passes when doing the finish cuts, besides switching to the spare cutter to insure a sharp edge. Also, there are times when you would think you would want to use a round cutter, say on the outside of a piece. In some cases, the square cutter with the slight radius does a nicer job. I still consider the EW tools somewhat of a specialty tool for my use. I still plan on using my conventional tools. I plan on using the EW tools for mostly hollowing.
Mike Hawkins


----------



## bigcouger (Jan 4, 2012)

THAT is JUST GORGUS beautiful thanks For sharing that is what I want to learn one day :thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:


----------



## robert421960 (Dec 9, 2010)

that is just some kind of awesome:yes:


----------



## Hwood (Oct 21, 2011)

Lots of time well spent there..My girls got a peak at it and 'love it'


----------



## Kenbo (Sep 16, 2008)

Just incredible work once again Mike. I don't think that I've ever seen you do a pierced piece before. Is this your first? Either way, it's gorgeous.
Great work.


----------



## boxerman (Oct 11, 2011)

Very nice vase.:thumbsup::thumbsup:


----------



## mickit (Oct 5, 2009)

Mike, that's just too cool! The pattern and spacing of the piercings give the vase a really organic look. P'raps if I show this to the budget committee some new tools will be in the next quarterly statement.


----------



## firehawkmph (Apr 26, 2008)

Kenbo said:


> Just incredible work once again Mike. I don't think that I've ever seen you do a pierced piece before. Is this your first? Either way, it's gorgeous.
> Great work.


First one Ken.
We have a couple of guys in the turning club that specialize in these type of turnings. Something I always wanted to try. About 4 hours with a drill and dremel, about 4 hours tearing sandpaper into 3/16" strips and sanding the edges of each of the holes to break the sharp edge. The key to the whole thing was the diamond burr. They cost about $12-15 each at woodcraft. I had a cheaper set I tried, they didn't work worth a darn.
Mike


----------



## jlord (Feb 1, 2010)

Looks Great Mike. Did you do the piercing while still mounted on the lathe? What do you use for the pattern?


----------



## pvechart (Dec 14, 2011)

Very nice Mike... I may have to try something like that... this is sure the place to get inspired.

I used to do a lot of scrollsawing and one way I cleaned up the small piercings was to use small needle files. They come in a lot of different shapes and took care of all the rough edges... no cutting sand paper!


----------



## firehawkmph (Apr 26, 2008)

jlord said:


> Looks Great Mike. Did you do the piercing while still mounted on the lathe? What do you use for the pattern?


James,
I sat in my easy chair one evening and drew out the pattern and shaded in the areas to be removed just to see what it would look like. Then I remounted it in the chuck and used an allen head bolt to lock the chuck from turning and sat on a high-backed barstool and worked on a small section, then turned it a bit. I drilled a hole in each section and then went at it with the dremel. Took about 4 hours to grind them all out. Light touch was the way to go about it. 
Mike


----------



## Jeff4woodturning (Feb 1, 2009)

Very nice piece Mike, Great design. hope to see more of your Pierced Work,


----------



## robbiethewood (Jan 15, 2012)

that's a real nice piece of work:thumbsup:


----------

