Turning A Weed Pot
Turning A Weed Pot. Weed pots are good projects which can be very simple craft items or very sophisticated and elegant. They are also very good projects for the novice turner which use a number of tool techniques to turn continuous curves in the pieces.
Weed pots also are good projects for those pieces of wood which aren’t suitable for bowls or other forms, but have significant grain or spalting patterns. They are popular gift items and are used to decorate areas with a wisp of dried flowers in the top. Here are the steps that I use in making a weed pot at my lathe.
First, I chuck a billet between a spur drive center and my live center.
I use a roughing gouge to get the piece round.
I use a parting tool to form the tenon for my mechanical chuck. You
can also use a faceplate if you don't have a chuck. Just flatten off the
end so that the faceplate is flat against the bottom.
Before I take the piece from between the centers, I rough out a shape.
This allows me to really hog off the wood being very agressive with the
tools. After you fasten the piece in the chuck or with the faceplate, you
can't be as agressive as you can between centers.
I reverse the piece into my chuck and bring up the tail stock for
support. I can refine the shape a little and prepare to turn the top
of the piece.
I make the depression in the top of the weed pot concave and get
ready to drill the hole in the pot.
I use a 3/8" drill bit with a #2 Morse taper. I got this from a
mail order machinist catalog called MSC in New Jersey (see the
Sources page). The MT drill
bits are normal items and I am sure that they are available across
the planet from machinists. After I drill the hole, I use a small
1/4" gouge to clean up the hole and taper the piece out to the side.
I bring up the tail stock to steady the piece using a live center and
refine the shape with a 1/2" spindle gouge. This is a great place to
refine you eye for curves. The serpentine shape is a good example of
the turner learning to recognize grain changing and getting rid of
flats on their pieces.
Finally, I sand the piece using cloth backed abrasives from the
Sanding Catalog people. I start with 150 and proceed 180, 240, 400.
I usually end with an abrasive pad to burnish the wood to a sheen.
I reverse turn the piece on the #2 MT drill bit that I used above
to drill the hole. It is a very convenient way and I don't have to
turn a temporary chuck for this. I can get to the bottom of the
piece except for a tiny little bit that I have to cut off manually.
Here I am down to the last little bit. I sand the bottom smooth and
get ready to dismount the piece. It comes right off the drill bit.
These are some of the shapes that I turn. I like the serpentine shape
that resembles a genie bottle. (I have a thing for Barbara Eden, I guess!)
Please turn a few of these pots and practice some of the tool techniques.
They make very nice gifts and nice decortive items from pieces of wood
that aren't really suitable for a bowl or hollow form.
I usually finish with lacquer and wax, but oil finish could be used depending on the finish you prefer. I have found that this is a very popular decorative item in my family and friends. It allows me to make an easy project when I don’t have a lot of shop time. If I am away from the lathe for a week or two, it is a good project to get the juices flowing again.
There are many shapes that you can use. This shape is one that I like, but you can use about any. I have seen Al Basham and Rodger Jacobs use old fence rail, leaving the weathered section exposed. I have seen exotic burls made into weed pots and they have been very attractive. Try one at your lathe.
Tools: Roughing Gouge, ¼" Parting tool, ½" spindle gouge, 3/8" #2 MT drill bit (from MSC).
Published originally in the newsletter of the Triangle Woodturners of North Carolina, March 1997. Publication or use of this article is prohibited except with permission of the author.