Finishing Bowl Bottoms on a Lathe

Sign in
Duration: 5:36

George Vondriska teaches you about the benefits of using a Modern Longworth Chuck System to finish the bottom of a bowl that you are turning on a woodworking lathe. The jaws help to better grip the bowl with a snug fit so that you can more easily craft the bottom of the bowl and get rid of that ugly tenon.

Modern Longworth Chuck System provided by Crafts Supplies USA. For more information, visit www.woodturnerscatalog.com.

Comments
  • (will not be published)

7 Responses to “Finishing Bowl Bottoms on a Lathe”

    • Customer Service

      Hello Al,

      Here’s what the experts had to say about your question:

      There are a few different approaches:
      – Jam chuck. This approach uses a friction fit to hold the bowl while you work on the bottom. It’s a bit fussy at first, but once you get the hang of it, you can make a custom jam chuck for a bowl pretty quickly.- Vacuum chuck. This is a great way to hold bowls solidly while you work on the bottom. Downside is that they do not work well on porous woods, or if there are any cracks near the bottom of the bowl.- Donut chuck. This is a great way to hold bowls, and you can make one yourself for very little money or buy one that is commercially made.\- Turn the bottom to finished surface before flipping. This can be done if you are turning dry wood and using a mortise for your final chuck hold rather than a tenon.

      Please let us know if you have any further questions

      Sincerely,
      Sarah
      Wood Workers Guild of America Video Membership

      Reply
    • WWGOA Team

      Hi Chris, It’s difficult to see from the picture which way the growth rings are pointed. On bowls I like to have the growth rings up, such that the rings look like a smile.

      Reply
      • Chris Butler

        Hi, thanks for the reply. If the rings are shaped in the smile (like this sample) is the bowl bottom up or down?

        Reply
        • George Vondriska

          Sorry for the slow response. I didn’t see your second question until today. The bowl in the picture above is sitting right side up, bottom down, as it’s shown.

          Reply
  1. Guest

    In the attached picture, would you make the top of the picture the bottom of the bowl?

    Reply
Get exclusive premium content! Sign up for a membership now!