Once again our organization has had the privilege to observe and interact with a distinguished woodturner - probably the world's premier one and best known. David Ellsworth has been a pioneer in the woodturning field and he has popularized his innovations such as his deep-fluted bowl gouge, his sharpening jig and his various hollowing gouges. He is a founding member of AAW. He has traveled and taught extensively and many of his works are included in noted museums and private collections both here and abroad.

David's demonstration began with the development of an open bowl using a large half-round maple log that was quite green. It is of note that this entire turning was done with his deep-fluted gouge (with the exception of a small portion of the bottom). Positioning the piece was discussed to determine bowl edges. The log was positioned between the head stock and the tail stock for maximum stability. Positioning of the hands, arms, shoulders and lower body was discussed and comfort was stressed in order to avoid fatigue and even long-term orthopedic consequences of long hours in out-of-balance positions. The deep-fluted bowl gouge "Signature Gouge" was discussed with the various flute and tip positions to achieve various type cuts. After partial rounding, the foot was flattened and a large face plate applied. David prefers a face plate especially when working with green wood. The tail stock was still employed for support. A foot was turned on the face plate side of the piece. Various cuts such as roughing, slicing and shearing were discussed - again, using only the single deep-fluted gouge. David then discussed his sharpening jig showing the various dimensions in conjunction with the Wolverine (one way) bar.

Continuing with the open bowl - the tail stock was removed and the bark side was rough cut away to begin the interior of the bowl. The gouge was positioned at the work center. Roughing was done from the outer to the center locations. The tip and the right side of the gouge were used. Repeated sharpening of the gouge was done. The interior of the bowl was completed using the tip and left side of the gouge as a back cut.

Again, the cut was from the outer to the center areas. By using this technique the entire inner surface of the bowl was dressed. The face plate used was large enough so that the screws were not involved in the finished bowl design - they were outside and eventually turned away. A jam chuck was then used - foam rubber was used to protect the bowl from the chuck. A ball bearing tail stock was used with a short center pin. The bottom of the bowl was then shaped with the cutting away of the face plate screw holes. David stressed that heavy face plates are desirable so that the mass of the head stock can be transferred to the face plate and then to the work piece. This reduces vibration and increases stability. Unevenness of the final shape was corrected using a shearing cut at about 100 RPM. Sanding is still needed but to a lesser degree. Final finishing of the foot was with a convex bevel spindle gouge that gave a smooth cut with no grinder marks that would show up when the final finish was applied - oops - hole in bottom!

After lunch David demonstrated and discussed the formation of a hollow form. A cross-section of a green maple log was used. Both head and tail stocks were employed to support the piece during initial forming with the grain horizontal. Once rounded at both ends, the piece was turned with the grain being vertical. The right side was then flattened and a face plate attached. As with the open bowl, the face plate used was large enough so that the screws used would be outside the final form and the holes thus turned away. The deep fluted gouge was used for the entire initial sphere formation. David stressed that it is essential to have your head directly above the tool tip so that you can observe the bevel. Sharpening is critical, especially after bark removal.

A pencil line was then drawn around the center of the sphere with the lathe running. Then the sphere was turned 90 degrees and the tail stock placed on the pencil line. Centering the form was then done including the pith location. The face plate screws used were hardened sheet metal screws. David used one inch lengths which extend 5/8" into the work piece. The right end was then made round. The right side was then formed prior to placing the hole for hollowing. It was stressed that "trash" included in knot holes or bark inclusions can quickly dull the gouge. The bowl surface is finished using the gouge to shear scrape. Then soft sanding is used with 220 and 320 grit paper. The tail stock was then removed and the bowl hollowed using the 1/4" square tip - round nosed hollowing gouge designed by David. Both straight and bent tools were used. The body is positioned so that the legs and knees support the efforts. The interior cuts are performed in a stepwise fashion from the opening inward. The bent tool is used for wall completion. Shavings are repeatedly removed manually and with the air hose. Shaving removal is more time-consuming than the actual cutting but very necessary to prevent jamming of the tools. A 3/16" rod is formed into a circle to act as a caliper to measure wall thickness. Lines are drawn on the tool handle to show tip orientation. An oil finish is applied to the outside of the vessel while hollowing to protect the outer surface from staining or marking from finger prints. The vessel was then jam chucked and the bottom completed. No holes this time! The entire tape of this demonstration is available and is an excellent review of David's work.

--Written by Bob Gunther

P.S. Should anyone be interested in David's jig or hollowing tools his address is:

David Ellsworth
1378 Cobbler Road
Quakertown, PA 18957

David's Web Site