Chris Stott became a professional woodturner in 1982. For the next ten years, helped by his wife, Cathy, he made his living selling items at craft fairs and shows. Following this period, teaching and demonstrating took over as the major part of his work. He produced his first video in 1992, "A Lesson with Chris Stott - Turning Boxes". This gained almost immediate success. Since then he has produced nine more instructional videos in the series.

Chris is an avid demonstrator. He has participated in international seminars on numerous occasions in England, Ireland, Sweden, Germany and the U.S. Chris has visited the U.S. every year since 1994. Part of his most recent visit this year was a very enjoyable, impromptu demonstration at the Southern States Symposium in Gainesville, GA. It was one of over thirty demonstrations that Chris will do during his 2004 visit to the U.S.

As a writer, Chris has many varied articles, including machinery reviews and turning projects published in major magazines. He has published a very informative book, Turning Boxes - 50 Designs, that can be very helpful to any turner interested in this art form.

Chris is a member of the Association of Woodturners of Great Britain, the American Association of Woodturners, and is on the register of Professional Turners with the Worshipful Company of Turners.

Because of his success Chris is no longer required to produce large numbers of pieces. He can now concentrate more on the design aspect of his work. He can experiment with new techniques, especially in the use of color and texture to emphasize grain patterns in the wood. His work has been featured in several prestigious exhibitions including Rufford Crafts Centre, Bonham's Decorative Art Today and A Celebration of Craftsmanship in Cheltenham. Some of his work is displayed at the Dansel Gallery in Abbotsbury, Dorset and other examples are included in many private collections.

Morning Session:

Chris's demonstration began with a discussion of spindle turning. He placed a 2 x 2 x 10 piece between centers. A roughing gouge was used to produce a cylinder. He then showed the three shapes that can be formed: a flat, a bump (bead) and a hollow (cove). You should be able to produce a surface on these three forms that does not require sanding. Sanding will only blunt the details of the spindle. Chris produced the smooth surface with the skew. It should be kept in mind to always proceed downhill when turning spindle work. A longer curve was then formed with the roughing gouge. A spindle gouge ground at 45 degrees was then used to complete the details on the piece. Any ridges left on bumps can be removed with a parting tool.

Next, the weed pot was discussed. This is a piece you can practice on to gain control. It is essentially a series of S-curves. It can also teach you proportions and the experience gained here can then be transferred to larger pieces. A cylinder was formed between centers on a 1 x 1 x 10 piece with a skew. A cone, the shape of a #2 Morse taper, was formed on the tailstock end and this was then placed into the headstock as you would a Morse taper. By doing this you cut down on the pressure from the ends and eliminate bow formation of the piece. The other end was supported by the live center. The piece was further defined with the skew at a 30-degree angle to the axis. A smaller tool rest was then used and a smaller skew to form a captive ring in the center of the piece. Further details were then formed with the smaller skew. A good rule pertaining to the skew is practice, practice, practice!

Boxes: Chris then placed a 2½ x 2½ x 6 piece between centers. It was rounded into a cylinder with the large roughing gouge. A right angle spigot was then turned on the tailstock end, reversed and placed in the chuck. A second spigot was then turned about 2 inches from the headstock. The distal part of the piece was then parted off with a narrow parting tool. The groove used for parting must be wider than the thickness of the parting tool. The portion remaining in the headstock will be the entire box. The lid of the box was parted off. The body of the box was hollowed and the lid placed on the box. This very rapidly completed the simplest form of a lidded box. Chris can turn one in less than a minute!

The tailstock end of the above piece was then placed in the chuck, then formed with a gentle curve leading up to the center. This gave the lid a raised center. A spigot was formed and the lid completed. The bottom portion of the box was shaped. The lid was then parted off (usually it would be finished prior to parting off) and the bottom hollowed. First a cone was formed in the center and a hole drilled with the gouge. Then the remainder was hollowed. A square-ended scraper was used to form the shoulder inside the box to accept the lid. A tight fit was not strived for because the lid and the box would move differently. A round-ended side-cutting scraper was used to partially hollow the box. The outside of the box was completed forming a continuous curve to the bottom. It would then be finished and parted off. This produced a more pleasant appearing box due to the curves. More exotic woods could be used to achieve more dramatic results.

A finial box was then made. A square was placed in the chuck (Chris suggests using stock about 2- 3 inches thick for boxes anything much smaller is difficult to work with and there is too much movement with larger pieces). This was rounded on the tailstock end and reversed and placed in the chuck. The tailstock end was then rounded toward the headstock. A spigot was made about 1½ from the headstock end. The tailstock end was then turned into the finial shape. A spindle gouge with a longer bevel was then used to detail the finial. In general, the smaller the diameter of the pieces being turned the greater the lathe speed. Note: Remember that all the required shapes you need are in the wood you just need to let them out. The finial top was then sanded with 400 grit. Prior to sanding the lid was partially parted off. The finial was completed using clear lacquer and buffed with a paper towel. [Chris does not use cloths in his shop for safety reasons.] It was then waxed with paste wax and parted off through the previously started slot. The bottom of the box was hollowed using scrapers. After sharpening his scraper Chris polished the edge to remove the burr. A ledge was formed to accept the finial lid. The undercut of the box was formed with the round-end side-cutting scraper. The outside of the box was further defined. It was partially parted off and finished as was done to the lid. It was then completely parted off. The undersurface of the lid was sanded and finished.

Afternoon Session:

Chris began the afternoon session using a cube of curly maple which was 3 x 3 x 3. This was placed between centers and rounded off with the large roughing gouge. A spigot was turned on each end and a parting tool used to form a slot. It was then placed in a chuck. Parting was then completed. The piece in the chuck was given a curved face and the center opened up with a round nosed scraper. This was then sanded both inside and outside, lacquered and waxed. It was then removed from the chuck. The other end of the piece was then placed in the chuck. The opening of the first piece (lid) was measured and the same diameter turned on the piece in the chuck. The bottom was then hollowed, sanded and finished. A spigot was then formed on the bottom (same side as the opening). The top was then placed on the bottom to form the box. The box was placed offset between centers so that the midline ran through the center of the box. The two halves of the box were marked in case the pieces moved while turning. It was then rounded (at this point a new bottom had to be made because the initial one was cut into when rounding). The old top and new bottom were pressed together, placed between centers and the top completed as started earlier. The top portion was sanded being careful not to hit your hand on the off-center edges. It was then finished and waxed. The piece was then removed from between centers and the bottom placed in the chuck. The rounding of the top was completed, sanded, lacquered and waxed. The top was removed. A jam chuck was made for the bottom and these were attached and again offset between centers. The bottom was then formed as was done earlier to the top and then finished. The base of the bottom was defined and the nub removed. The top was then fitted to the bottom. This completed the fourth box in the demonstration.

Next the picture frame inlay box was made. A 3 x 3 x 4 block was used. It was placed in the chuck, the end rounded and a spigot formed. The piece was reversed and the square end rounded to form a cylinder. The top of the box was formed and an opening made with a ridge to accept the insert. The lid piece was then parted off. The insert was then placed in the chuck (cocobolo) and a spigot turned to fit the opening in the lid piece. The insert was glued into the lid opening with the grains going in the same direction. The inside of the top (lid) was then hollowed using the previously made opening as the start. The lid and the opening were then sanded and finished. The cocobolo was then parted off leaving a thin slice on top of the lid.

The bottom section of the box was then placed in the chuck and turned to accept the lid. The bottom was then hollowed and the outside diameter determined. The lid was placed on the bottom and the top of the lid was given its final shape, then sanded and finished. The cocobolo part of the lid was decorated with the chatter tool. The lid was taped to the bottom to prevent it from flying off during the chattering procedure. The area of the chatter marks were highlighted with inside and outside circles formed around the chatter mark areas. The chatter marks were quite subtle but very effective. The sides of the lid were then defined with the continental gouge. Then the sides of the bottom were defined. The entire sides were then sanded, lacquered and waxed. The curve leading to the bottom was formed. A curved scraper was then used to complete the interior of the box. The depth was then measured to determine where the outside of the bottom would be. The interior was then finished. The base of the bottom was defined and the pieces parted off. A jam chuck was turned to accept the bottom of the box and the under surface of the bottom was completed. A small flat area was developed for the box to rest on. Final finishing was then done. This completed the fifth box in the demonstration.

The next part of the demonstration was a hedgehog. A 2½ x 2½ x 6 piece was used. It was placed 3/16th inch off-center at both ends. This produced a flat area on one side after rounding with the large roughing gouge. The headstock end was rounded. This would be the butt end of the hedgehog. The tailstock end was tapered and a small knob formed for the critters head. The center was dropped at the tailstock end and this was further tapered and parted off. Eyes were drawn and the hedgehog completed.

The final piece was a simulated female figure. A 2 x 2 x 10 piece was placed in the chuck between centers. The tailstock end was tapered and a ball formed on the end. The piece was reversed with the ball in the chuck. The tailstock end was tapered and various details formed on the cylinder which were altered so rapidly that I could not begin to detail them all. These were sanded. The center at the tailstock end was dropped 3/16th inch. Further details were developed and finished. The piece was then moved to the other side of true center and again more details formed including a very thin neck. The previous center was then returned to (never back to true center) and the shoulder areas refined. Finally the head was detailed as was the torso. Both areas were finished and the piece parted off. This completed a detailed, informative and wonderful demonstration. To fully appreciate this demo you should watch either the tape or DVD which will be available in June 2004 in the club library. Have fun!

--Bob Gunther

Chris's Website