December 2022 Meeting

Philip Mahon from the Sligo chapter was our demonstrator for our December 2022 Craobh Eo chapter meeting.

Philip’s project was a block and gavel.
Start with a perfectly square blank of yew for the head (150 mm by 55 mm). Drill a centred hole for the handle. Mount between centres and round up. Mark out the design on the rounded blank before starting to turn.
Use callipers as you turn to get precise coves, beads and fillets and try to finish without sanding to retain sharp detail on finish.
The handle is turned from ash using a blank of 200 mm by 35 mm. Mount between centres and round up.
Mark out your design and use callipers to mark depth of cuts. Turn your chosen design.
Philip takes great care while turning and achieves a very high quality finish. This stands out in the pieces he turns.
The final part is to turn the block from a blank of 150 mm by 30 mm. You can also have a different wood where the hammer comes down but this must bottom out properly for the proper sound.
The gavel and block set was a very nice design beautifully turned.
Philip lastly turned a duck. This involved off centre turning.
Mount blank, in this case sycamore, of 70 mm by 125 mm and round up. Insert in chuck and move to off centre position, close to the edge of the blank. Turn the head of the duck and finish before moving on.
Remount in normal position and turn the body and bottom. Finally part off and tidy up.
Thank you Philip for a great demo and for making the journey to be with us on a very cold evening. You have got to see his work to appreciate the quality of his turning.