Dublin Chapter NewsletterIrish Woodturners Guild

May 2020 (Bumper Lockdown Edition)

Inside this issue:

John Doran P. 1

April Results P. 3

The Catenary Curve P. 9

Editor's Appeal P. 10

Demonstrators P. 11

Competition Pieces P. 11

Trade Stands P. 11

Leader Board P. 12

Who Carved The Pig P. 12

Adrian Finlay P. 13

Woodturning Magazine P. 16

Colum Murphy P. 18

As you are probably aware, due to the outbreak ofCovid-19 all meetings of the Dublin WoodturnersChapter have been cancelled until further notice.

Please check both your email and the Chapter website(http://www.dublinwoodturners.com) regularly for updates.

The monthly competition for May will again be held online.This will be an open competition with all entrants submitting a

photograph of their piece for judging. So get out to the workshop(it's now the only place we're allowed go) and make something.

Points awarded will NOT count towards the annual awardshowever all items entered WILL be eligible to be entered in the

normal monthly competitions when they resume.

Send a photo of your work by email to Mark Daly atmark@eninserv.com by Friday 1st May. Include the category(Advanced, Experienced, Beginners or Artistic). Also include

something in the photo to show scale (possibly a ruler or pen).

Sean Ryan: Virus

How are all getting through ourenforced “holiday” (Hopefully weare half-way through). We arelucky among many of the peoplewho are cocooning in the way thatwe can all have an interest in ahobby that can keep us busy andget out from under other people'sfeet in the house. It is nice tohear the instruction, “Get up outof that chair and go out to yourshed and make something.” Nowthat is an instruction that I like tohear often.

Out in the shed, we are findinglittle gems of wood that we didnot know we had and now we willhave to think what we will make

from them. We also find productsthat are half finished and nowthat we are much betterwoodturners with all the practicewe have had since we started thatpiece, we can now finish it withease, I hope.

Now with all the new pieces thatare produced we have to find aplace to display our finished workand the room that comes to mindis Seamus Carter’s front room. Ido not know how many of youhave had the pleasure of being inthat room that is full of thebeautiful pieces that Seamus hasturned over the years. I wonderwhat our own front room will

Who were the winners in May 2010. Recognise any?Answer on page 11.

Advanced

Beginners

Experienced

Chapter Contacts.

look like at the end of the secondhalf of our enforced confinement.Let’s hope there will be manypieces in rooms all over the city.

Not all of us are lucky enough tobe able to go out the back door ofour house and find a shed witheverything inside to keep us happyand contented for weeks, and forthose of you who don’t have ashed, well there must be otherways to get enjoyment whilepassing the time through wood.An example of this is stickmaking and our expert in that skillis Stephen Coffey whose phonenumber is 087 6811590 and ourexpert in carving is Adrian Finley,

whose phone number is 0879838633. Both men will producean article on carving and stickmaking. You have their phonenumber for more information ifyou need it.

I think that it is very importantthat we keep busy both in bodyand mind while we are confined tohome. So if anyone has anyquestions or concerns orcomments we are only a phone callaway and we are only too willing totalk. It is important that we allkeep in contact with each otherand hope that the time of stayingin and keeping everybody at adistance will soon be over and we

will be back to normal.

Before I finish I would like toexpress my sadness at the passingof Frank McCartney who passedaway last week. Frank was amember for many years and whenI rejoined the guild and was giventhe job of doing a Saturday demo,you can imagine how nervous Iwas. So at the break, everyonewent for tea except Frank andDavid Sweeney and they gave methe best compliment I could havebeen given: They said that theyknew my uncle who taught them incollege and that I was exactly likehim. Well, with such a huge boostto my ego, all nerves went. Thanks

That’s a fine cuppa tae.... April’scompetition was originallyintended as a Cup & Saucer,however under the circumstancesand to remove any excuses for notgetting out to the workshop, it wasdecided to keep things simple withan open competition. Simple

however is not the first word tocome to mind when I see theturning.It’s great to see a high number ofentries, I chalked another line onthe wall as I counted the days oflockdown and hardly felt the daygoing by.This competition won’t count

towards the annual score board.Without the touchy feely of atypical judging session and a panelof our peers, it just wouldn’t befair. In fact this competition couldbe influenced by the quality ofphotography, although I have triedto avoid that trap.

The beginners category had five entrants but 6pieces. As getting out to the workshop is theobjective, I didn’t mind one person summiting asecond entry. I really liked the shape and grain ofMichael Quinn’s Cup & Saucer, and the offcentre box submitted by Mike Sims. For me, it ishard to call between the two. My choice for firstplace however, goes to Michael Cahill for hisLaburnum box. It looks fantastic, a fine, warmwood, just inviting you to pick it up.

1st Beginners: Michael Cahill

Mike Sims

Liam McGarry

Liam McGarry

Michael Quinn

John O Neill

The experienced section had justtwo entries. John Doran turned anelegant pen, no doubt there is astory behind where the wood camefrom. While this pen probably didn’tsee Croke Park action, it deserves aplace in the final. Brendan Kellyturned a very nice piece indeed. Ofnote from this entry are the wellshaped parabolic inner, contrastingwith the straight lines of the outerwall. The decorative colour bandsfurther contrasts with the naturalgrain, particularly on the insidesurface. I suspect this piece wouldstand up to scrutiny at a real, in theflesh competition. Winner alright,Brendan Kelly.

John Doran

1st Experienced: Brendan Kelly

Ten entries in the advancedcategory and a really tough one tocall. This brings home why it isnecessary to touch and hold apiece of wood when judging. Canyou imagine looking to buy one ofthese pieces online, it would be animpossible choice. Brendan Phelanhas turned a crisp, clean, cup,saucer and spoon. The outer wallof the cup appears perfectlyparallel and the square cut groovesare evenly spread with clean edges.Tony Hartney has turned the

ultimate cappuccino set, at least byits stunning colour and pattern.The cup wall appears nicely thinand the line of the cup is smoothand well proportioned, definitelyy’er fine china, rather than ‘tae in amug’. Cecil Barron is in high spiritswith a fantastic set of six shotglasses. I am glad to see he hasonly knocked two back, it would betempting to treat a lockdown like alock in, in which case all glassesmight be rolling on the barcounter. Willie Reville is looking tobrighten up the place with a lamp.

The grain looks wonderful and Isuspect it would look even betterin the flesh. But for me, the winnerhas to be David McSweeney forhis Japanese Style Cup and saucer.Apart from the fine oriental shapeand lines, there are two details thatreally take my eye. The first is thedelicate inlay. This is particularlynote worthy on the thin wall of thecup. The second is the grainpatterns on the saucer. The stepdown for the cup holder creates abeautiful contrast.

1st Advanced: David Mc Sweeney

Paddy Finn

Tony Hartney Willie Reville

Brendan Phelan

Cecil Barron, Shot Glases

Frank Maguire John Duff

Jonathan Wigham

Tommy Hartnett

So now for the eight entries in theartistic section. Sean Ryan turned avery interesting piece. Thistrumpeted sphere on a pedestaltook a lot of precision and effort.The textured colouring suggested afloating bomb, however I alsowondered in it was a nod to thedreaded Corona virus. CecilBarron turned a well-proportioned12” high vase based on laminatedplywood. I suspect that this piecewould attract lots of attention

adorning a sideboard. The nut likeshape and contrasting colours andtextures of Jonathan WighamsChestnut Burl is beautiful.Certainly a piece that admirerswould really like to take in theirhands. Willie Reville hasdemonstrated a nice piece ofturning with his spalted beechclock, however the accuracy withwhich he fired the bullets atperfect intervals is a credit to him.Brendan Phelan has presented a

stunning natural edge bowl. Thispiece just says “take me home”.But the winner of the artisticcategory is Colum Murphy with aSycamore bowl, turned, carved andcoloured. I just hope the chosenphotos do justice to the piece,Colum has provided more photosincluding some showing theprocess. This surely is the makingsof a separate article.

1st Artistic: Colum Murphy

Jonathan WighamCecil Barron

So…. I have cherry picked someentries for comment. We could behere all day if I was to continueinto each and every piece, (Iknow…. with lockdown, we won’tbe going anywhere anyway). I hopethat the photos demonstrate howdifficult it is to choose a winner ineach category. The quality of entrywas very high and it was fantastic

to see so many pieces. I havechosen one image for each piece toillustrate the entry, however insome cases I was furnished with acouple of views from differingperspectives. If you disagree withmy choice, please don’t hold itagainst me, it might have beendifferent at the table in the scouthall.

As we are still confined to thegarden and workshop, nextmonths competition will follow thesame format. Please keep theentries coming in; lets have arecord number for the firstSaturday in May.

Thanks for the therapyMark Daly

Liam McGarry

Sean Ryan

Willie Reville

Tommy Hartnett

Brendan Phelan

The Catenary CurveArticle by John O Neill

In physics and geometry, acatenary is the curve that anidealized hanging chain or cableassumes under its own weightwhen supported only at its ends.The ‘variables’ when considering acatenary are the distance betweenthe two ends and the length of thechain, this produces the sag factorwhich will control the shape of thecurve. It can vary from a smoothgradual curve to a sharp deeperone.

The word "catenary" is derivedfrom the Latin word catēna, whichmeans "chain". The English word"catenary" is usually attributed toThomas Jefferson, who wrote in aletter to Thomas Paine on theconstruction of an arch for abridge

I have lately received from Italy atreatise on the equilibrium ofarches, by Abbe Mascheroni. Itappears to be a very scientificalwork. I have not yet had time toengage in it, but I find that theconclusions of his demonstrationsare, that every part of the catenaryis in perfect equilibrium.”

This state of perfect equilibrium issomething we find very pleasing tothe eye. We see it in many worksof art, sculpture and design.The eye rolls along the curvewithout interruption as there areno breaks in the flow.To make the catenary arch, all wehave to do is mark out the shapeof a free hanging chain and turn itupside down. It can be seen inmany large churches, bridges orornamental archways.

Antonio Gaudi, the creativeSpanish artist said "There are nostraight lines or sharp corners innature". Gaudi designed a uniqueapartment building in Barcelonacalled Casa Mila. On the top level

there are beautiful arches as shownin photo. Although they appear tobe parabolic in shape, Gaudi'screations are actually the shape ofa catenary. Gaudi even put them inthe laundry room to keep themaids happy!The advantage of the catenaryarch in construction is that it canbe constructed of light materialsand still support great weights.

Catenary curves may have many‘sag’ factors (a=?) which alter thedepth or sharpness of the curve.The distance between the virtualpillars can be altered to get a more

I need a constant supply of interestingarticles for the newsletter.

If you come across anything which may beof interest to other woodturners or wouldlike to pen an article yourself please let me

know at DWT.Newsletter@gmail.com

Anything considered, articles, craft showsor demonstration you have visited, turning

tips, funny stories, jokes, cartoons.

Editor's Appeal.

or less pronounced shape.Check out ‘catenary calculator’ onthe net.

The catenary curve is foundthroughout nature. The humbleegg has a catenary curve at bothends. A spider web consists ofinterwoven catenary curves. Thecables hanging from a power lineform a perfect catenary curve.

When applied to woodturning asmooth flowing curve on a bowlencourages the eye to move downfrom top to base of the vessel

One way to make a catenary curveon a piece is to build and use atemplate ( cardboard or plywood)and use this to guide your turning.A glue stick can be bent along thefinished curve to check for smoothflow without bumps or grooves.

Many thanks to John O Neill forsubmitting this article.

Advanced: Frank Gallagher Experienced: Tony Hartney

Beginners: John Owens

I had an email from Jack Hutchinson recently who istrying to find out who carved this pig. He came by itwhen in 1986 he bought the contents of a restaurantcalled Solomon Grundys which operated in SuffolkStreet, just off the bottom of Grafton Street. Fromthere it went to a restaurant in Ballymena Co Antrimwhich closed in 2010.Jack recons that it was carved between 1978 and1986 and is about 4 foot wide by 2 and 1/2 feet highand about 4 inches thick weighing approx 1 cwt orabout 50 kilos. Jack still has the pig in his possessionand would love to get in touch with the originalcarver.If you recognise it please email me with the details atDWT.Newsletter@gmail.com.

Spatula (fish turner)For this spatula you can use anypiece of hardwood 18mm tick andwhatever length. The piece I usedwas cherry from the scrap pile.1. Mark out the handle and for thecurve, I used a paint can. Thethickness at the flat end of thespatula (blade end) can be about3mm and a straight line back to theturn on the handle.

2. Cut the handle down each sidewith a hand saw, and the curvewith a coping saw. The angle cut iscut with the hand saw as well.

3. Use a carpenter’s chisel to shapethe handle on the end of thespatula. The carpenters chisel canbe used to shape the handle or aStanley knife works just as well.

4. When shaping the spatula youwill meet with end grain. This canbe very frustrating, the way to getpast this problem is cut from theopposite direction or come fromthe side. Whatever design youcome up with is your choice Ichoose a fish because as I workedon the handle I made a fewmistakes so the design changesaccordantly.

To enable all of use to get through this lockdown and particularly those without accessto a workshop or shed Adrian Finlay has kindly put together two articles on wood

carving which can be done at home with the minimum of tools.

5. Chamfer the sides of the bladewith the knife. Input small V cut inas a mouth and use a nail punchfor the eye. Sand two smallsemicircle v cuts for the gills. Sandthrough the grits and then add afew coats of vegetable oil. Now ifthe little woman is not happy withyour carving put her into isolationby herself.

The leaf carving is as easy as thespatula and the same tools areused.

1. First draw your design. If youfind it hard to draw get a paint tin,draw a line on either side, using thecan to get the basic shape. You canget modelling clay and cut theshape of the leaf. You can work onyour design by adding orsubtracting with the clay. If you arehaving trouble getting clay try MrPrice, Eason’s or any art shop. I

sometimes use a Coke tin cut andshaped into a leaf. It can easily becut, bent and twisted into anyshape..

2. Draw your design onto yourwood e.g. any hard wood fruittimber. The wood I used was lime.

3. With your wood held in a viceor screwed to a larger scrap pieceon the bench use a carpenterschisel, keeping out from your lines,drive the chisel straight down,you're trying to get a perpendicular90 degree cut.

4. Come in from the side in smallincrements until you have reachedyour depth line.

5. Now with the corner of thechisel follow the line of yourdesign, you don’t need roundshaped chisels once you use thecorner of the chisel.

6. Hollow out the inside of theleaf by cutting in from each side tothe middle. One side of the leafcan be higher than the other; thisgives a feel of realism to it. This isthe slow part, continue until youhave it to the desired depth.Doesn’t despair if it looks roughjust look at the photos of mine.

7. To shape the centre you can useold hacksaw blade shaped on agrinder or sander and used like acabinet scraper or you can use 80grit sandpaper. I use sandpaperrolled around a dowel or anythingroundy to get into the middle ofthe leaf.

8. When you have the insidesmooth down to about 180 grit,draw on the veins. These can becut with two cuts to form a V. Ifthe cut tears out try it in theopposite direction. Sometimesthese cuts have to be in differentdirections because of the endgrain. When the inside is finishedcut the little V sahpes in the sideof the leaf (serrations).

9. Now to shape the stem. Withthe knife work your way in at theside at an angle all-round the leaf,under cutting the leaf. Take a smallamount at a time. This is to givethe impression of lightness by

creating shadows. If you arefinding it hard to get a smoothfinish around the leaf backgrounduse a Philips screwdriver andindent the background, coveringup everything with texturing .

10. What finish you use is yourchoice. I used spray lacquer I gotin Lidl, wax, varnish or oil alsowork well.

Have fun and stay safe.

The April competitionincluded a beautiful piecefrom Colum Murphy. Columhas also furnished somephotos of the process andstep by step notes. So, in lieuof the typical demonstrationreport, here is a brief rundown of how Colum turnedhis magic.

Colum Murphy - Turned,Carved and Decorated Bowl.

The process has been brokendown into the main steps involved,with most steps represented by aphoto:

1. It all started when I selected apiece of maple which was cut andsealed back in 2018. It measuredapproximately 180mm in diameter.

2. I mounted it between centersand when shaping the back, Inoticed a slight crack which Iglued, so as not to affect the finish.I continued to round it off, endingup with 150mm in diameter.

3. I used a Proton carving tool tocut into the back of the bowl,working from inside to outsidetotally freehand until I was happywith the design.

4. I cleaned up the spigot andsized it to fit the chuck I chose touse.

5. With a wire brush I cleanedaway any loose wood, again frominside to outside.6. To remove the remainingsoft wood, I scorched the woodwith a gas torch (please complywith all safety regulations whendoing this task).7. I coloured the rear with a blackebonising spray and left it to dry.

8. I mounted the piece back onthe chuck and shaped the front,leaving the last couple of cuts,again working from inside tooutside of the bowl to avoiddamaging the outside edge.

9. Again, using the proton carvingtool, I curved the front of thebowl.

10. I then repeated point numbers5 and 6 on the front of the bowl.

11. Using a small paint brush, goldguild and thinners. I poured a littlethinner into the lid, dipped thebrush into the thinner and addedthe gold guild quickly andrandomly coloured the front, sideand back until I was satisfied withthe finish.

12. I sealed the front and backwith sanding sealer.

13. I finished the inside of thebowl and sanded it to 400 grit.

14. I coloured the inside of thebowl with chestnut spirit stain, firstyellow, then red, then blue andlastly black. The last two colourswere done when the lathe wasturning fast with 1 quick spray. It iseasier to do this with an air brush.

15. I sprayed the bowl againwith sanding sealer and burnished.

16. I mounted the bowl onbutton jaws, to protect the outsideI used strong kitchen roll. A largerbowl would need to be mountedon a Jam chuck to protect theoutside.

17. To complete the rear ofthe bowl, I coloured it using theprocess detailed in no 14.

The original bowl I made for theartistic competition was madefrom Sycamore, the carving wasdone with a King Arthur Lancelotchain wheel and the Proton. It waseasier to finish than the maplebowl.

Colum Murphy