Popular Woodworking 2006-12 № 159, страница 67

At the Lathe

Serving up Turning on A Platter

This wide, shallow 'bowl' is an elegant project with interesting challenges.

A platter is a great project for beginners and advanced turners alike. It can be as plain or as fancy as you want to make it. A beginner will want to start with fairly simple shapes and close, even-grained woods. Most of the domestic hardwoods are fine. You can use readily obtainable 8/4, kiln-dried wood. Common domestic species such as maple, ash, oak, cherry and so on can be found in widths suitable for platters. Some burls and exotics are also available in wide pieces. But even plain wood can make a beautiful platter; adding a bit more detail will show off these woods to good effect. For fancier woods, keep the shapes simple. Whatever wood you choose, it should be properly dried, or the platter will warp too much.

A more experienced turner might want to do more elaborate or intricate detailing or use more challenging woods, such as burls or very hard, brittle exotics. And platters are always a wonderful canvas for more decorative techniques such as burning, carving, painting, inlay and other types of work.

A platter is really just a very wide, very shallow bowl. It's not all that different to make, either. For the methods shown here, cut the blank round on a band saw, and screw a faceplate to what is going to be the inside of the platter. Turn the entire outside of the platter (except the inside curve of the foot ring) on this first mount. Prepare a recess in the foot

Whether you're new to turning or have scads of experience, you can make a platter. Beginners can impress with a fancy wood but simple shapes, while advanced turners may opt for decorative details.

for a chuck. Then re-mount the piece on the chuck and turn the inside.

To finish the foot, mount a third time between centers, as described in photo 19, and cut the inside of the foot ring. This third

by Judy Ditmer

Judy, author of two turning books and many articles,

has been turning since 1985. She teaches and demonstrates her skills throughout the United States and Canada.

step is skipped by some, who leave a straight-shouldered hole in the bottom of the platter where it was held by the chuck. "Bad form," as Captain Hook would say. There is only a bottom because of gravity, not because it doesn't matter what happens down there. Take the extra few minutes to finish off the foot cleanly. It will make the difference between a piece that's just OK and one that is elegant enough to really show off the wood - and your turning skills.

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Popular Woodworking December 2006