That's real nice lookin! I want to make my wife one for Christmas... I'm wondering if you can drill out the center for the insert, or if you have to hollow it out on the lathe? or some of both... looks like the metal cup is tapered.
It is tapered, so no cheating with a forstner bit. :tongue: You can probably do
steps with different bits to get you most of the way there, but you'd need
deep bits or an extender.
I'm new to it, so I blew out a nice chunk of cherry burl, then had a
segmented project go flying in pieces, and then another one I finally got
through, only to find I had turned it exactly to size .. forgetting the dimple
on the bottom of the insert.
Segments weren't too bad, because you can chuck a couple of rings and
turn them before adding more .. working from the bottom up. That way
you don't have to worry about hanging six inches off the tool rest.
I did finally get one segment finished, and then another one in myrtle burl.
I wanted to get pics, but my dad saw it and did one of those "Hey ..
what's that over there?" things and I never saw it again.
They're nice when they're done, but they can be frustrating for a beginner
like me. I'd never do one for hire. I think I had about 10 hours in the one
with segments. Maybe 3-4 in the myrtle one.