Maple Burl platter

This is the second platter that I turned from the maple burl wood gloat that Karson sent me. You can see Karson’s blog and my blog describing the project by searching through Lumberjock blogs. At the widest point this platter is 16 inches across and it is turned down to a thickness of 3/8 inch. Platter blank was 1 inch thick and I kept as much of the wood and bark as possible. I put the blank between centers to start, cleaned off the back of the platter and created a recess for my Nova chuck. The platter blank was then mounted in the chuck and the front side of the platter was turned. I turn odd shaped pieces at 3000 rpm as this reduces the amount of time the tool is “turning air”. These are fun to turn, but if you have never tried this before be careful as the blank resembles a big propeller. I installed an power switch on the tailstock end of the lathe so that I don’t have to reach around any piece to shut the power down. Before I make any changes with the tool rest I shut the lathe down. This piece was sanded to 320 grit. When finished I flooded the platter with clear danish oil – this thing soaked up almost a full pint!!! I then let the platter set for 4 days and applied 5 coats of satin wipe on poly, buffing between each coat with 600 grit wet/dry paper.

-- Those that say it can't be done should not interrupt those who are doing it.