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I use dividers to take the
measurement of the recess that I turned into the inside surface of the top and
transfer the measurement to the top face of the bottom.
Figure 11: Marking out the recess
The hollowing of the recess
is exactly the same as turning out the center of any bowl, although if you are
in the habit of gauging wall thickness by feeling with your thumb inside and
fingers outside while the lathe is running you had better break the habit
before turning one of these. I aim for
a wall thickness of about ¼” and about 3/16” in the bottom over the chucking recess. This means that the inside lip will be
undercut somewhat in order to leave a good gluing surface for the top.
Here the bowl is ready for
sanding.
Figure 12: Recess completed and ready for sanding
And here the sanding is
complete and the finish has been applied and buffed.
Figure 13: Finish applied and buffed out
At this point I am ready to
glue the top on. It is a good idea to
wipe the mating surfaces down with mineral spirits prior to gluing to remove
any wax that may have inadvertently gotten on to the gluing area. I use a polyurethane glue when I glue these
together and let them set overnight before completing the turning.
Figure 14: The top is glued and clamped to the bottom
Once the glue has cured the
potpourri can be remounted for turning the outside of the top.
Figure 15: Remounted on the lathe after gluing.