Inspiration

After watching a youtube video by Jimmy Clewes, I decided to get outside my comfort zone and have a bash at the square pagoda style box.
The dimensions are a bit out. I think the bottom bit is a tad too big.
This is nowhere near as elegant as Jimmy’s boxes, but for a first attempt at this style of turning I’m pleasantly surprised at how it turned out. I ended up with a few mistakes, but I was able to recover from them.
First and foremost I broke the golden rule. The outside must be bigger than the inside. The first go with the lid was a disaster, when I turned the handle off. I plugged it with a piece of timber from the same board, which turned out to be a different colour.
There are some tool marks on the wings, which I just couldn’t get rid of. The lid is thicker than it should be, but again, the inside/outside ratio became a consideration.
There is a steep learning curve with this style of turning. I have turned winged and square bowls before, but not with this curve.

Next time I think I will make the bottom part twice the size of the lid.

The lid is about ⅓ thicker than it should be.

The tool marks are quite visible in the bottom of the wings, but I didn’t dare go any thinner.
I think I need to practice on some scrap. Once I have the technique down, I can have another try.

The piece of timber is from a sweet chestnut board I purchased from a local supplier, and the finish is wipe on polyurethane.

All in all though, it turned out fairly decent.