In 2019, I acquired a large portion of fir from a tree I slabbed up. The piece of fir has been sitting outside beside the look for the last 4 years. I finally pulled it out and decided rather of eliminating it, I would turn it into a massive sphere. I had a little difficulty getting it installed on the lathe. I had to get a chuck spur so I would have the ability to hold the piece of fir on the lathe. I used the band saw to cut off the excess wood so that turning would not take quite so long. I did a first pass of turning by getting the piece as spherical as I could. I then went through the process of making a sphere by rotating the workpiece about its axis over and over, getting it increasingly more round. Even after it was done, I still wasn't rather sure what I would construct out of this sphere. Right now it simply resides in our yard.
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0:00 (intro).
0:44 (woodturning prep).
2:36 (woodturning).
6:52 (conclusion).
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That’s a Death Star. The spot where one of the branches grew out is where the laser thing from the Death Star goes.
now that would be cool.
I thought the same thing.
Frank’s already done a death star!
@ajmerkahlon8890 history has shown us that you can’t have too many death stars. 👍
Frank has already made a Death star from bamboo, if memory serves me correct but given there were two Death Stars, this would be perfect opportunity to make the mk2.
Frank I just wanted to I think you are an amazing human being. You’re creativity is inspirational. In my humble opinion I feel like you’re work shop is second to none. No disrespect for our fellow woodworkers out there. There definitely some amazing shops out there..
If this is this year’s Christmas ornament I can’t wait to see the size of this year’s Christmas tree 😮
Nice fir ball! Maybe you could dimple it, make a tee for it to sit on and turn it into the worlds largest golf ball. Have your very own roadside attraction. Before you know it, you could have Paul Bunyan’s driving range.
The thing the differentiates it from your other spheres is that it’s a solid block, so you should play with that. Drill holes through and play with the space inside the sphere making a lattice or something
Yes, but it has to go deep. That is where the wonder is! Thanks for all the sharing. It’s inspirational.
I liked the golf ball idea. Seeing you lathe a tee that size would be fun too. It would probably need to be stabilized, as many have suggested. I would like to see you figure out how many dimples are required, their size, and then a way to get them symmetrical.
This has been mentioned a few times, and is by far the most fun, whimsical and challenging to do right. I would love seeing the process as it unfolds.
Fill in the crack’s with black resin, saw it in half like a Weber grill, hollow it out, water proof the interior, mount it on 3 legs, fill with ice and beer
Fantastic work, Frank! And what a challenge! 😬
I have no ideas for this, but I would apply a few coats of penetrating epoxy to stabilize it.
Anyway, stay safe there with your family! 🖖😊
Hi Frank! You could make this the first of a planet series, use epoxy to smooth/refine the exterior. Maybe this could be Jupiter? Then find a way to suspend them into a huge outdoor? indoor? mobile.
I have made hundreds of spheres that size for the pyrotechnic industry, they use them as a mold to make round fireworks ball shells’ They put the waxed wooden sphere on a machine that wraps a wet glued paper tape onto the ball to make the paper ball shell that is then cut off of the ball in halves after it dries.
It would be cool to turn it into one of those water features where the ball floats on a thin flim of water inside a cup so it can spin freely. The ones I’ve seen are usually some kind of rock tho so idk if it would work with wood.
probably needs to be coated in a thick layer of epoxy so the water does not cause it to rot
Since it is a Fir Ball and you have cats, my vote is to hollow the sphere, hang it from the ceiling or make a stand, place some padding inside, position the hole so the cats can access the sphere from the side. Cats in a Fir Ball!
This is the winner right here.
furballl fir ball! but yeah old school MCM orb chair, i second this idea
That was exactly my first thougt too. Would look fantastic!
I like it!
scratch my suggestion. this is much better.
You could turn it down to an egg shape and put it in the yard next to a sign that reads “Beware of Chicken”
Hahahahaha omg that would be so funny
Or beware the dinosaur 🦖
Hello Frank, I like the idea earth in the cracks you can put some continets in made from a other wood I like to see what you made off it later 😉😉👍👍
You could stableise it with resin and then make a spinnging ball on water “sclupture” out of it. idk if you know them but they are useually made out of stone and are often in parks( I think they are called Kugel ball´s), so a smaller version made out of wood would perfekly fit into your garden
hello Frank, how about epoxy pour fix the cracks, then hollow it out and make one of those fancy opening globes on a stand you can put some secret stash into? Like minibar or anything else.
You could still inlay the continents, or any made-up landmasses. The epoxy-filled cracks could be like wisps of an atmosphere, depending on the color.
Was anticipating your next video. What a pleasant surprise. I see this as a base for a larger piece. Thanks for the inspiration.
Drill one hole straight through the center, run a long threaded rod with an eye hook on top and an extended pointer on the bottom. Connect the eye hook to a long cable and suspend it from a strong tree branch and allow the fir ball to move as a giant pendulum. Build a sandbox under the pendulum so that the moving pointer can create a design in the sand as the pendulum moves.
I love your videos! Another great job good sir.
Love it. Single rope tree swing is my vote but there are so many good ones here already!