Dennis Liggett — Notes from Demonstration:
1. I cut pieces 2.5 X 2.5 X 4.25. I use wood that will be light and give a good contrast to the stone color that I will be using. I rough these pieces to round and create a tenon to be used for mounting.
2. Mount the piece in a 4 Jaw chuck and clean up if it is not running true. I mark the tool rest to show the ends of the lines of the story stick attached. I take the end position of the largest part of the tree and size it to 2”.
3. I then taper from the 2” point to the open end. I cut the small end off with a skew and use the skew point to create a very tiny center for the drill bit to run in. I then drill the end with a #58 drill bit which I find works for my eyelet hangers.
4. I place the story stick at the end and mark the location of the 4 branches. I mark an additional line approximately 3/16” to the left of each branch line. I do this because I use a lot of aspen which is white and light but very prone to tear out. I use a small parting tool to cut at the additional line.
5. With a spindle gouge I cut the branch upswing part of the branch, after all are cut I go back and cut the back side of the branch. This sequence is used to give me access to the underneath side of the branch.
6. With a parting tool I reduce the part under the bottom branch to the size of the base that I want. (approximately ¾”) I then finish cutting the bottom branch with the skew.
7. I stop the lathe at this point to check for the quality of the cuts. With aspen you can have a lot of tear out. I clean up the cuts as needed.
8. With a parting tool I reduce the stand area of the tree to approximately 3/8” and clean up the underside of the branch with a skew.
9. I then shape the bottom of the base and sand everything to 240 grit and then part off.
10. After batching these into approximately batches of 20, I put a 3” sander in the chuck and sand the bottoms of the ornament.
11. I insert the eyelet for the hanger. I do this by putting thick super glue on the end of the eyelet and inserting it into the drilled hole.
12. I then spray the tree with a sealer. I do this to prevent dust from the crushed stone getting into the fine pores of the wood.
13. I then run a small bead of medium super glue around the edge of the branches. I use a plastic marker with a notch cut to spread the glue. Spread the glue gently and do not try to wipe it off. If you spread is too thin, the stone may not be able to stick. This step gives a very even appearance to the material.
14. I then take a salt shaker that has been drilled out to 5/32 for the holes, that is filled with crushed stone and I sprinkle the stone onto the tree.
15. I then spray the tree ornament with 2 coats of a high gloss lacquer.