Ed Cookingham teaches how to make bottle stoppers

Ed Cookingham demonstrated the art of turning bottle stoppers at the March meeting. Each bottle stopper is made from turned top, fluted maple dowel insert and cork. Ed has been inlaying cabochons of semi precious gemstone in the tops of his bottle stoppers as an extra feature.

 Ed’s tips:

1. Insert the dowel in the blank, before turning the stopper
2. Use a jacob’s chuck in the headstock to hold the dowel end, while turning the blank
3. Make the bottom of the stopper slightly concave to accept the cork
4. Put grooves in the stopper with a skew for decoration and grip
5. Switch to smaller tools to create a recess in the top of the stopper for the cabochon
6. Glue the cork onto the dowel
7. Best buys for the stone cabochons are at the major shows in Phoenix, AZ or Springfield, MA

Ed Cookingham turning a bottle stopper	Ed's finished cherry bottle stopper with jasper inlay	Keith Thompkins tries his hand at a stopper

 The turners meet on the second Wednesday of each month: 7PM at the NWA building at the Opdahl Farm. A special program is planned on June 4 with Stuart Mortimer – watch our website for details: http://www.midhudsonwoodworkers.org.

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Last modified: 01/06/08