Overview: 

Bowl Turners and Judges are being recruited to participate in the first ever bowl maker’s challenge to be held Saturday, May 21, at One Eleven Ranch Park which is located at 2121 Brand Road in Garland.  DAW will provide 4 lathes and fresh green wood for the turning challenge.  All bowls made will be donated to the North Texas Food Bank.

The hours of the event are to be determined.

In this challenge, at least 8 experienced bowl turners will be recruited in 2 -man teams – each team will get a set of two lathes. The challenge will be to make as many bowls as possible in 45 minutes. Bowls will be judged on the following elements: Size, Form, Quality of Cut, consistency of wall thickness and overall appeal.

Judging Details:

Each element is worth up to 5 points.

Size: will be measured at the outside diameter; Natural Edge bowls will be measured on the long axis.

All Blanks will be measured to allow a bowl from 5-10”, 1 point and fractions will be awarded for each inch of diameter. Example: a bowl is made which measure 5 ¾” in diameter, 5.75 pts awarded. Bowls less than 5” will receive no points.

Form: Judges will look for a smooth curve from rim to foot and judged on a 1-5- point scale. Bumps, ridges, and other breaks in form will be penalized. Curves should complete within the foot. Natural Edge Bowls will be allowed; however, loss of bark will count as a flaw in form.

Quality of cut: A smooth cut with no tear out is the idea. A smooth clean cut is the ideal. 1-5pts may be awarded.

Consistency of Wall Thickness/Wall Thickness: Thinner wall thicknesses are desirable as the wood will be green. Contestants should strive for wall thickness of ¼” or less. Consistency is determined by wall thickness measurements at the rim the foot and the mid-point of the curve. 1-5 points will be awarded.

Overall Appeal: There are up to 5 points awarded at the judge’s discretion.

Bowls which are blown up or bottoms that are cut through will not be scored. Throwing a bowl off the lathe will result in a 10-point penalty.

Safety violations will result in penalty points being assessed. Violations will include but not limited to moving the rest while the piece is rotating, no PPE while the wood is turning, leaving the lathe while the piece is in motion.

At the end of the 45-minute time limit the bowls will be scored and totaled. The team with the most points will advanced to the next round. The two-man teams will be paired of in brackets and will compete head-to-head with four turners making bowls at once. The turners may select their wood from the blank pile. Drawing for order of selection will be before the heat begins. Each turner may select up to 4 blanks, blanks not turned during a round will be returned to the blank pile for the next round. Each advancing turner may retain 1 blank for future rounds. Bowls which are started but not completed within the time limit will not be scored.