Richard Raffan turns a jewel box from splintery she oak. 

Our skin gets even thinner and subject to easier tearing as we get older. Rule #8: Do not leave blood on the turning. 😂 Love watching the design changes as the wood presents more challenges. Very nice results! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

Richard is the GOAT. I know the common mantra amongst turners is to join a local club if you want to learn properly (of which I am a member) but to be honest, I have learnt a 100 times more thanks to the generosity of pro's like Richard who share their skills online for nowt

Beautiful box and I would like to say I love that wood. The grain is most spectacular!

"It's all getting a bit too tizzy up there." Classic Richard Raffan.....🤣😂 Thanks for another informative and entertaining vid.

That was a lot of beautiful work, and the result is gorgeous. Patience over comes minor wood flaws. Nice job Richard!

Richard, your videos are a masterclass in turning. I especially like to hear your solutions to problems as they arise in developing a piece. Thank you for sharing your vast knowledge with us.

Another master class in knowledge, skill , perseverance and flexibility . Thank you once again.

Design changes based new discoveries, i.e., catches, splintered pieces making a quick exit, wow Mr. Raffan, you are so wonderfully talented. I love your save. Thank you for sharing your vebal thoughts along the journey.

Thank you sir. I always learn something while watching you work.

Fabulous eye for line and design ,love to listen to the thought process.

It's fun watching you turn using tools so differently from most creators. I value your instruction. Thanks

You’re a true inspiration Richard, beautiful work and an enjoyable watching you work, I’m constantly learning from you. Thank you so much for posting your videos, keep the skills alive and well.

That she oak looks less dark then some pieces of the same wood you work already,... just amazing Raffan, love it

Very nice box Richard. Great shape. Love the lid. Fantastic figure. Outstanding finish.🙂🙂

I just love your videos. When something goes wrong you always have a solution to fix it.

Hi Richard…that’s a very nice lidded box or bowl, some very nice grain most attractive. Great work👍🏻. What I’ve found most effective for achieving a nice sharp crisp edge to lids of bowls is to use a bowl gouge ground to 60 degrees I think some people call it a bottom bowl gouge. Great channel keep the videos coming 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

Richard , that she oak put up a good fight , bit you several times along the way but you tamed her into a fine jewel box in the end . Very beautiful .

Thanks Richard very bloody battle turned out great .

A great inspirational and instructional video. Thank you so much for sharing.

Very nice the grain of wood is great to see.

Thank you Richard for another lovely piece of work.

Simply beautiful!

Have and many of these following Richards demonstrations at Totally Turning in Saratoga Springs, NY, the cross grain tops always distort from seasonal movement but on a positive design opportunity with a sight rotation they actually lock on to the bottom with a slight twist.

Beautiful box, love the shape, the wood has beautiful grain.

Thank you Richard , you are a constant source of learning and inspiration

Once again, a video with multiple take-aways. It was very instructive watching you work through the lid design and the various iterations as you considered different designs. It was also very helpful seeing how you worked through the challenges caused by the splintering wood. In the end, that wood grain is really outstanding, I can see why it was worth persevering through he challenges.

What a great video Richard. Lots of problems and design changes along the way, which you handled and talked through exceptionally well. Good teaching and instructional video. Great end result. My wife says she would even like that. I suppose I’ll have to try and emulate you but using a different wood unfortunately. I do not have any WA forest sheoak. I have NSW forest sheoak which I haven’t turned yet, it’s still a little wet I suppose black wattle or bottle brush wood would also look pretty good as I have a small piece of each suitable for the box. Thanks for sharing

Thank you for another very good video, showing not only how you do it, but your on the fly decision making. it seems like every wood comes with it's own set of challenges.

Nicely done, this one made you work for the end result. Thanks for sharing.

Excellent video, thanks

A very beautiful box Richard.

Blood and two generations of socks! It does get any better than that. Oh yes, the box is nice, too. More decorations on the bottom?

My favorite project. Great job!

Beautiful 😊

Nice box. She Oak has such a lovely figure with the medullary rays. Love it, along with most Oaks really. If you really want to make a fellow turners day, I'd love to have that in my collection!

Very nice. Thanks Richard

My family has an old saying "it's done right if it draws blood." This piece was done right!!

A fine looking piece in spite of the cantankerousness of the wood and the mishaps. Lovely figure and shape. Was this an especially splintery piece? I can't recall it being this bad in earlier casuarina. 'Looks like we're getting a smaller knob'. Heh. 'Apply the sock' double heh. I do miss the sock when it doesn't make an appearance. Was your hiatus from the lathe due to your eyes being taken care of? If so, I hope it all went well. Thanks for another informative and amusing video.

Very nice

Hi Richard, Greetings from South Africa . As usual your video is great. Just for your info, way back in the late 1980’s when I first started playing with wood in a lathe , I bought your book , which rapidly became my “wood turning Bible”. As a matter of interest, do you miss your old Graduate Lathe? It took me the best part of 30 years to eventually get one. Thanks for the constant inspiration.

I'm fortunate to have a reasonable supply of Shea Oak. ( Live in W.A). I will have to put an end grain box on my list. When I get those little cuts, I say I am giving the piece my unique DNA Signature LOL.

We’ll done Richard.

I liked the smaller knob a little better. The larger knob was too heavy in appearance for the size of the box.

What kind of a drill bit do you use as my forstner bit leaves a nastyy little hole in the center?