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I have had a hair-brain idea for a while now to use splines to enhance a segmented woodturning, particularly a bowl. There are times to use a spline to fix a project. In addition, this is a time to use a spline to decorate or elevate a project to a new level.

This project uses 12 segments per ring in 7 segmented rings plus 6 splines. The main body is cherry, the top ring and splines are walnut. The finish is walnut oil then buffed to a nice shine. Size is 8 inches diameter and 6 inches tall.

The experiment in this project is to insert splines in the segment rings. I had not seen this done previously. The trick was now to make the cuts safely on my table saw. The solution turned out to be a simple tall fence screwed to the saw’s miter gauge. To prevent the wood from shifting, I did not cut completely through the segment ring. This was also the case when I did Celtic knots.

I tried to be conservative this time with the spline since this was a first experiment. With this background, future projects will have more exotic placements.

Enjoy!