Fixing the Broken Rim of a Turned Bowl

Fixing the Broken Rim of a Turned Bowl

How cyanoacrylate glue can fix a turning mishap.

I love making natural rim bowls with their delicate and funky-looking edges. The problem? Their delicate rims. It’s easy to catch a rim as it wings past the tool and chips out a chunk. Thanks to cyanoacrylate (CA) glue, you can change that damaged bowl from firewood back into a bowl.

My chisel caught on the rim of this elm bowl and busted out a chunk. You may think this bowl just became firewood, but I can save it.

Wearing gloves to keep the glue off your hands, apply a bead of medium consistency CA glue to the edge of the chip.

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Press the chip back into the bowl, working it into alignment with the rim and exterior surface. Hold it in place for about 30 seconds.

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It takes longer to sharpen a chisel than it does to repair the bowl. If your bottle of CA glue is handy, your bowl will be repaired and you’ll be back at work in a couple minutes.

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