The exterior is sanded to 800. As you can see by the curve around the knot, the green wood is starting to move. This thin wood will move but should not crack more than it has already.
Advanced Woodturning Project
Black Cherry Vase - Page 6
finishing the exterior and preparing to turn the pedestal and base
The exterior is finished similarly to the interior.
Excess finish is wiped away and the remainder let dry for a short time. I considered merely parting off the vase and sanding the bottom off the lathe, but decided that a wider base would allow more freedom of design and stability of a very light object.
So I removed the vase from the lathe. The faceplate needs to be removed but first
I mark the center using a small jig I have made. This is just a cylinder with a shorter cylinder on the end turned to just fit the interior of a 1" faceplate and a brad placed on center. The brad is sharpened.
When the face plate is removed the center is accurately marked. The screw holes are large and go deep into the base.