Regarding the thread on slab stabilization, I just came up with a graphic
that illustrates how compression rings affect radial checks. Left the nub
of a piece of beech chucked up overnight on my lathe, only to find this when
I began cleaning this morning.
http://photobucket.com/albums/d160/G...ial-Checks.jpg

The chuck was still snug as could be, yet the wood found a way to shrink.
Popped a bit wider as I loosened the chuck.

George wrote:
Regarding the thread on slab stabilization, I just came up with a graphic
that illustrates how compression rings affect radial checks. Left the nub
of a piece of beech chucked up overnight on my lathe, only to find this when
I began cleaning this morning.
http://photobucket.com/albums/d160/G...ial-Checks.jpg

The chuck was still snug as could be, yet the wood found a way to shrink.
Popped a bit wider as I loosened the chuck.

Huh. Interesting. I'd claim that that was just evidence that the chuck
wasn't compressing the wood enough (theoretically, it needs to be beyond
snug, to the point where the wood is squished), but I suspect this is
one of the cases where I need to listen to my own claim that "when the
evidence contradicts your back-of-the-envelope theory, it probably means
your theory is missing something."

Maybe all the iron bands end up doing is just keeping the radial checks
small, and keeping the wood from falling apart when it does check.

- Brooks


--
The "bmoses-nospam" address is valid; no unmunging needed.

George wrote:
Regarding the thread on slab stabilization, I just came up with a graphic
that illustrates how compression rings affect radial checks. Left the nub
of a piece of beech chucked up overnight on my lathe, only to find this when
I began cleaning this morning.
http://photobucket.com/albums/d160/G...ial-Checks.jpg

The chuck was still snug as could be, yet the wood found a way to shrink.
Popped a bit wider as I loosened the chuck.


Good Grief George! spell my name correctly!

This is so long ago, that I have almost forgotten,
but certainly you can get cracks even with a tight
metal band. My intent with suggesting a metal
band was that the band would keep the slab from
falling apart.

That piece looks like a mess, is it reaction wood?
Good demo! Damn, I wish you had a before picture.

"George E. Cawthon" wrote in message
...
! spell my name correctly!

This is so long ago, that I have almost forgotten, but certainly you can
get cracks even with a tight metal band. My intent with suggesting a
metal band was that the band would keep the slab from falling apart.

That piece looks like a mess, is it reaction wood?
Good demo! Damn, I wish you had a before picture.

Oops, used to have a buddy in college named Cawthorne.

The before was a piece of beech with no cracks. I had run across a branch
in the firewood stack with the bark intact over most of the surface, so I
trimmed the split ends and turned some items from it. Because it is a
branch, the wood was broader on one side of the heart than the other. Two of
the turnings are here
http://photobucket.com/albums/d160/G...f-4-inch-B.jpg
.. With the relative humidity well below fifty, and the heat from an
overhead duct close to the lathe, it didn't take the neglected chunk long to
dry.

George wrote:
"George E. Cawthon" wrote in message
...
! spell my name correctly!

This is so long ago, that I have almost forgotten, but certainly you can
get cracks even with a tight metal band. My intent with suggesting a
metal band was that the band would keep the slab from falling apart.

That piece looks like a mess, is it reaction wood?
Good demo! Damn, I wish you had a before picture.


Oops, used to have a buddy in college named Cawthorne.

The before was a piece of beech with no cracks. I had run across a branch
in the firewood stack with the bark intact over most of the surface, so I
trimmed the split ends and turned some items from it. Because it is a
branch, the wood was broader on one side of the heart than the other. Two of
the turnings are here
http://photobucket.com/albums/d160/G...f-4-inch-B.jpg
. With the relative humidity well below fifty, and the heat from an
overhead duct close to the lathe, it didn't take the neglected chunk long to
dry.


Very nice. I kind of lousy artistically, but I
would sure like to try my hand at turning.

I once went to a new firewood area and cut a nice
pole into 18" sections. I kept thinking that
something was wrong, so I only cut one and then
moved away. Apparently the Forest Service area
was adjacent, as across the road) from where the
power or telephone company had just downed some
lodgepole pine for poles. Anyway, about a 2 hour
drive home, and the very heavy pieces about 16"
diameter by 18." Normally lodgepole pine is
fairly light but I could barely get these in the
truck, so they must have been cut the night before
or that morning. They lost about 1/2 of their
weight in the 90 degree heat on the way back home.
They went from solid to a multitude of radial
splits because they lost so much water. If
someone had told me that they lost that much water
in 2 hour drive, I would have thought they were crazy.