I like to turn wet to final thickness, let them dry and warp, then sand
and finish them. General rule is to turn as even of a thickness as
possible. I range from 1/2 inch to 1/4 inch thick (this varies from
wood to wood), and dry them on a shelf for about 2 weeks, then sand and
finish them. I like the warped shapes, and never bother to reflatten
the bottoms. People seem to like the 'organic' shapes. The main thing
with drying them is to take it slow. There are a lot of ways. If you
live someplace dry, like Arizona, you may need to bag (paper or
plastic) them. Here in Oregon where it is humid most of the time, I
just put them on a shelf in my shop. Avoid drafts, sunlight, and heat.
A nice corner in an unheated/unairconditioned garage or shop works
well. For sanding, it really helps to have a power sander, and a
variable speed lathe. Since the bowls are warped, you can't sand at
higher speeds and sanding by hand is difficult. Sanding while wet is a
pain but can be done. You can soak in LDD (1/2 liquid dishwashing
detergent (brown and cheap, not blue or green) and 1/2 water for 24
hours, rinse ). If you wet sand with the soap, the paper doesn't clog
as much, and one of the crepe (I call them erasers) sticks will remove
most of the gunk. The soap acts as a lubricant. It also helps the wood
to sand with less effort when the wood is dry. If I am turning burl or
figured pieces which will warp to the point where I will get a lot of
detail as it warps, it can't be sanded dry. Apply finish, and wet sand.
Let it dry thouroughly and then apply final coats of finish.
robo hippy
George wrote:
"dustyone" wrote in message
oups.com...
Hello,

I've been watching the Del Stubbs video, and it it, he turns green
bowls from firewood to finished bowl in one go. How does one do this
without having cracks, etc? He just puts them on the shelf after he's
done with each of them, and they look fine. I'd appreciate some wisdom
on this subject.


Me too.

Just came up for a glass of tea after turning some cherry that was standing
in the woods day before yesterday. It's differential moisture content that
creates the stress leading to cracks, so if you take the piece to a place
where it can't build up a big differential in drying, normally 3/8 or below
in thickness, it survives. Warps, but survives. If you can live with the
warp, and you know pretty well how it will warp, because you studied The
Wood Handbook available here free
http://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/documnts/fp.../fplgtr113.htm , there are
a lot of design possibilities available.

Problem arises in sanding, because wood'll clog even stearated open coat
paper when it's wet. Spin and blow it to get the worst out and it helps,
but expect to start at 220 or thereabouts after it dries. Helps to have a
nice low angle block plane or spokeshave for re-creating a flat enough
bottom to stand on after the wood dries.