Jeb,

I've been scavenging wood too, and I used some Anchorseal and it is great
stuff. But I ran out, and I used some leftover exterior Latex paint.
(Latex forms a sort of a skin when it dries) It seems to work pretty well
too.

Things I have learned the hard way.

The ends are going to crack, no matter what. Just cut them away when you
are ready to turn. If you cut the log in half lengthwise through the pith,
it will check less. If you chainsaw it, you have a flat surface you can
screw to a face plate. If you split it, like I did some, you have a non
flat surface that you have to do a lot of planing on before you can mount
it.

Don't wait for it to get dry before turning it. Turning wet wood is a
treat. (I haven't had any that was so green it splattered, but on some of
it I the shavings felt damp. I have some 12 in logs that were cut 6 years
ago, and they STILL are damp. Not as damp as the ones I cut last year, tho.

I rough turn the bowl green, and hollow it out. I leave the wall thickness
about 10% of the diameter. Then I just put it on the shelf. No wrap, no
alcohol, just shelf it. I bought a food scale, and I weigh it about once a
week. When I have two weeks with no weight loss, I figure it is ready to
turn. It has warped enuf so that you have to redo the outside and the
inside again.

I still end up with some checks (cracks). I figure I'm turning for
practice, not beauty. If the crack makes the bowl unsound, I use superglue
to heal it. If it is just an appearance thing, I fill it by slurry sanding,
and that's as good as it gets.

I've used this system on hard maple, butternut, honey locust and ash, and
I'm pretty happy with it.

Walt C



"JEB" wrote in message
...
Hello All,

I'm pretty new to woodturning, and so far have always used pre-dried wood.
I moved into a lakeside community last spring, so this summer I've started
to collect logs from people in the development that I find cutting down
trees. Although I stored the logs in my basement (where I thought they
would dry out slow enough not to crack, all of the logs have stress cracks
on the ends. The average size is 8 - 12" in diameter and approx 24" long.

Is it possible to make a homebrew preservative to apply to the ends of my
logs? I have no local place to purchase it, and to purchase a gallon at
an
online store and have it shipped, I would be concerned about it arriving
in
one piece. Plus the additional cost of the shipping. ($7.00 at Woodcraft
for a gallon jug). I've never used it before, but assume that a gallon
wouldn't go far either.

Would melting old candles and apply the wax to the ends do the same job?
Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Also, how long will it take for the logs to get dry enough to turn?
(dry -
as in not green wood that would not warp considerably after turning like
green turned bowls do). My basement is fairly dry with a constant
temperature of around 65 degrees. I say fairly dry-- I have a cement
floor
in the basement with a (submerged) sump pump but also run a dehumidifier
(I
have my workshop down there).
--
Thanks...JEB

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