Help, I'm turning green
 

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.

CB

Help, I'm turning green
 

"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.

Help, I'm turning green
 

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.

Help, I'm turning green
 

for a light wood, turn thin - I like about 1/8 to 1/16 inch so it's
transparent, then oil to help transparancy - it won't crack and it won't
warp much (generally) when it's really thin - and all the non-turners can
"ooh-aaahhh" over the translucence. use a light to help turn to uniform
thickness (put light on outside, turn inside to uniform brightness
"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.

CB




--
Posted via a free Usenet account from http://www.teranews.com

Help, I'm turning green
 

These guys are correct, however if you want a bowl that isn't warped,
rough turn it wet, to a wall thickness of 10% of the overall diameter.
Wax the outside and let it sit for 6-9 months. Or you can fire it in
the microwave on defrost for a few minutes, letting it cool inbetween.
That'll speed things up considerably. weigh it and once it stops losing
weight it's done. Both of these methods I've had excellent success
with. A few bowls do warp, slightly.
dustyone wrote:
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.

CB

Help, I'm turning green
 

You have some great answers here. One alternative is to turn a natural edged
bowl. These are generally of eliptical or oval shape and the warp as they
dry follows the shape of the bowl. Take a look here for ideas
http://aroundthewoods.com/natedge.shtml

______
God bless and safe turning
Darrell Feltmate
Truro, NS, Canada
www.aroundthewoods.com
wrote in message
ups.com...
These guys are correct, however if you want a bowl that isn't warped,
rough turn it wet, to a wall thickness of 10% of the overall diameter.
Wax the outside and let it sit for 6-9 months. Or you can fire it in
the microwave on defrost for a few minutes, letting it cool inbetween.
That'll speed things up considerably. weigh it and once it stops losing
weight it's done. Both of these methods I've had excellent success
with. A few bowls do warp, slightly.
dustyone wrote:
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.

CB

Help, I'm turning green
 

Ok... so I have a question..

I have some DRY firewood, (bottom of the pile for 1 or 2 years). Providing
theres no serious checks or splits, no reason I can't try turning it to
final size?

Mike

"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.

CB

Help, I'm turning green
 

I had some dry rounds of walnut. The tree had died standing about 4
years ago. Cut down and on ground for a year. Cut into log sections 2
years ago. The round was about 20 inches in diameter, and 30 inches
long. Turned 2 weeks ago. It still moved. Drying rate to equilibrium in
the 12 to 15% moisture content, takes about 1 year per inch of
thickness. Dry wood for furniture is about 6 to 8 %. It will move some,
but not as much as fresh cut in the spring wood.
robo hippy
Mike Mac wrote:
Ok... so I have a question..

I have some DRY firewood, (bottom of the pile for 1 or 2 years). Providing
theres no serious checks or splits, no reason I can't try turning it to
final size?

Mike

"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.

CB

Help, I'm turning green
 

"Mike Mac" wrote in message
...
Ok... so I have a question..

I have some DRY firewood, (bottom of the pile for 1 or 2 years).
Providing theres no serious checks or splits, no reason I can't try
turning it to final size?

You may turn it to final size, but it will probably move a bit anyway.
Simply put, wood is influenced by the relative humidity of its environment.
The percentages and rules of thumb people spout are meaningless and often
worse - incorrect. It's a case of equilibrium with surroundings or not.
The greater the section of the wood, the greater the possible differential
between the interior and surface. Could be the interior is dryer than the
surface, most likely the reverse. If you're talking wood made green but
under cover outdoors where air could circulate for a couple of years,
should be able to turn smaller pieces or the kind of work that cares nothing
about warp start to finish. If you're talking wood stored indoors, you can
probably count on making a round piece that will stay pretty round, changing
only with its environment.

Nothing we make on the lathe is ever round for long.

The firewood on the bottom of my stacks is generally the wettest, not the
driest. Lack of circulation and proximity to the ground keep it from drying
like the stuff up top in the sun.