Turning Spruce II
 

The first bowl I roughed out and bagged 5 days ago split across. I
endgrain sealed the remaining 5. And it is STICKY. I had a pair of
those thin knit gloves with the plastic coated palms that I use when
handling this stuff, otherwise I would look like the tar baby.
--
Gerald Ross
Cochran, GA

This is a test. Had it been an actual
attack, the warning system wouldn't
have worked.

Turning Spruce II
 

On 12/21/2010 02:42 AM, Gerald Ross wrote:
The first bowl I roughed out and bagged 5 days ago split across. I
endgrain sealed the remaining 5. And it is STICKY. I had a pair of those
thin knit gloves with the plastic coated palms that I use when handling
this stuff, otherwise I would look like the tar baby.

The sap will wreak havoc w/a varnish type finish. I'd recommend either
using shellac or an oil finish.

Or you could cook it in the over at around 350 for a couple hours to
crystalize the sap. This is best done when your wife will be gone for
an extended period. It's a hard one to blame on the dog...

--
Kevin Miller - http://www.alaska.net/~atftb
Juneau, Alaska
In a recent survey, 7 out of 10 hard drives preferred Linux
Registered Linux User No: 307357, http://counter.li.org

Turning Spruce II
 

On 12/21/2010 3:42 AM, Gerald Ross wrote:
The first bowl I roughed out and bagged 5 days ago split across. I
endgrain sealed the remaining 5. And it is STICKY. I had a pair of those
thin knit gloves with the plastic coated palms that I use when handling
this stuff, otherwise I would look like the tar baby.

if you turn it to about 1/8 inch (or thinner) immediately, it won't
split and it will make an attractive bowl - the sap will help keep it
translucent

Turning Spruce II
 

Kevin Miller wrote:
On 12/21/2010 02:42 AM, Gerald Ross wrote:
The first bowl I roughed out and bagged 5 days ago split across. I
endgrain sealed the remaining 5. And it is STICKY. I had a pair of those
thin knit gloves with the plastic coated palms that I use when handling
this stuff, otherwise I would look like the tar baby.

The sap will wreak havoc w/a varnish type finish. I'd recommend either
using shellac or an oil finish.

Or you could cook it in the over at around 350 for a couple hours to
crystalize the sap. This is best done when your wife will be gone for
an extended period. It's a hard one to blame on the dog...

Sounds scary.

--
Gerald Ross
Cochran, GA

This is a test. Had it been an actual
attack, the warning system wouldn't
have worked.

Turning Spruce II
 

Bill Noble wrote:
On 12/21/2010 3:42 AM, Gerald Ross wrote:
The first bowl I roughed out and bagged 5 days ago split across. I
endgrain sealed the remaining 5. And it is STICKY. I had a pair of those
thin knit gloves with the plastic coated palms that I use when handling
this stuff, otherwise I would look like the tar baby.

if you turn it to about 1/8 inch (or thinner) immediately, it won't
split and it will make an attractive bowl - the sap will help keep it
translucent

Gotcha. That takes care of the cracking. But where does the sanding
come in? While it is wet and sticky? Or after firing it as Kevin
suggested. Maybe boiling it in dish washing detergent would take care
of everything.

--
Gerald Ross
Cochran, GA

This is a test. Had it been an actual
attack, the warning system wouldn't
have worked.

Turning Spruce II
 

On 12/22/2010 04:04 AM, Gerald Ross wrote:
Kevin Miller wrote:
On 12/21/2010 02:42 AM, Gerald Ross wrote:
The first bowl I roughed out and bagged 5 days ago split across. I
endgrain sealed the remaining 5. And it is STICKY. I had a pair of those
thin knit gloves with the plastic coated palms that I use when handling
this stuff, otherwise I would look like the tar baby.

The sap will wreak havoc w/a varnish type finish. I'd recommend either
using shellac or an oil finish.

Or you could cook it in the over at around 350 for a couple hours to
crystalize the sap. This is best done when your wife will be gone for
an extended period. It's a hard one to blame on the dog...

Sounds scary.

Only if you get caught! ;-)

--
Kevin Miller - http://www.alaska.net/~atftb
Juneau, Alaska
In a recent survey, 7 out of 10 hard drives preferred Linux
Registered Linux User No: 307357, http://counter.li.org

Turning Spruce II
 

Kevin Miller wrote:
On 12/22/2010 04:04 AM, Gerald Ross wrote:
Kevin Miller wrote:
On 12/21/2010 02:42 AM, Gerald Ross wrote:
The first bowl I roughed out and bagged 5 days ago split across. I
endgrain sealed the remaining 5. And it is STICKY. I had a pair of those
thin knit gloves with the plastic coated palms that I use when handling
this stuff, otherwise I would look like the tar baby.

The sap will wreak havoc w/a varnish type finish. I'd recommend either
using shellac or an oil finish.

Or you could cook it in the over at around 350 for a couple hours to
crystalize the sap. This is best done when your wife will be gone for
an extended period. It's a hard one to blame on the dog...

Sounds scary.

Only if you get caught! ;-)

I would think this would split the wood into toothpicks since it has a
tendency to split even in a paper bag. Unless you mean after the bowl
is dry.

--
Gerald Ross
Cochran, GA

This is a test. Had it been an actual
attack, the warning system wouldn't
have worked.

Turning Spruce II
 

On 12/22/2010 09:49 AM, Gerald Ross wrote:

I would think this would split the wood into toothpicks since it has a
tendency to split even in a paper bag. Unless you mean after the bowl is
dry.

I was thinking more along the lines of "kiln drying" the blanks before
they were turned. With lots of extra on the ends for checking.

Or letting the blank dry for six months, then cooking the roughed out
bowl prior to finish turning...

....Kevin
--
Kevin Miller
Juneau, Alaska
http://www.alaska.net/~atftb
In a recent poll, seven out of ten hard drives preferred Linux.

Turning Spruce II
 

On 12/22/2010 5:14 AM, Gerald Ross wrote:
Bill Noble wrote:
On 12/21/2010 3:42 AM, Gerald Ross wrote:
The first bowl I roughed out and bagged 5 days ago split across. I
endgrain sealed the remaining 5. And it is STICKY. I had a pair of those
thin knit gloves with the plastic coated palms that I use when handling
this stuff, otherwise I would look like the tar baby.

if you turn it to about 1/8 inch (or thinner) immediately, it won't
split and it will make an attractive bowl - the sap will help keep it
translucent

Gotcha. That takes care of the cracking. But where does the sanding come
in? While it is wet and sticky? Or after firing it as Kevin suggested.
Maybe boiling it in dish washing detergent would take care of everything.


well, what I have done is to turn it thin, apply a suitable finish (for
this purpose, oil finish) and let the finish dry, then sand and
refinish. For example, go to my web page, www.wbnoble.com, click on
hobbies/woodturning, find the gallery link and look for a eucalyptus
goblet (here is the photo directly:
http://www.wbnoble.com/wood_turning/...tus-goblet.jpg) -
eucalyptus is an oily wood and very prone to splitting, you can see that
the goblet is turned with the pith in place (very bad), and it didn't
split, though it did distort - this particular piece is finished in
lacquer, which soaked all the way through aiding in keeping it
translucent - the piece is about 10-12 inches high.

Turning Spruce II
 

I have never turned spruce but a few years ago got ahold of some beautiful
but horribly sticky pine. Afer some experimentation, what worked for me
was:
rough turn
seal the end grain and bag for several months
finish turn
wipe down with solvent (don't recall what I used)
sand
wipe down with solvent again
seal with shellac
apply whatever final finish you prefer

Best of luck. If it's not unusully pretty wood, it's not worth it.

Mike Paulson, Fort Collins, CO

Turning Spruce II
 

Mike Paulson wrote:
I have never turned spruce but a few years ago got ahold of some beautiful
but horribly sticky pine. Afer some experimentation, what worked for me
was:
rough turn
seal the end grain and bag for several months
finish turn
wipe down with solvent (don't recall what I used)
sand
wipe down with solvent again
seal with shellac
apply whatever final finish you prefer

Best of luck. If it's not unusully pretty wood, it's not worth it.

Mike Paulson, Fort Collins, CO

Thanks, Mike. Sounds like a sensible plan. I am sealing the end
grain and bagging. And the wiping down sounds good. It's not
unusually pretty wood, in fact resembles plywood, but it came from in
front of the chamber of commerce which used to be the city high school
and there will be a lot of interest in these bowls.

--
Gerald Ross
Cochran, GA

This is a test. Had it been an actual
attack, the warning system wouldn't
have worked.

Turning Spruce II
 

Bill Noble wrote:
On 12/22/2010 5:14 AM, Gerald Ross wrote:
Bill Noble wrote:
On 12/21/2010 3:42 AM, Gerald Ross wrote:
The first bowl I roughed out and bagged 5 days ago split across. I
endgrain sealed the remaining 5. And it is STICKY. I had a pair of those
thin knit gloves with the plastic coated palms that I use when handling
this stuff, otherwise I would look like the tar baby.

if you turn it to about 1/8 inch (or thinner) immediately, it won't
split and it will make an attractive bowl - the sap will help keep it
translucent

Gotcha. That takes care of the cracking. But where does the sanding come
in? While it is wet and sticky? Or after firing it as Kevin suggested.
Maybe boiling it in dish washing detergent would take care of everything.


well, what I have done is to turn it thin, apply a suitable finish (for
this purpose, oil finish) and let the finish dry, then sand and
refinish. For example, go to my web page, www.wbnoble.com, click on
hobbies/woodturning, find the gallery link and look for a eucalyptus
goblet (here is the photo directly:
http://www.wbnoble.com/wood_turning/...tus-goblet.jpg) -
eucalyptus is an oily wood and very prone to splitting, you can see that
the goblet is turned with the pith in place (very bad), and it didn't
split, though it did distort - this particular piece is finished in
lacquer, which soaked all the way through aiding in keeping it
translucent - the piece is about 10-12 inches high.

My hat's off to you Bill. Anyone who can turn something bigger than a
pencil out of Eucalyptus and have it stay in one piece has gotta be a pro.

--
Gerald Ross
Cochran, GA

This is a test. Had it been an actual
attack, the warning system wouldn't
have worked.

Turning Spruce II
 

On 12/24/2010 5:30 AM, Gerald Ross wrote:
Bill Noble wrote:
On 12/22/2010 5:14 AM, Gerald Ross wrote:
Bill Noble wrote:
On 12/21/2010 3:42 AM, Gerald Ross wrote:
The first bowl I roughed out and bagged 5 days ago split across. I
endgrain sealed the remaining 5. And it is STICKY. I had a pair of
those
thin knit gloves with the plastic coated palms that I use when
handling
this stuff, otherwise I would look like the tar baby.

if you turn it to about 1/8 inch (or thinner) immediately, it won't
split and it will make an attractive bowl - the sap will help keep it
translucent

Gotcha. That takes care of the cracking. But where does the sanding come
in? While it is wet and sticky? Or after firing it as Kevin suggested.
Maybe boiling it in dish washing detergent would take care of
everything.


well, what I have done is to turn it thin, apply a suitable finish (for
this purpose, oil finish) and let the finish dry, then sand and
refinish. For example, go to my web page, www.wbnoble.com, click on
hobbies/woodturning, find the gallery link and look for a eucalyptus
goblet (here is the photo directly:
http://www.wbnoble.com/wood_turning/...tus-goblet.jpg) -
eucalyptus is an oily wood and very prone to splitting, you can see that
the goblet is turned with the pith in place (very bad), and it didn't
split, though it did distort - this particular piece is finished in
lacquer, which soaked all the way through aiding in keeping it
translucent - the piece is about 10-12 inches high.

My hat's off to you Bill. Anyone who can turn something bigger than a
pencil out of Eucalyptus and have it stay in one piece has gotta be a pro.


I appreciate the complement, but I was trying to make a point here, and
that specifically was that anything will stay together and not crack if
you turn it thin. For your specific needs, I think that is what I would
do - you probably don't need to go to the 1/16" that I went to, but you
need to be well under 1/4, probably about 1/8 inch, turn it wet, and
turn it to finish dimensions in one session, DO NOT take a break and let
it dry out. Then either boil it for an hour, or put it aside and let it
warp any way it wants to. It will dry in a day or so, then you can sand
and finish it. Boiling will reduce the warpage, but I like bowls that
are twisted and warped, just make the foot flat so it doesn't rock

Turning Spruce II
 

We had some spruce come down in our backyard in wind storms. I didn't keep
a lot just a piece or two the sap is just too annoying and the wood is not
that interesting to me. I just turned it to an even wall thickness for
twice turning (10% rule), dated and marked it spruce, sealed the entire
bowl, I let it dry for a few weeks on the floor and then threw it in an open
box for at least 1 year. Spruce and pine have always been pretty stable for
me at least. Also with the Anchorseal method I have lost very few bowls, I
seal the whole bowl. The bag method may work but I don't like having to
check and reverse paper or bags all the time.


"Gerald Ross" wrote in message
...
The first bowl I roughed out and bagged 5 days ago split across. I
endgrain sealed the remaining 5. And it is STICKY. I had a pair of
those thin knit gloves with the plastic coated palms that I use when
handling this stuff, otherwise I would look like the tar baby.
--
Gerald Ross
Cochran, GA

This is a test. Had it been an actual
attack, the warning system wouldn't
have worked.

Turning Spruce II
 

John Gbur wrote:
We had some spruce come down in our backyard in wind storms. I didn't keep
a lot just a piece or two the sap is just too annoying and the wood is not
that interesting to me. I just turned it to an even wall thickness for
twice turning (10% rule), dated and marked it spruce, sealed the entire
bowl, I let it dry for a few weeks on the floor and then threw it in an open
box for at least 1 year. Spruce and pine have always been pretty stable for
me at least. Also with the Anchorseal method I have lost very few bowls, I
seal the whole bowl. The bag method may work but I don't like having to
check and reverse paper or bags all the time.

Thanks.

I have sealed the end grain of all the remaining bowls. If another
one cracks I will seal the whole bowl on the remainder and try that.
--
Gerald Ross
Cochran, GA

Never confuse endurance with hospitality.