Any tips for working with cedar

[cseymour]

Hello all,
Any tips for working with red cedar?
I blew out a couple blanks drilling them,
Then I got one drilled and tubed, it chipped to the tube while turning the pen.

I do use carbides, but if anyone has any tips / tricks would be greatly appreciated

Happy New Year


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[leehljp]

1. Stabiliize them first.

I haven't had a problem with red cedar but haven't done cedar in a long while. That said I came into a bunch of it this past year.

Sharpness counts. I have been around HSS steel for a long while and had to learn to sharpen steel to a very fine degree. That said, I have several carbide tools and I can feel the sharpness of my HSS over the carbide cutters.

Still, new/fresh carbide cutters should do it, but take small bites; same with drilling. Make sure the drill bit is sharp and take it easy. Many people with experience will say that they use the lathe for drilling. (I do too, most of the time.)

As to stabilizing them, if you don't have the equipment, coat the outside of the blank, turn it some; soak it in CA, turn it some more (a millimeter) and CA some more. . . until you get to size.

 

[aj r]

I've found that the minwax wood hardener actually works fairly well for cedar. It's not true stabilizing but serves its purpose in this case. I soaked them in it for a night and that seemed to do the trick. If you do try the wood hardener, I recommend keeping the blanks covered with tin foil when drying or they can crack. Cedar loves to crack, I found that out the hard way the first time I made a bowl out of it.

 

[cseymour]

Thank you for the great insights
Will give it a try and post some pics (hopefully) with the results

Thank you


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[jeff3285]

I made a slimline out of red cedar and it turned out nice,,it was a tail piece off of a long slab from a local hardwood company here in town,,i did put a ca finish on it and I think it turned out good,,but that's just me,,i would put a picture up but a lot of people makes negative comments about either the photo wasn't very good or they think you are bragging,,,, but I do like cedar,,,

 

[leehljp]

I made a slimline out of red cedar and it turned out nice,,it was a tail piece off of a long slab from a local hardwood company here in town,,i did put a ca finish on it and I think it turned out good,,but that's just me,,i would put a picture up but a lot of people makes negative comments about either the photo wasn't very good or they think you are bragging,,,, but I do like cedar,,,

Jeff,

It is OK to brag here! :biggrin:

 

[cseymour]

I agree fully. I don't consider it bragging, I consider it as inspiration to others


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[bmcclellan]

Be slow and use sharp tools. I have turned several pens and other things from cedar but never stabilized it.

 

[JimB]

I've only turned a few pens from cedar but never had a problem using HSS tools.

 

[JimB]

I made a slimline out of red cedar and it turned out nice,,it was a tail piece off of a long slab from a local hardwood company here in town,,i did put a ca finish on it and I think it turned out good,,but that's just me,,i would put a picture up but a lot of people makes negative comments about either the photo wasn't very good or they think you are bragging,,,, but I do like cedar,,,

I don't see the types of comments you ar talking about. Some people post in the Pen Photography forum on here instead of the Show Off Your Pens forum and when they do they are expecting comments on their photography and pen skills. Some members have been on here a long time and know each other very well so you may see some friendly 'bragging' comments. If you think there is inappropriate comments being made there is a system in place to report them by clicking on the yellow triangle for that post. That will report the issue to those who monitor the forums.

 

[fernhills]

I have turned lots of pens out of red cedar, and a couple of lamps. I use to have a cut glass lamp on a nightstand, went to hit the alarm and knocked it off and broke it in half with a bunch of small pieces as well. Had some red cedar posts left from our deck and so i turned the lamp wood parts out of that, still is by my bed. Just need to be careful. Stabilized products are not always the answer. Just a little practice.