Need help on preparing green wood for turning

[jedgerton]

On a recent hiking outing, I cut a piece of green Aspen wood. I want to turn a pen from this wood but have never prepared any green wood for turning and I've never worked with Aspen. Any recommendations?

John

 

[KenV]

I have had good success with the denatured alcohol (DNA) soak for pieces cut into rough pen blanks. If the wood piece is large enough, split it through the pith and rough it into blanks on the bandsaw. Stack the blank shapes in a container and pour DNA over it to cover. Close the container and let it set for a few days to a few weeks and take the blanks out and allow them to air dry for a few days.

Microwave drying is popular with some, but can strain the bonds if caught by the Microwave Police (She Who Must Be Obeyed).

 

[Fred]

John, Take a trip over to Steven Russell's website and read what he has to say concerning 'Boiling Wood'. I have been trying his recommendations with great success. Just be sure to follow Steven's directions exactly as he tells you. Unless you are planning on doing a considerable amount of green wood preparation the cost of a 'boiling pot' (Northern Tools) about $40-$60 excluding the propane tank, might be prohibitive for you. I do a fair amount of bowl turning and I always boil my blanks. It also helps greatly in getting the wax off the surfaces really well.

The article(s) are at http://www.woodturningvideosplus.com/index.html.

I bet you will learn a lot of other good stuff while there as well. Take an hour or so and cruise through all that he writes about. Quite an intelligent fellow and he also is a member of the IAP. []

 

[raltenhofen]

Alcohol and boiling are good methods. You can also try freezing the wood. The ice crystals break the cell walls which allows the water to evaporate quicker.

Whatever method you use, weigh the piece before you start. Then weigh periodically through the process. You are done when the weight stabilizes.

 

[MikeD]

I found this article on line and got a chance to try it on some Black Ash Burl. You can see the results here:
http://www.penturners.org/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=25672

I also did some cherry burl. The burl wood shrinks and twists pretty dramatically. I haven't tried anything with a straight grain to see the effect.

Here is the link to the article:
http://www3.sympatico.ca/3jdw8/microwavedrying.htm

 

[Petricore]

What I have done in the past (may not be the best way) is to cut the blank oversized, drill the blank for the tubes that will go in it, and let it air dry for a week with the end grains sealed with wax. Come back and if the wood has moved, redrill it and rewax and sit another week. Keep going till the wood doesnt move and the barrell can still sit in it ok. Only problem with this method is sometimes you can get the barrel hole a little big in some spots, but using poly glue seemed to fill those in no prob.

 

[Kalai]

Hi everyone, when I make bowls I rough cut them into the basic shape and let them air dry for 6 months to a year then I finish the bowl, this does not apply to pens but I wanted to say you guys have some good ideas about drying wood, I will be trying them out, aloha.

Kalai[8D]

 

[jedgerton]

Thanks everyone. It looks like there is more than one way to skin a cat! I'm trying the denatured alcohol method. I just have the one piece of wood that I collected on this outing so I hope it works. Thanks for all of the good input. I'm sure it will come in good on future collections.

John

 

[mdburn_em]

Originally posted by Petricore
<br />What I have done in the past (may not be the best way) is to cut the blank oversized, drill the blank for the tubes that will go in it, and let it air dry for a week with the end grains sealed with wax. Come back and if the wood has moved, redrill it and rewax and sit another week. Keep going till the wood doesnt move and the barrell can still sit in it ok. Only problem with this method is sometimes you can get the barrel hole a little big in some spots, but using poly glue seemed to fill those in no prob.

I second this.