Fresh Bois De Arc (BODARK)

[masteele64]

Hello

I am new to penturning and also trying to turn a few duck calls. I was recently given 2 slabs of freshly cut and milled Bois De Ark.

My question is, how long should I let it dry before I turn something out of it?

It has been cut and out of the saw mill for maybe a month and it has a bright yellow color.

Mark
Conway, Ar

 

[Dario]

I've read that Osage Orange takes a long time to dry but I don't know how slow.

On all wood, note that the smaller the size, the faster it dries...so cut them to pen blanks (as soon as possible) if that is what you intend to use them for. Other factors that influence drying are; heat, air movement, and humidity.

Do note that some wood are prone to cracking if it dries super fast so you have to find a good "compromise".

I use the microwave drying method a lot whenever I need anything dried "today".

 

[Hello]

cut it into blanks, wraps it in paper bags and play with it this time next year...that isn't a definite time frame, just a guess based on experience

 

[Rifleman1776]

I turn a lot of OO. And, yes, it can take a while to dry. For pen blanks, seal the ends and heat in microwave. I stack so air can circulate and give about 30 second zaps then let stand for a week or so. Experiment. For the duck calls, you can rough turn on centers to a little larger than final size then bore your holes and wait a couple weeks or gently micro zap.

 

[MarkHix]

I've turned a little OO. The yellow color will fade over time. Some of the larger green turned pieces have developed cracks as they dried.

 

[Pastor John]

The rule of thumb is that it needs to dry for one year plus a year for each inch of wood thickness.

 

[Rifleman1776]

Originally posted by Pastor John

The rule of thumb is that it needs to dry for one year plus a year for each inch of wood thickness.

That may be true for some species in uncut lumber. But, my experience with OO is that pen blanks, stored properly will dry much quicker than that.

 

[JohnU]

Ive cut green OO and soaked in denatured alcohol for a couple days then wrap in newspaper and let sit for abouth a month or two and had no problems turning, only it was pen blank size so time would be longer for call blanks. Ive had small few crack but only because I left the heart center in the blank and these alway seen to crack, so make sure you cut your blanks around the center and not include it in your blank.

 

[masteele64]

Thanks for all the feedback. I cut it to blank size tonight and am going to let it dry for a couple of months and see what it looks like.

I was told by one person that he knows a call maker that buries his bodark in trhe ground for 5 years prior to turning. Anybody ever heard of that? interesting concept.

MArk

 

[Dario]

Originally posted by masteele64

Thanks for all the feedback. I cut it to blank size tonight and am going to let it dry for a couple of months and see what it looks like.

I was told by one person that he knows a call maker that buries his bodark in trhe ground for 5 years prior to turning. Anybody ever heard of that? interesting concept.

MArk

Not sure. Depends on what you want to accomplish by doing that. If you just want to dry the wood, there are better ways to accomplish it.

I know a guy whose dad soaks Persimmon blanks in peanut oil for 5 years to make wooden head gold clubs. That I can relate to.

 

[Rifleman1776]

Originally posted by masteele64

Thanks for all the feedback. I cut it to blank size tonight and am going to let it dry for a couple of months and see what it looks like.

I was told by one person that he knows a call maker that buries his bodark in trhe ground for 5 years prior to turning. Anybody ever heard of that? interesting concept.

MArk

Agree. Interesting concept. First: who can wait that long? And, I would think he, or you, would be lucky to still find the wood after five years. OO doesn't rot readily, in fact it resists rot. However, there is a worm/buggie that loves to eat it and, methinks, after five years it could be consumed.

 

[redfishsc]

Originally posted by masteele64

Hello

I am new to penturning and also trying to turn a few duck calls. I was recently given 2 slabs of freshly cut and milled Bois De Ark.

My question is, how long should I let it dry before I turn something out of it?

It has been cut and out of the saw mill for maybe a month and it has a bright yellow color.

Mark
Conway, Ar

I do NOT use the microwave method since it smells up the house and it's the only microwave I have.

You do not need to make lumber that is pen-blank sized wait a year before turning. Granted, we're not talking about oily woods like ebony or cocobolo.

Here is what I do. I have done this with Osage, osage burl, cherry, oak, oak burl, magnolia, crepe myrtle, and honey locust with excellent success. Dried pen blanks in two months easily. I have had people tell me that this method will not work for this reason and that, but the proof is in the pudding

1) Buy a gallon of either Denatured Alcohol and an empty, 1 gallon paint can.

2) Cut the blanks 5.5" long if you can, and 1/8" bigger than you normally would use (I cut mine 7/8" normally, good for basically any pen).

3) Soak the blanks overnight in the DNA.

4) Take them out, wrap the whole lot in 5 layers or so of newspaper and put them aside for a month. Remove after a month and stack them LOOSELY or lay them out flat so they get plenty of air movement. One month in the paper, one month out. Has worked for me very well.



Osage done this way dressed in a black-ti cigar.