Drying Question

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ToddMR

ToddMR

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Joined
May 3, 2010
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Location
Columbus, OH
So I was on vacation the last week and last Monday I went to Old Man's Cave in Hocking Hills, OH. On our 8 mile hike I grabbed a small piece of wood laying on the ground and a larger piece. They appeared to be good size rounds from a branch that had just been laying on the ground. Now the ends were banged up so I cut them off with the band saw and then sealed the ends with CA gel.

I have no idea what kind of wood it is. The bark is still on it too. It could be hemlock, oak, or even yew. The hemlock and yew appear to be abundant in the trails. I haven't measured it but I know the one piece could easily get a 10mm hole drilled, and the other could do most other kits easy. If you need dimensions I can do that and post them later. Trying to figure out how long to let it dry before turning. Thank you in advance for any suggestions.
 
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The question would be, any guesses with how long I should dry these branches? A branch on the ground I would guess would require less dry time then a log?
 
The general rule I follow is one month per inch of thickness for air drying wood. But that is what I have found works well here where it is very dry.
 
Todd, you might pick up a small moisture meter and follow the %age of moisture in it. I use an inexpensive one and turn scale civil war artillery shells once they get under 5%. Its been mentioned on here that drying in a microwave can be done for a few minuets-let it cool and then repeat for a few times but I would use a meter to check it then. Even laying on the ground it may have absorbed some H2O.
 
Thanks everyone. That gives me something to go on. I am sure it soaked up some water being on the ground too. I don't wanna use the Microwave on it since its the only one we have lol.
 
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