Damn nail!

[Bruce White]

Decided that I have to deal with the big Jacaranda I scored a while ago. Should take me about a week. Turned the outside of an urn/vase today which will be about 8 inches across and 10 inches high - went well. Turned it around, got about an inch in and heard, without my hearing aids, a funny "chick, chick" noise. A damn 4" nail - must have been in the tree for years, it was about central and the trunk is about 24 inches in diameter. Lucky I wasn't going like a bull at a gate! Tool OK.

I have turned it to about an inch thick and put it away in a cardboard box surrounded by shavings.
How long should I wait before finishing it?

[wheelinround]

How long has it been down?

You are lucky so far I have not had that problem, not looking forward to it either when and if it ever happens.

[hughie]

:U Been there and done that,only it was a screw that broke off on my latest piece.
The only real way is to watch the weight of the rough out and when it stops losing weight its done.

Mind you I don't always follow this. I just pick it up after a few weeks and see how it feels in the hand and go from there.

[jimbur]

Had a fright when I saw a bright spot in a piece of walnut I was turning. However, it was a shotgun pellet. Found four in all. Not sure if it was from a family feud or misplaced duck shooting.:D

[Bruce White]

The tree has probably been down a couple of months now Wheelinaround.

Haven't done much, but the good thing about green turning is the way the long shavings just spin off. The downside is half doing the job - this having to wait to finish it has knobs on it! I think that I might have to invest in some simple (if there is such a thing) & cheap (self funded retiree - curse the GFC) milling gear so I can cut blanks, wax them and whack them on the shelf for later use. Far sooner turn dry and finish on the day.

[bassmansimon]

To avoid this, I have heard of some people using a metal detector on timber before processing it in various power tools. With such a big chunk of timber needed for turning jobs, would this still work, or would the timber be too thick?

Also for the home handyman, would a stud finder (with AC detector) work instead of a metal detector? I'm not sure if the "AC detector" actually finds current, or if it just locates the power lines by having a little metal detector in it?

[Paul39]

Bruce,

Do a search on Google using: drying wood for turning, boiling bowls, soaking bowls in dish washing detergent, microwaving bowls.

Rough rule of thumb is one year drying time for every inch of blank thickness, assuming live tree right off the stump.

If you keep roughing out green wood into bowls, soak a few, microwave a few, soon you will have a stream lined up so that you may go to the shed several times a week and finish a bowl.

High speed steel tools were and are used to cut steel. When you hear tic, tic, tic, stop and have a look.

I have run into a granite piece with my Crown bowl gouge. It just stopped cutting, I looked, gouged out the pebble, resharpened the gouge and proceeded.

[turnerted]

In a showcase in Kiama Council Chambers, there is a large plater turned many years ago by one of our club members with a bullet in it.
I would expect this would dry in about six months, Jacarandah is very stable and doesn't distort much on drying.
Ted

[ian thorn]

If you keep it in shavings check it now and again other wise it may go mouldy as said dish wash and water 50\50 or log seal

Ian

[Uncle Al]

These are called "silver knots" and can be quite decorative, although a bit hard on your gouges etc.:)

Alan..

[powderpost]

Bore some holes around the nail and see if you can dig it out before you do some real harm. As an aside, I was turning a piece and was getting a small "flick" of something moist on my cheek. I stopped the lathe and discovered a live grub steadily being cut into thin slices from the back end. :eat:
Jim

[RETIRED]

Bore some holes around the nail and see if you can dig it out before you do some real harm. As an aside, I was turning a piece and was getting a small "flick" of something moist on my cheek. I stopped the lathe and discovered a live grub steadily being cut into thin slices from the back end. :eat:
JimHad that happen a few times myself.

Witchetty or common?:wink:

The worst bit of debris that I have come across was a railway spike. Tore the edge right off the chisel and nearly took my hand with it.

We have a platter here that has about 4 round ball lead shots in it. Ned Kelly perhaps?

[Paul39]

the worst bit of debris that i have come across was a railway spike. Tore the edge right off the chisel and nearly took my hand with it.

oooohhhhh!!!!

[powderpost]

A wood turner in Ayr, (Queensland), Cut up a black bean tree and discovered a gold fob watch buried in the fork of the tree. No, it wasn't still working.
Sorry about the thread hijack.
Jim

[dr4g0nfly]

As Paul39 says, an inch per year is a good rule of thumb, but for boards cur through & through. If you've turned it you've opened grain ends all over it. Assuming that you've part turned it to about 10% above the finished dimensions, the hardest thing will now be to stop it splitting.

Yes keep it in shavings but in a breathable bag and rotate the contents with dry shavings regularly. You should be able to take it out of the bag in 2 or 3 months but then keep it in a cool dry area of your workshop while it stabilises to the normal air and finished drying.

Depending upon the season (it's winter here in the UK) I'd then bring it into a cool area of the home (not near the heating radiators) to let it fully dry to home conditions, total say 6 months.

[Christos]

....... As an aside, I was turning a piece and was getting a small "flick" of something moist on my cheek. I stopped the lathe and discovered a live grub steadily being cut into thin slices from the back end.....


Note to myself. "Keep mouth closed when turning"

[RETIRED]

Note to myself. "Keep mouth closed when turning"Or wear a face shield. Still hard to clean off though.:D

[Mobyturns]

Bore some holes around the nail and see if you can dig it out before you do some real harm. As an aside, I was turning a piece and was getting a small "flick" of something moist on my cheek. I stopped the lathe and discovered a live grub steadily being cut into thin slices from the back end. :eat:
Jim

One of those big buggars in burdekin plum??? :D Enjoy the snack but spitting out the saw dust is a buggar. :p

[smiife]

hi bruce,
i have turned quite a lot of jacaranda and have found it hardly needs any drying
at all.i turned a tall vase a while ago and made as thin as i could go wanting it to warp and crack
twist and split and to date still nothing:~
this piece was cut down and turned within 2 weeks.
cheers smiife:2tsup:

[Bruce White]

Thanks Smiife, I will turn some to finished and see how I go. Tomorrow - my darling Wife said that I have hermitted in the shed enough the last week and that we are having some quality time together today!

[Trent The Thief]

Has anyone tried the alcohol soaking method? Just curious.

[Heilander]

I find if i'm soaked in alcohol my bowls turn out funny ?

[Bruce White]

I find if i'm soaked in alcohol my bowls turn out funny ?

I sometimes find that happens if I am NOT. If you are, you don't care!

[Trent The Thief]

Seriously? No one's tried out soaking in denatured alcohol?

[Paul39]

Seriously? No one's tried out soaking in denatured alcohol?

Apparently not. I have done everything but that and PEG. Have a look here:

https://www.google.com/#hl=en&sugexp=les%3B&gs_rn=1&gs_ri=hp&gs_mss=soaking%20rou&tok=2nb-zl2IQgrqGj5ie6-zog&cp=39&gs_id=189&xhr=t&q=soaking+rough+bowl+in+denatured+alcohol&pf=p&tbo=d&biw=853&bih=506&sclient=psy-ab&oq=soaking+rough+bowl+in+denatured+alcohol&gs_l=&pbx=1&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_qf.&bvm=bv.1355534169,d.dmQ&fp=31229be95c8561f6&bpcl=40096503

[Heilander]

Seriously? No one's tried out soaking in denatured alcohol?

us Ozzies call it metho (needs orange juice) :wmann3::roll:
avagoodone :ausflag:

[rsser]

Backtracking a bit: I dragged home a nature strip find of some pale timber. Blocked it down and then went to round a lump on the bandsaw.

Got in aways; push a bit, no progress, push a bit more, still nothing. Decide the blade needs replacing. Orig. blade it was which you can expect to be rubbish (but expectations can be your undoing).

New blade: same deal. Shouldn't be.

With further dissection the prob. turned out to be nail punch driven into the log and well grown over.

Other lumps were great, turned green. Down to thin the stuff was almost plastic in shaping and deforming.

[Trent The Thief]

us Ozzies call it metho (needs orange juice) :wmann3::roll:
avagoodone :ausflag:

Methanol is wood alcohol. Ethanol is grain alcohol. De-natured ethanol alcohol has been made poisonous and unfit for consumption.

The alcohol works like a brine but replaces the water content in the wood. YOu can have a bowl ready to finish turn in less than a week.

I was curious if turner in .AU are using it, too.

[Mobyturns]

Methanol is wood alcohol. Ethanol is grain alcohol. De-natured ethanol alcohol has been made poisonous and unfit for consumption.

The alcohol works like a brine but replaces the water content in the wood. YOu can have a bowl ready to finish turn in less than a week.

I was curious if turner in .AU are using it, too.

I think it is highly dependent upon the cell structure in the wood & our Aussie hardwoods may not give as consistent results as softwoods.

[Trent The Thief]

I think it is highly dependent upon the cell structure in the wood & our Aussie hardwoods may not give as consistent results as softwoods.

Who said anything about softwood ;-)

Turners in the US turn prize wood for the same qualities as you and turn tropical hardwoods just like you. Wood is wood. As long as it's made of cellulose, it'll react the same way.

The types of minerals that a particular species might take up differs by region, but doesn't affect the bio/chemical process, that only changes rapidity with which a tool is dulled.