Uneven drying and what to do with it.

[Big A]

I have done a search for this but to no avail.

I have a lump of wood, about 160mm in diameter and a 130mm high that has just the outside roughed off. It has been drying in the backyard for a few months, without the benefit of any sealer, so a lot of the wood has had to be removed because of cracking. What I have left has some wet spots in it, but most of it is dry. Probably about a third of the wood is moist/wet.

What would be the best thing to do with this in regard to getting the whole piece to roughly the same moisture level? At the moment I have it in a plastic bag, thinking that the moisture might equalise. If it was evenly moist, I would turn it to "thick" and run it through the microwave enough times before finishing turning and slapping some WOP on it.

For what it is worth, the timber is a paperbark ti-tree, more than likely Weeping Paperbark, from a place up the Fitzroy River. I have turned a bowl from it wet (really wet!) and microwaved it. Soft as wet, hard dry, and the finished product did not really excite me as the wood is a bit bland. The property owners seemed to like it though.

Your advice would be appreciated,
Alister.

[powderpost]

Alister, a couple of ideas for you to consider. Rough turn to about 19mm thick then use the microwave, or, put the rough turned bowl into a box of shavings for six months. Alternatively put the rough turned bowl into a plastic bag for a week then take it out and replace it into the bag after the bag is turned inside out. In both cases, weigh the blank on a fortnight basis until there is no more loss of weight. This will give you some time to consider what to do for a final shape.

Don't try to microwave the solid block, it will develop internal cracks that may test your resolve.. :~

Jim

[Big A]

Thanks, Jim.

So you think that going ahead and rough turning with the wet spots will work out OK? I was thinking that there would be some extra stresses with the uneven moisture?

Alister.

[Drillit]

If you can finish in one go -to final form & you don't have a microwave - then use thin CA glue as a sealer (3 coats).
Rub back between coats with 600 grit. The piece will not crack, but it may warp. Warping is attractive. You can then final finish as you require.
Hope this helps - works for me. Beware of fumes from CA. Drillit.

[Big A]

Thanks, Drillit.

I will go ahead and turn it, see what happens and decide what to do then. It will be experience for me and not much loss if it ends up in the wheelie bin.

Alister.

[Christos]

Interested to find out what the results you get.

I have one piece that is in the same position as the one you have. I rough turned it and brown paper bagged it with the savings.

[Big A]

Christos,
You asked me to report progress with the uneven drying. Not going too good. I rough turned the bowl, but perhaps a bit thin. I sucked 154gm of water out of a 988gm blank in the microwave and it started to go really oval, so I put it back on the lathe.

The previous time I had turned this Paperbark, it went oval too and I had forgotten that. This tree had spent all its life with its feet in water and this bit of it had been cut months ago and left with a cut end in wet sand, so it was full of it! More water, more shrinkage I suppose.

Anyhow, I have had another cut at it, and will probably end up with something a bit bigger than a lolly dish! I find that oval things are harder to turn than out of round blanks, and this wood is fairly hard when it is dry and tears out easily (for me). Instead of that even chhhhh sound, I get chh chh and feel a little tug on the gouge when I tear a piece out. That is with what I call a sharp gouge – might need to be sharper, and a light touch.

Maybe I should have done what Drillit said. I think I woulld have got warp, all right.

Oh well, it is all experience. I still have to go to the local Woodturners Guild to see how it is done properly.

Cheers,
Alister.

[Christos]

It seems that it has not turned out too good.

[Big A]

It is a bit like the Curates egg "On the contrary Sir, it is quite good in parts!" When it has a bit more WOP on it I will post a photo. The outside came up fairly well, but the inside is a bit rough with some tearout that I could quite not get rid of. You know, the next cut might be one cut too many problem.

Actually, the drying might have been successful - just the wood and my ability might be the main factors.

Cheers,
Alister.