5 pounds of crack, ruined the day.

[artful bodger]

Usually get our firewood in thirteen tonne loads of logs. Last time we got a load I cut a few larger bowl blanks out of the green wood, sealed the ends and all the blanks cracked.
This time decided to turn one green (dripping wet) to see how it might go. Have got away with this in the past with minor species timbers so thought it'd be an interesting project.
The timber is Tassie oak and the bowl dimensions after turning are 450mm dia x 110mm high.
The outside turned nicely, did not bother with sanding as it was too wet. Put in 4 grooves near the top edge and burnt em black with some wire hoping they would highlight the expected warping later on.
Inside of the bowl was going well until a "crack" noise was heard followed by the bowl suddenly turning not so true. Turned lathe off and sure enough there is a crack in the wood. Taped up the outside of the bowl to stop it flying apart completely and turned the rest of the inside shape.
Following pictures are taken one week later. I quite like the warping that has gone on so far however the crack has kind of ruined things.
438817438818438821438828
The diameter of the bowl is still 450mm at the largest diameter however it now has a small diameter of 390mm.
The colour in the above pics looks a tad bland as the timber is drying out, picture below shows it with a slosh of water on the inside.
438827
Put a few hours into this thing so am reluctant to just throw it out. Will wait till its dried out and in the meantime ponder a possible save. Weighed it today to monitor drying, 2776grams/5 pounds.
Cheers

[dai sensei]

happens. What was the timber?

[artful bodger]

Tassie oak, meaning it could be any big gum tree here really.

[tony_A]

I think the bowl is well worth persevering with AB. First thought is to try a couple of butterflies to hold the bowl together when it has stabilised a little.

Tony

[smiife]

Hi AB , the drug squad is gonna knock on your door at any moment........
5 POUNDS OF CRACK !!!!!!!!! :doh::doh:
Seriously I would just wait and see what happens, looks like it will be
an interesting bowl .......

[brainstrust]

there's nothing that can sound pleasant in a sentence containing "5 pounds of crack" :U

[brainstrust]

if it still looks like it does in the pics, i think it looks great. very rustic and the crack doesn't detracted from it much.

[KBs PensNmore]

Love the shape of it. I'd be inclined to do one of two things, either put a wire twitch in it or as some might call it a bowtie, the other being fill it with resin and brass filings or some other kind of filling that takes your fancy.
Kryn

[Fumbler]

AB, Hopefully it doesn't dry out further and crack right the way across. As Kryn said, throw in some epoxy and she'll be apples

[Christos]

I would mix up some epoxy that has some colour added, then wait for a few months before doing anything further. The down side is that this bowl is not likely to be remounted on the lathe for sanding the epoxy so another method is required. The other option is to wait for a few months then apply the epoxy at least it gets a chance to finish cracking and drying.

[Uncle Al]

This bowl will hold heaps of jelly beans regardless of the weird shape! Maybe leave it as it is, it will be a conversation piece.

Alan...

[Paul39]

I would bind the rim with a few turns of tape to hold it close to where it is, and run some thin CA glue in to where the crack comes together. Let dry until it quits moving, then pack the crack with epoxy and contrasting color of filler, coffee grounds, dark wood shavings, etc. I will put tape on the bottom side and drizzle in CA glue, pack with shavings or coffee grounds, soak with more CA, etc. I have also used yellow glue but that takes forever to dry if packed thick. Once one site is filled slightly above the good part, take the tape off the other side and fill that. Let set up or dry and carefully hand sand and finish.

I don't much like metal savings or glass glitter, but if that is your taste, do it.

I agree the piece is too nice to pitch. Just be patient with it.

[Skew ChiDAMN!!]

Personally, I'd leave it alone and let it dry naturally. Once it's stable, then have a think about how to finish it.

That bowl is big enough that making a feature of the crack would work quite well. Sand the edges a bit to remove any sharp/splintery bits while making the crack look less... razor straight. Exaggerate it a bit. Then use wire stitch, copper staples or bow-ties to add strength and make the flaw look deliberate.

Patching will never, ever look quite right. :no: Especially if the two edges want to move relative to each other (which I'm betting they will) introducing a "step."

If you try gluing/filling now then as it dries it'll build up internal stresses that'll probably appear later on as either a failed joint or cracks elsewhere...

[bruceward51]

I have a very similar problem piece sitting on a shelf, so thanks for this thread. Mine is in Blue Mountains Ash (E. Oblique from memory) from a tree in our back yard.

I like the natural warping and will be trying to fit an epoxy 'feature' patch. My crack is much wider so getting the right curve on the infill could be an issue.


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