drying burls

[hughie]

Hi, I have a number of green burls that are coated with wax and I am wondering what is the best method/s of drying or at least removing most of the water content??
I am considering roughing turning and then giving them the soap treatment. But if this is not effective I am gonna lose some really nice looking burls.
hughie

[rsser]

Hi Hughie,

I just treat them as I do normal green blanks - rough turn and then paper bag them. Generally they're more stable than normal timber cos of the interlocking grain and so there's less likelihood of splitting. There's still some chance however so checking them often in the beginning is advisable.

They're also good to finish turn in one session and see what happens when they dry. Eg. with NSW red mallee burl you can get an attractive hammered surface. (I prefer n/c sanding sealer and wax as the finish and of course keep steel wool away from it).

[hughie]

Hi Rsser,
Thanks for that, most of the burls are ex Tasmania, still I will give it a go. hughie