Thread: Turning Eggs From Wet Timber

Hi Willbur

I think it would be pretty safe to say that they are cracking as the green timber drys. Some timbers are more prone to cracking that others which is why some are and some aren't.

What part of Brissie are you in? If you feel like making a trip over my way I'm sure I've got a few nicely dried bits of the right size for eggs that you're welcome to for practicing on. Jacaranda, Camphour Laurel and a couple of unknown acacias spring to mind and I'm sure there's others burried in there somewhere. PM me if your interested.


cheers
WH

Originally Posted by Willbur

...........I've only been able to scrounge some freshly cut branches to turn with so far. All good on the most part, but noticed that some of the eggs are splitting now. Some haven't though which I thought was strange. Wasn't sure whether there would be any splitting at all due to the small nature of the egg. Does anybody else turn eggs or something similar from green timber? Do you just turn, apply finish and if it splits then "oh well"? After some thoughts and comments from others out there on what they do and whether they only turn eggs for keepsake and presentation purposes from dry timber. Also whether they have any techniques to avoid or minimise splitting with small sections of green timber for things like eggs.

With small green branches you're always going to get some cracking due to tangential shrinkage (not because of the pith as everyone will tell you - it is NOT a disease, simply the point about which the shrinkage rotates) - if they don't crack, you will likely end up with something resembling a sultana DAMHIKT
The way I beat it was to resist the temptation to turn them straight away, punch two marks as far apart as possible across the blank. Measure the distance between them with the points of your verniers (or whatever) and write the distance on the blank with the date. Measure again each month until there has been less than 1/2mm shrinkage. A this point it's not completely dry, but good enough to stay in shape as an egg. I find most woods only take about 3 months to get to that stage.

Now excuse me while I find somewhere to hide from the flac regarding my pith comments

Thanks for the tips TTIT. Yeah I guess it's my issue at the moment turning green timber due to lack of dry so you reckon say an average branch of like 60-70mm diameter would be ready after 3 months?

Hi Will,
Yes, I also like to make the occasional Egg.
I also have, quite awhile ago, taken a real Egg, to the Shed & leave it there.
I Shift & Turn the Real Egg, & after awhile it dries out, So now I can copy the shape easily.
My Size is normally 65 x 42mm.
I do them in a Nova Chuck with the 35mm. Spigot Jaws, & I don't use a Tail Stock.
I find I don't have to use an Egg Holder, but the one TTIT made is a good Idea.
I only ever use a 25 x 8mm. Skew.

Originally Posted by issatree

I only ever use a 25 x 8mm. Skew.

Yeah spindle gouge for this newbie! Haven't got my confidence up on the skew chisel yet after a few nasty catches and verbal abuse!! Haha. Saw a YouTube video of a bloke turn an egg with a skew in 1 min....that would be good for efficiency I'll just have to plod along with my little spindle gouge till I tame the skew

I find my sizes of eggs vary just slightly, which I don't mind at all as real eggs aren't all the same. But they end up being about 42-45mm x 55-60mm, somewhere round there.

Originally Posted by Willbur

Thanks for the tips TTIT. Yeah I guess it's my issue at the moment turning green timber due to lack of dry so you reckon say an average branch of like 60-70mm diameter would be ready after 3 months?

At that thickness it will take longer. I break whatever I get down to 50x50mm even if it's just taking a skim off each side of a small branch but that is what will let the air get at it to dry. Forgot to mention earlier that you need to seal the end-grain of small branches really well to avoid the cracks - let it dry through the face-grain.

As mentioned above the whole round will crack more often than a larger log quartered.

I have been making mushrooms of maple, oak, wild cherry, and found-on-ground timber. The cherry cracks the worst, even if left in long pieces.

I recently got some cherry that was broken off a tree in a wind storm. It was just hours off the tree and I roughed two mushrooms and put them into a solution of 1/2 water and 1/2 hand dishwashing detergent and let them soak about 2 weeks.

I drained them and microwaved them until they got too hot to hold, off and on for several days, then let them sit in the house, microwaving when I thought of it. First photo. There were lots of branches, which I like for the bulls eyes when turned.

Second photo: on left is a roughed red oak bowl using the whole log, let to air dry. On right is a roughed red oak bowl, whole log, that was submerged in water in a covered Corning Ware casserole and microwaved until it boiled, left to soak, boiled again and left to soak about 5 times in one day.

It was then drained and microwaved until it steamed, door opened, then let to sit for a while, then repeated several times. I noticed radial cracks opening up from the pith, so let it set in the house for a month or two. The cracks closed up to what you see.

I also make eggs from cut off or small pieces. Have a go at cutting off a piece about twice as long as the egg and put between centers with the centers on opposite edges of the cuts so that the grain is slanting through the center of the timber. Start slowly until you have cut off the in-balance.

Rule of thumb for air drying is one year for 1 inch (25.4mm) of thickness.

See: https://www.google.com/#hl=en&sugexp...iw=939&bih=556

Quote 'All good on the most part, but noticed that some of the eggs are splitting now'.

Mate, you can't expect to make an omelette without cracking a few eggs.

Sorry, that was my eggxellent effort at cracking a yoke

All done now
Willy

I use the same as paul for my green rough turned bowls leave in for 2weeks then take out and left to dry on a rack in the workshop till dry 50\50 water and dishwash. then i finsh turning iv had good results with this. you coulld try the same with the eggs it may work. Drying wood is like s#x and should not be hurryed or you will get bad ending

TTIT gave us all the straight goods about cracking in the tangential direction. Plus, if you can resist the temptation to turn green wood, paint the ends of the piece, number it and weigh it every couple of months (outdoors under shelter). Fairly constant weight and you have an equilibruim moisture content of 12-14%. Painting the ends evens out the rates of water loss with the uncut surface.
I think there's an argument about +/- the bark.
General rule of thumb for drying time is about 25mm/1" per year. So a 50mm branch might be OK after 12 months in the shade (drying from all sides).

The other thing about branches is the tension wood. This is additional layers in the wood fiber cell walls on the top sides of branches in hardwoods. The gelatinous nature makes the differential shrinkage more uneven than you would ever expect to find in an upright stem. The comparable anatomy on the undersides of conifer branches is called compression wood.

The take home lesson, as consumptive as it may be, is to harvest vertical stems, not branches,

Two other things I do.

1. Leave the branches/limbs as long as possible, then the cracked ends can be cut away, they can be sawn through the cracks to become light pulls etc., and

2. Store standing up, let Gravity assist in the drying process by drawing the water content downwards, then you can work from the higher length that much sooner.

Stumbled upon this:

http://eddiecastelin.com/yahoo_site_....104103931.pdf

Thanks for all the replies fellas. All good helpful info!

Originally Posted by Paul39

Stumbled upon this:

http://eddiecastelin.com/yahoo_site_....104103931.pdf

Has anyone actually tried this or similar boiling techniques like this PDF outlines?

Cheers,

Will