Drying Mesquite ?

[Richard Baker]

Just cut a few 2"x2" mesquite turning squares about a foot long, and waxed the ends. Am wondering how long to store them in A/C shop before using? The tree had been down a while but the wood was definitely moist inside. The log has been outdoors, in the shade but not protected from the 17" of rain last month. Thanks for your help.

 

[Steve Worcester]

(And you call yourself a Texan)

Depending on what you are going to do with it, Mesquite is extreemly stable. It is the only wood that drys the same ratio on all axis. But theoretically, 2x2 would take about a year to dry completely.

 

[Richard Baker]

Well, that's kinda what I thought, but didn't think it would hurt to ask. I don't know as much as I used to, and never knew as much as I thought I did. Thanks Steve.

 

[Bill Pottorf]

As Steve stated, Mesquite is very stable and will not show a difference in drying rates to cause warpage. However, if you let it dry fully, it will be very much harder to turn. It is best to rough turn Mesquite while wet following the 10% thickness rule, cover it with sealer and bag it until dry. You will not find any cracking or warpage. It can be finish turned while green and then let it dry. Go ahead and at least rough turn it now. You will not be disappointed. If doing boxes, do not finish turn it. Let it thourougly dry after roughing it out and then fit the lid and base.

 

[Martin Braun]

Unless one is making precision fitting boxes, etc. it should be fine to turn it now. I have turned fairly wet mesquite with no unintended consequences. The only times I have had problems, is if it was branch wood with internal stresses and not much heart wood. In that case it cracked after turning regardless of how wet it was. Good luck with it.

 

[Richard Baker]

Thanks Bill & Martin,
Will be getting to some bowls in (near, I hope) future and will remember your advice. Meanwhile am considering doing some "stopper toppers" to be installed on threaded SSNiles stoppers. If the shrinkage is excessive, the "toppers" will split within maybe one to twelve months, and their owners will not like this. A quick look at the USDA Wood Handbook reveals no shrinkage data on mesquite (I probably missed it), so am not sure what to expect. Maybe age them for a year before selling? We shall sell no stopper before its time? Intend to make a really nice bowl for the gentleman who brought me the wood.

 

[Barbara Gill]

I don't get much Mesquite as it is something that does not grow in VA. What I have received in trade goes from green to done without any problems.

 

[Charlie M]

I turn mostly mesquite and I much prefer turning the wood while still green. Usually, I will turn bowls, hollow forms, etc. to finish dimensions as warpage is vertually zero. There is a little shrinkage, but this only noticeable in cracks that I have filled with epoxy. The cracks close up and force the epoxy into a ridge that can be felt with your fingers.

Charlie M

 

[Charlie Knighton]

taking the plunge

great post, i have been sitting on a piece of mesquite for over a month now, its green, i could not believe the weight of the blank compared to local woods, i was trying to figure out what moisture content to turn it at, great post
(for me )

 

[Charlie Knighton]

what kind of gloves

what kind of gloves should you wear when sanding mesquite????? when i went to lunch everything was cool, but after finish sanding i have embetted black grains in my hands, (thats after soap and hot water and brush) this stuff has it all over black walnut

 

[Barbara Gill]

I have sanded a lot of mesquite but never have had that happen. Lemon juice might take the stain away.

 

[Charlie M]

mesquite stains

I don't wear gloves to sand and have never noticed my hands being stained. However, mesquite particules, sawdust, shavings, etc. will make a dark red/brown stain when wetted. I think the indians made a dye from mesquite. Much of my concrete shop floor, which gets wet occasionally from the storms we get here, has been stained black and brown in quite nice patterns. Rain is predicted for later today, so I did sweep up today.

Charlie M

 

[Charlie Knighton]

I think the indians made a dye from mesquite

I think the indians made a dye from mesquite

yes, i can believe it

 

[Randy Rice]

My hands turn black when working with mesquite so I keep a bottle of lemon juice in the "ice box". A splash of juice and the color vanishes.

 

[Richard Baker]

Stains

Have only done a few pieces of mesquite and never noticed any stain. Sometimes I do use gloves, very tight fitting knit, with thin layer of neoprene sponge on palms and fingers.

Thanks to all for your replies.

 

[Bill Pottorf]

Hi Texian,

Randy is correct about using lemon juice to clean up your hands after turning Mesquite, Blackwood, Ebony, Cocobola etc. I have in the past used bleach which is not good on your skin. Lemon juice smells good and doe's a great job. Just get a paper towel, pour some of the juice on the towel and wipe down your hands, wrists and anywhere else the black stain exists. You will find after turning Mesquite for a lengthy session, that even your tools will turn black. I have not wiped them down with the lemon juice, but I suppose that you could. I just again clean my hands after using the blackened tools with lemon juice. Good luck and enjoy that Mesquite. It is really nice turning stock.

Bill

 

[Charlie Knighton]

while we are on the subject of mesquite...

while we are on the subject of mesquite, i see in my tree book that there are two types of mesquite, screwbean and velvet, i assume what i have is the screwbean, does the velvet look any different turned???????

 

[Richard Baker]

Gadzook, it's become a thread! My sweetie the chemist (who's long since forgotten most of her chemistry, as I have forgotten most of my engineering), suggests that the dyes in mesquite and other woods mentioned may be alkaline compounds which are neutralized in chemical reactions with some organic acids like the citric acid in lemon juice, forming colorless salts.

Works for me. The hypothesis, that is. Never tried the lemon juice.

Almost finished building the deck she wanted, and can get back to some turning.

Edit: Never noticed the red dot before. Is it new? Guess it's there to highlight "You're the dummy that wrote this post".

 

[Fog Tanner]

There are a number of variations of Mesquite around Texas, all of which are good. I have turned at least four of them. Has to do with the soil and how that affects the color of the wood. If you are in Texas, it pays to drive around to various parts when looking for wood. As far as drying, the only time I dry it is when I am roughing box blanks for boxes that will have suction fit lids.

As far as bowls go, as long as the foot is dry enough to be chucked, it is dry enough to finish. I generally core the blanks and finish turn them. The first one I turned over five years ago is still round and used every day. I actually finished turned the outside and let the foot dry for a day or two before coring and finishing the inside. These days I just turn the outside and then the inside without waiting. No boiling, alchol, or LDD. Its actually better to go ahead and turn to bowls while they are still "wet" (my favorite wood at that stage). They can get pretty hard when dry, starts getting up there with Pecan.

 

[Richard Baker]

Fog,
Thanks for your response.

 

[Malcolm Tibbetts]

For segmented work, mesquite is one of the very best because of the stability that has been talked about - great stuff. Of course, to use it in segmented turnings, it must be very dry (like all woods).

 

[Richard Baker]

Thanks Malcolm! Been so long since the last segmented piece, I didn't even think of that. Can probably save a number of small 4/4 pieces and sticker them in a corner of the shop for a year. Have a few small logs and already enough blanks for small stuff, so now know what to do the rest of it. Thanks again for the reminder.

 

[Peter Hawkins]

hi

The black is most likely caused from the tannic acid in the wood reacting with tool and sanding medium, i get this all this all time, especially when the wood is wet, try using "GOJO" its a cleaner from home depot , regards peter

 

[Richard Baker]

Finally finished a mesquite bowl (to be delivered early next week) as a gift of appreciation for the gentleman who brought me the mesquite. It's not museum quality, but kind of interesting, decently formed and finished. From a really ugly chunk of wood, it has some spalting, a couple small filled worm holes stabilized w/ CA, and a small area of yellow sap wood on one side. Hope he and his sweetie will like it.

Yeah, I know-- no pictures, didn't happen. It did, but my $49 camera does really poor pictures of wood turnings.

And/but finished building the deck my sweetie (The Chief) wanted, with several positive results. It was built the way I wanted. The Chief is very happy with it (hooray!), and approved purchase of a decent digital camera with the money saved vs. hiring it done wrong.

 

[Bill Boehme]

OK, Richard, it is obvious that you need to turn this mesquite wood over to me since you are not yet ready for real Texian wood.

I have some big pieces of mesquite that is now well over a year old. I really intended to turn it wet (I love the smell of sopping wet mesquite in the morning), but long-term back problems prevented me from doing any turning for almost a year. Whenever, I turn wet mesquite, I frequently finish the whole thing up in a single session -- talk about instant gratification. Those, of course, would be bowls where a little movement is not a problem. This won't work for things like lidded boxes or anything else else where the wood must be absolutely stable.

Are you going to SWAT? If so and if you would like a couple pieces of manly-man sized mesquite, I will bring some for you. As I mentioned, this stuff has already lost most of its moisture so it will be a bit harder to turn than the good stuff. The dust from dry mesquite doesn't agree with my sinuses (really bad headaches) so I turn it green if I can.

 

[Richard Baker]

Reply to Bill

Hey Bill,
Great to hear from you! Would LOVE some manly-sized mesquite-crete, but can't make it to SWAT this year. Still too much to do here, am seriously tired, and my back hurts too. Hope yours is getting better. Not scared of hard wood. That's why the grinder is right at the end of the lathe. Will reply more fully by PM.

 

[Charlie Knighton]

amazing

thanks Chase and Larry,

my sister and brother in law were visting my niece in Texas, i ask them to bring back some mesquite logs, he brought me some limbs

amazing the limbs turn very well

 

[Max Taylor]

drying mesquite

That is right, baitbegger, you have to live with it for a few days till it wears off, just like super-glue. Thank goodness, it isnt toxic. Max