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Anchorseal on logs

C

clancy

Joined
Jan 11, 2005
Messages
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Location
Columbia,SC
Hello everyone,
I'm new to turning and will be getting some cherry logs. My question is how much Anchorseal do I put on the ends, 1 coat or 2? And how quickly do should I apply it? Will a day or 2 be a problem?
Thanks for your help.
Clancy
 
Hi Clancy,

I typically use one coat on fresh surfaces. 1 or 2 days old is fine. If it gets much older than that your logs will start to get cracks. Just paint it on with an old paintbrush. You don't even have to wash the paintbrush. Next time you use it, just bend the bristles back and forth in a small amount of anchorseal. I have a dedicated old brush that has been used like that for 2 years.

Also you need to cut the logs and remove the piths. Anchorseal only slows down the drying process. The pith is a cracking machine, and if you leave it in the logs too long then you'll have a bunch of cracked logs.

Typically I chainsaw up pieces within 1 week into blanks. All fresh endgrain surfaces get coated with Anchorseal. And all pieces get stored out of the sun.
 
chinaberry tree

Chinaberry (Helia azerdarach) is an import from China which is a common ornamental tree in the U.S. South states. It's very common in south Texas. It is somewhat of a pest tree. It is in the mahogany family, and is light like mahogany but has very open pores. The wood looks like this The spring blossoms are pretty pic here And here's some good pics of the tree and the fall berries here

The wood dries quickly and is easy to cut and turn. However it is somewhat brittle and soft. This characteristic makes it difficult to sand and finish. The china berry bowls that I have done took forever to sand. But one was nice enough to be a wedding present. The wood is quite pretty.
 
Heading out of town

Jeff,

I'll be leaving Monday morning early to head to NJ. Maybe I can score some northeast wood to use when I return.

Thanks for a great weekend and all your quailty and meaningful teaching. You should consider professional turning instruction.

Clem
 
Thanks for the pictures of chinaberry. I am a winter Texan. Next winter I will look for some. I don' recall seeing them "in the valley".

Anchorseal; I guess that is what this message is about. I seal IMMEDIATLY after cutting. Where the chainsaw goes the anchorseal goes. Some woods form small cracks in half hour or less.
I also use it to seal end grain of rough turned green bowls.

I have sealed the flat side of split log sections but it does not seem to be of much advantage. Any of you all have an opinion about this?
 
I think I am with "Square2Round" on this one. I put sealer on right after I cut the wood if possible. Depending on the wood and the weather - some woods do start to crack right away. In the dead of winter when it is wet and the humidity is high - it does not hurt to wait a bit. But the rest of the time - seal right away.

Sealing the side grain on a log - I seem to always run a coat over the pith of the flat wood. I still get cracks depending on how much pith I have cut away. If all I do is cut down the pith (remove a chain saw width kerf) - the cracks do happen if they have a coat of sealer or not it seems. Still, sealer is cheap and it does slow the process down a bit.
Hugh
 
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