Oak alcohol drying

[Ron Warman]

I roughed out 6 blanks of what is called burr oak or white oak for hollow forms. I turned to rough shape with about 3/4" thickness and soaked overnight in alcohol per Dave Smith. 3 weeks later the weight had not changed for a couple of days so I removed the paper and finished turning one of the vessels. In two more days two huge cracks appeared and it was oval again. I checked the other pieces of oak with my pin type moisture meter and they mostly read 29. I didn't turn the next piece for another 2 weeks when the meter read 10. This piece did not warp again or crack. I am new to this process and I don't want to disagree with Dave Smith but I am left with a question. Dave Smith told me to use a scale because the meter wasn't accurate. Something didn't work here. Has anyone else tried a meter rather than a scale? When I was into flat wood I wouldn't buy a piece of wood without checking it with my meter. Is round wood different?

Ron

 

[MichaelMouse]

Oak and other ring-porous woods can be fun. Since wood loses unbound water initially by capillary action, those big pores become reserviors rather than channels. Of course, it will eventually dry, but I've opened pieces of firewood two years split and found the core areas dark with moisture. They sizzle a lot in the stove, as well.

Other bad thing about oak is what makes it most beautiful - those medullary rays. They are pre-positioned planes of cleavage, waiting for the slightest stress to open and run for as far as they can. I suspect you have proven it to yourself with object one.

As far as weighing to confirm moisture content versus a meter, the weight method is always more accurate, but you have to temper it with some knowledge. A single swallow does not make a spring, and a couple of days is not enough to judge. I go by shrinkage and weight, because a damp day or two can halt loss even in woods a lot easier to dry than oak. I want to see the anticipated average shrinkage before I cut in again.

Oh yes. Alcohol has nothing to do with your problem, and is not part of the solution. Omit the soak, do the rest, and you'll be pleased to discover that it works. Ought to, they've been drying wood by controlling the rate of loss for centuries.

 

[Bill Boehme]

Ron,

Good advice from Michael -- I can't comment on alcohol drying since I have not tried it, although I have thought about it primarily for killing the borers in my mesquite wood.

I love turning white oak and live oak -- white oak for the beautiful patterns with the medullary rays and live oak for the more subtle grain features and hardness when it is finally dry. But, as Michael said, white oak just loves to split. I had a nice stash from a huge post oak tree that I trreated with Anchorseal and then stored outdoors (in Texas) -- big mistake -- Anchorseal on oak is no match for the Texas summer sun. It is now part of the firewood pile. I had some indoors that was OK, but it would be much better to turn it while while still fresh -- I love the smell of freshly turned green oak in the morning.

I have a burr oak that I planted in our back yard and it is now about 30 feet tall. It has huge leaves and acorns that could easily be used for golf balls (one swat only). The name burr comes from the cap of the acorn which has a burr that sort of resembles a crown of spanish moss.

BTW, turn white oak green -- you will rue the day that you decided to let it completely dry first. I suppose that you could rough turn it and then let it dry for a while, but I have turned it to near final size and then after a week or two touched up the slight amount of warping.

Everybody in my club says that I am a fool for turning oak.

Turnin' Fool Bill

 

[Ed Koenig]

Everybody in my club says that I am a fool for turning oak.

Turnin' Fool Bill

Well Bill, I think everyone in your club must be the fools!


Ron,

I've turned many bowls and hollow forms from Red and White Oak. My success rate is 100% since I started boiling. I have several hollow forms posted in my gallery. See for yourself. Prior to boiling, my success rate was terrible with Oak. It dosen't seem to matter if you turn end grain or side grain. This method works great for many woods but not all. Steven Russell has written several articles on this subject. Rather than explain, I will let you read the process for yourself. Reduce Defects By Boiling

I use the weighing method to determine when the rough turned piece is dry. When the piece weighs the same amount for five consecutive days, it is ready to finish turning. Steven says three days but I've had better luck waiting the couple of extra days.

Keep us posted on your progress.

Ed

 

[Matt Meadows]

Wood does bizzare things sometimes, at least from a beginner's standpoint (me).

I turned a nice, but large, goblet out of black locust, a gorgeous ash-like wood. Turned it to less than 1/8" thick (wall of cup). Layed a very heavy layer of paste wax on it as a finish I'd buff off later (was one of my first turnings and I didn't know better). The wax was supposed to slow the drying.

It sat on the shelf at the house for three weeks and did nothing, and I thought I was in the clear. Then one day I found a *gigantic* split in the cup, done nearly overnight.

Go figure.

Wood will do what wood will do, when it wants to do it. It can be predicted, but I've sofar only had the accuracy of The Weather Channel, which ain't exactly braggin rights.