Dumb question for experienced turners.. which I am not. I have a bunch of green limbs which I have cut to lengths of about 12" and left some longer (~16") for my Nova Comet II. The limb cuts I have are Silver Maple and Sycamore. I also have some similar pieces of fruitless mulberry and chinese elm.
What can I turn with these..? The pieces range from about 4" to 6"+ in diameter. Obviously, the pith remains in these pieces at the moment.. they didn't seem large enough to do anything with if I remove the pith.
Yesterday, I turned a small 5" diameter bowl from the silver maple.. I watched a video about boiling the rough turning to help shorten the time it would take to dry. I boiled it for an hour and when I pulled it from the pot to dry in the wet turnings.. guess what..? It had a split thru the bottom right thru the pith.
So, that brings me back to my original question. What can I turn from these beautiful mini logs? Currently, I have quite a few of the above blanks (not roughed bowls) waiting to find something to do besides turning practice. I did get some good practice spindle turning the bowl and hollowing the inside
If these seem good to use for small projects.. what do you suggest and how do I prevent splitting? Thanks for any help.
What can I turn with these..? The pieces range from about 4" to 6"+ in diameter. Obviously, the pith remains in these pieces at the moment.. they didn't seem large enough to do anything with if I remove the pith.
Yesterday, I turned a small 5" diameter bowl from the silver maple.. I watched a video about boiling the rough turning to help shorten the time it would take to dry. I boiled it for an hour and when I pulled it from the pot to dry in the wet turnings.. guess what..? It had a split thru the bottom right thru the pith.
So, that brings me back to my original question. What can I turn from these beautiful mini logs? Currently, I have quite a few of the above blanks (not roughed bowls) waiting to find something to do besides turning practice. I did get some good practice spindle turning the bowl and hollowing the inside
If these seem good to use for small projects.. what do you suggest and how do I prevent splitting? Thanks for any help.