Green Wood Bowl Turning Tutorial:
Part 1, Introduction
Green wood turning quickly
becomes a fact of life for many of us turners. Kiln dried woods
simply aren't available in the thicknesses that we are looking
for. In the few instances when they can be found, they come at a
premium price. That's why we end up "turning" to green
wood. It's less expensive, more readily available and so much
easier to turn! There is, however, one fatal flaw...green wood
can behave unpredictably, and most of us have very little experience
in properly drying a piece of wood. So
how exactly does one go about turning green wood from a rough product
into a finished one? This is a question that we are constantly
asked by our customers, and that's why we've pulled together this
information for you to use so as to make you more successful in your
turning adventures!
Before you begin work on your
project, it is important that you know a few important things about
dealing with green wood. First and foremost, unless you are a
professional with experience in drying thick pieces of wood, it is not
recommended that you attempt to dry turning/carving blocks thicker
than 2" thick. Careful climate monitoring and control are
required for successful drying, and even then, results can be very
inconsistent. On top of this, drying times can be quite
lengthy...anywhere from a few months for kiln drying, to several years
for air drying. That being said, what should one do to dry a
thick piece of wood? To begin to answer this question, let's
look at the first step in the process...beginning to remove the
waste.
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