How can I finish this bowl in 2 weeks?

[eyekode]

I picked up a piece of crotch hickory a couple months ago that was freshly felled. Joe Bradshaw helped me cut it up (and threw in a chainsaw lesson and a bunch of wood, thanks!!!).
I started to turn it a week or so ago and here is where she sits:

View image in gallery​

View image in gallery​

I have turned it down to ~ 1" thick and put anchorseal on it. It has not (yet) cracked.

I really would like to take this as a dirty santa gift in ~2 weeks. Any suggestions on how to finish turning this without it cracking? I am concerned because it is still so wet.

I could turn it down thin (~1/4" ?) and hope. But I wanted to leave it thicker. Is there anyway to finish this green piece of wood in 2 weeks or am I just out of time?

Thanks!
Salem

 

[Rob]

No way, even in a home made kiln it probably wouldn't be done. Might try doing the microwave deal, but I've never done that, Nate here has I believe.

 

[Steve Martin]

If I were going to use this as a Dirty Santa gift, I would turn it to final thickness then, if small enough, use the microwave method to dry it, ie., Weigh the bowl on a kitchen scale, write down the weight. Put in micro wave for one minute on high, take it out, let it cool, weigh it, record the weight, repeat until two consecutive weights are the same. Do not leave the bowl unattended while the microwave is running, wives hate the smell of burned wood in their microwave, which is why I never go over one minute at a time and for thinner bowls sometimes go down to 15 seconds at a time. It will probably twist, and because it is crotch wood and has a lot of internal stress and it will probably get some small cracks, but it's for dirty santa, eh? I have turned small green wood bowls, 4" D, that developed splits while turning, then when I dried them in the microwave or my dishwasher dryer, the splits closed up and the piece looked great.

If it is too big for the microwave, you could try boiling it for a couple of hours after turning it to thickness, or soak it in alcohol for a day or two. What ever method you use, I would leave it so I could remount it on the lathe for final sanding and finish application.

Wood splits because the outside layer(s) dry faster than the inside layers, microwaving, boiling, and kiln drying all raise the inside moisture temperature at about the same rate as the external temperature, allowing the inside moisture to exit the cells/grain at almost the same time as the outside moisture exits those cells/grain, thereby reducing splitting. I'm not sure exactly how the alcohol works but it seems to achieve the same effect, the inside moisture exits at almost the same time the external moisture exits.

 

[JRD]

I'm also on a deadline, but I'll make it due to alcohol drying.

Two weeks ago I started the drying with a semi finished piece of Pecan and on unwrapping it last night, it's dry! I'm a big believer in the alcohol method, and while I will occasionally get a piece that
cracks badly. 90% of the time they turn out fine.

Try alcohol drying, I'm sold on it and have been for several years.

Jim

 

[eyekode]

Thanks for the detail. I better not put this thing in the microwave. I hate the smell of green hickory, I can't imagine the smell of green burnt hickory! But you have given me lots of leads .

 

[eyekode]

Thanks Jim, I will read up on alcohol drying.
Salem

 

[NCTurner]

+1 oN DNA drying.

http://www.woodcentral.com/articles/turning/articles_473.shtml

 

[Nate Davey]

I've done microwave drying, not the one in the kitchen, but not on something this big. If I were to try microwave drying on this one I would weigh it then do 1.5 minute sessions with about a 5 minute rest period between sessions. After each session I weigh again to see what weight has been lost. I've done this with maple only. Good luck finding a microwave that big.

 

[NorthernJeff]

Alcohol drying: Alcohol replaces water in the wood when the piece is soaked in an alcohol bath. Alcohol will evaporate much faster than water, so the piece will dry faster. Anything I have read suggests it still can take up to a month before the piece is dry. Does anyone have real world experience with it?

Jeff