Walnut bowl from DNA soak

[Rick Prosser]

Tried my first bowl from DNA soak. Soaked overnight on Jan 1, wrapped in brown paper until turned on Feb 8. Seemed to work great. 8" x 1".

[Dewey Torres]

Rick,
I haven't tried a bowl yet but I hope my first TURNS out as good as this one!

[Steve Schlumpf]

The bowl looks great Rick! Nice form, nice color and you did a really good job of centering the blank! So, what do you think of the DNA process now that you have taken a piece all the way through?

[steven carter]

Nice bowl Rick! I use the DNA method exclusively.

Steve

[Jim Kountz]

Rick, thats awesome looking, love it!! That DNA stuff really works doesnt it? Got anymore coming soon??

[David Christopher]

Rick, thats a nice looking bowl.. love the color and shape and the thinness ( if thats a word ) anyway good job

[Steve Mawson]

Looks great, you must have the process figured out.

[Bernie Weishapl]

Looks great Rick. Well done. I do the same process and I have only lost 2 bowls in 3 yrs.

[Paul Mathers]

:confused:I dont do alot ofturning hate to wait months on bowls what is dna soak. Sorry if it is a stupid question

[Gary Kvasnicka]

Good job, Rick. It looks like I need to invest in some DNA and bucket with a lid. That would be a good use of this $30 Lowes gift card I got for Christmas.

[Wally Wenzel]

Paul, The dna soak is done by rough turning a bowl from green wood down to about 10% thickness of the dia. Then soaking in denatured alcohal for 24-48 hrs, then wrap in paper and check the weight until it stops losing about 3-4 wks. then finish turn. Wally

[Steve Kubien]

I get very little wet walnut coming through my shop. The one time I dna-soaked it, it turned the solution dark. No surprise when you think of what is happening but it raises a question from me.... Have you ever had dark DNA solution turn another species darker? Could this dark solution ruin the look of some really pale maple or something?

Thanks for your help,
Steve Kubien

[Rick Prosser]

Let's see if I can cover all the questions...

So far, I think the process is great. The idea of having a bunch of black walnut to turn - but having to wait months and months for it to dry is tough.
I am a big fan of immediate gratification ;)

I have 4 or 5 more bowls that are ready to finish, so we will see how the rest go. I am anxious to see how the larger bowls "turn" out :D

I got my DNA and bucket from Lowes. My largest bowls won't fit, so I have to find another solution for them - maybe a large plastic storage box or something.

The DNA did turn brown from the walnut, but I tested a piece of red cedar with light sap wood, and it did not seem to darken it.

[David Pearson]

What did you use to finish the bowl?

[Jerry Ingraham]

Looks great Rick! I started using DNA about two years ago and haven't had a failure yet.

[Kirk Miller]

I have only used it once for some stoppers at Christmas time. It worked great, I just wish I knew I could reuse the DNA. I dumped it all out. I know better now and will have some rough bowls soaking before the weekend is over. I was just going to check the moisture of the wood, once it stabilizes then I would finish them. Does that work as well as weighing them?

[Don Eddard]

I have only used it once for some stoppers at Christmas time. It worked great, I just wish I knew I could reuse the DNA. I dumped it all out. I know better now and will have some rough bowls soaking before the weekend is over. I was just going to check the moisture of the wood, once it stabilizes then I would finish them. Does that work as well as weighing them?

If your moisture meter is accurate, then yes, it'll work as well as weighing them with an accurate scale.

[Jeff Nicol]

Rick, Very pretty, does the DNA give it a little darker appearance than if you did not use it? I have not tried the DNA soak yet, but it looks like the tone of the wood is real nice after the soak.

Jeff

[Rick Prosser]

The finish is friction polish - until I decide what the final finish will be.

I just turned a piece of cedar after DNA soak, and the brown DNA did not seem to darken the color. I did not even notice a shade change after turning the outside layer.

[Jim Silva]

I haven't noticed any darkening from re-used DNA for the last year or so even on lighter woods and some of the stuff I'm using is pretty dark. The DNA will become diluted slightly with each use so replenishing with fresh DNA from time to time becomes necessary. I'm having no failures using this method (other than due to pilot error :D)