Help and Critique Request

[Eric Kosanovich]

Evening everyone,

i have two things i'd like to ask about:
The 1st is Glue for wet wood. To day i was working on some hardwood noe sure what type it is but there was a crack in it and now it's vary unstable i'd just use wood glue but its so wet this will surly not hold up. So my question is what would preform best as a glue on wet wood?
143755
2nd question is about Inlace. as you can see be the photo i have some type of hardwood that has been eaten up by carpenter ants and i think that some type of Inlace would look nice in it but i do not know if the inlace will flow in to the wood. My question here would be what would be a good filler?
143756
Thanks guys
Eric

[David E Keller]

The hardwood looks like cherry to me... I'd use thick CA or epoxy if you really want to save it. Careful when turning if you do try to save it... If the glue line fails, it could get exciting(dangerous)!

The other piece looks like a real challenge... I'd be tempted to try to turn it without filling the voids. It would be a naturally pierced piece.

[Eric Kosanovich]

I'm thinking the real prob with Photo 2 is how do you hold it on the lathe.
if i use my chuck it will crush it for sure

[Ted Calver]

CA for the first and then maybe epoxy casting resin like the pen makers use for the second one...or maybe some of that wood stabilizer the borgs sell?

[Brian Greb]

give the first one the old ca treatment.

The second one I'd soak it in a wood stabilizer first, then glue a sacrificial block to it, and if I where to fill the voids I'd use a flowing epoxy like clear coat, and mix in some wood shavings just for a little texture... looks like it would be a fun one!

[Brian Novotny]

I agree with the wood stabilizer on the second piece and if you can get a tenon on it then fill the tenon with epoxy and then I wouldn't fill any of those pores, that would be too cool of a looking piece if you can get it turned!!!!!! I would save the inlace for wood that is less unique than that "ant farm".

[Eric Kosanovich]

Uggg i forgot to give the size. let me give a little more info.
it is about 8" by 8" by 7".
Here is the flat side:
143786143787
The inlace i was thinking of is the turquoise:
143788143789

[Jeff Nicol]

Eric, The first bowl is oak of some sort, looks like a Red oak to me. With the wood being wet and it trying to dry it will keep opening the crack. I would use some epoxy and get a ratchet strap or something to keep it mostly round. If you have a bench with a big woodworking vise on it you could clamp it in there until the epoxy sets. I see it has some nice grain in it, but like is always said "It is better to turn good wood than wasting time with the bad". The second piece is cool looking and to fill the whole thing with resin and inlace would cost a bundle just to start. Like was said in one of the other posts, making flat surfaces on 2 spots oriented in the way you want to turn it and gluing on some blocks could get you started it turning it. It may be to unstable to spin very fast and could fly apart. If it is stable enough you could rough it out on a bandsaw or with a coarse sander to a rough shape and the see if it will hold together. When it takes more work to get things looking good it may not be worth the effort.

Have fun and be safe,

Jeff

[Steve Schlumpf]

Eric - these are both interesting pieces of wood - but I would pass on trying to turn either one of them.

One of the most difficult things I had to overcome when I started turning was treating each and every piece of wood like it was the only wood I would ever have! I spent hours gluing and filling on pieces of wood that ended up with some interesting results but still looked like a glued up/cracked bowl when finished!

Remember - it is only wood! Find something to work with that will give you good results - and not be a safety hazard!

Just my opinion...

[John Keeton]

Remember - it is only wood! Find something to work with that will give you good results - and not be a safety hazard!Eric, Steve made this same comment to me early on, and it is one of the best pieces of advice that I have received.

Besides, for me, I want to enjoy the turning experience. If I have to grit my teeth, and wait for an explosion on the chuck everytime I touch my gouge to a piece of wood, I am not interested.

That is not to say that I wouldn't turn a gnarly piece of wood - haven't had the opportunity yet!

I realize that I am very new to this turning thing, and if I had more experience I may be more aggressive in my approach.

But, neither of these two pieces look "special" to me. The first looks "run of the mill" and the second one you describe as "some kind of hardwood." I would relegate both to the kindling box and put my efforts into a piece from which I could learn some technique, and do so safely.

I suspect on the ant eaten piece of wood, it would have some interest if one could get it turned into something, but it could also look like crap just as easily. Were it a beautiful piece of burl, with the same issues, my opinion might be different.

[Eric Kosanovich]

i think i figured it out. Popuri pot "Lids".
i cut it in half yesterday and it came to me,
heres the inside: