Great Morning today

[Faust M. Ruggiero]

Owning a small party rental company means getting called out almost every weekend this time of year. I don't mind because I'm used to not having much of a personal agenda during the busy season. This morning I was called out to pick up a large propane grill we rented to a drum and bugle corp who is being hosted by a local high school. I believe they were treated to a stake dinner last evening. On the way home we noticed a large maple tree that had been recently cut down and the pieces left laying in someone's front yard. We stopped to inquire about the wood and were greeted by a very energetic 90+ year old gentleman. I asked for a couple chunks and explained I was learning to turn bowls. He couldn't be happier than to see some of his tree potentially become something other than firewood. He also invited us to take some of a white ash tree that was felled at the same time.
While we were loading what we wanted he came outside holding a lidded wooden bowl his deceased wife of 64 years had purchased at a flea market. He opened it and produced a news clipping showing a very similar vessel having been sold at auction for a great deal of money. I was so taken with his energy and how proud he was showing me the pot I asked to take his picture. I only had my iphone but it is still a good picture.

Now, since I have never cut green logs into bowl blanks, I need some advice. I know I must rip through the pith leaving balanced halves and I know I must seal the end grain on the cut pieces. The trees have been cut for three weeks and are checking. Should I cut away the checked portion right away and get to solid wood prior to sealing the end grain?

Thanks for looking.
fmr

[Greg Just]

Faust:

What a nice story. I might suggest you turn a bowl and take it back to the gentlemen as a memory of the trees that he lost. My 2 cents.

[David E Keller]

Congrats on the wood. I certainly agree that you should take a little something back to the man for the wood... Probably something you were planning to do already.

Ideally you would cut away the checks before sealing the end grain. I would also remove the pith as you described. Even better would be to rough out some forms and dry them by your preferred method.... I'm an DNAlcoholic.

Looking forward to seeing what you find in those logs.

[Scott Hackler]

Now, since I have never cut green logs into bowl blanks, I need some advice. I know I must rip through the pith leaving balanced halves and I know I must seal the end grain on the cut pieces. The trees have been cut for three weeks and are checking. Should I cut away the checked portion right away and get to solid wood prior to sealing the end grain?

Thanks for looking.
fmr

You need to cut away all signs of checking. Once the cracks start, they wont stop. Also when you slice the logs in half, cut on either side of the pith, leaving the pith completely out of your blank. If you arent going to use them right away, get the end grain sealed up real good and store in a shady area or on the ground in the shop.

Hope this helps.

[Peter Lamb]

Greg,
Well done. At very least coat both ends with Anchorseal to stop or at least slow down cracking. They should then keep for a while. Better yet cut in half leaving the pith to one side then cut away th pith also. The two large pieces still need to be treated on the end grain. If the ash was very recently cut and you put a good coat of anchor seal you can later cut away the cracks. Store at least in the shade and a cool place if possible. I also like the idea of giving the donor a something.
I'm sure he would be most pleased.
Good Luck,
Peter

[Steve Schlumpf]

Faust - great story! Thanks for the photo of the gentleman and his pot!

If you have the time - I would rough these out ASAP.

You can seal them but if they have been laying around drying for 3 weeks - its a race. If you decide to seal them - then do what you can to cut away the checked wood first. If you apply anchorseal over a crack - it doesn't stop the crack from growing!

Good luck! Looking forward to see what you turn out of it!

[Faust M. Ruggiero]

Thanks for the knowledge. I will cut the wood into blanks, remove the pith and the checking if possible then seal the ends. You know, I realized the process of turning a green bowl takes about a year until you turn the rough blank then allow the drying process prior to finishing the turning. I am looking forward to starting. I'm sure I will turn some cured wood projects during that time.
I have also read that some of you suggest turning thinner than you would for the Anchorseal and brown bag process and soak the piece in denatured alcohol instead. I will also experiment with that process.
My plan is to try to make a recreation of the pot in the picture and give it to the gentleman. However, since my wife bakes as well as Dolly Pardon's friend turns, a batch of cookies is in the works.
I'll keep you posted.
fmr

[Dale Miner]

I'm a bit curious about the color of the wood. The darker center, with a nearly white sapwood, combined with the bark's appearance, points to cherry instead of maple (at least to me). Did/does the wood have a sweet, fruity smell?

Later,
Dale M

[Faust M. Ruggiero]

Hi Dale,
Thanks for the observation. There are a lot of varieties of cherry in the northeast but they all have a sort of ring pattern around a smoother bark. We also have several varieties of maple including Silver, Norway, Reds and Rock maple. The barks vary quite a bit. I can easily identify many woods in lumber form after they have been planed but I admit I am easily mistaken when trying to identify by the bark, especially when the leaves are not present. I am sure the wood I got is not cherry, though that would be nice. I believe it is hard maple.
fmr

[Faust M. Ruggiero]

Dale,
You were right about the wood not being maple. I just spent a bit of time cutting some because you made me question the identification. When I cleaned up an end the wood looks ring porous. I cut one chunck in half and sliced a few pieces on the band saw and though it does not smell like red oak, it has the visual appearance of oak. I am not seeing rays in the quarter sawn pieces leading me to think it is not white oak. In any event, it is definitely not maple as I thought. The checks in the one log section I sawed go far into the piece. I ended up sawing that piece into 3X3 and 4X4 pieces to avoid the checks. I haven't seen many of the turners showing work in oak. Perhaps it is not a nice wood to turn but I'll give it a whirl.
Thanks for your observation.
fmr

[David E Keller]

I don't particularly like turning oak, but the results can be beautiful.

If you don't enjoy turning it, it does burn quite well.

[Leo Van Der Loo]

he last picture looks like Ash to me, the 3th picture looks like Honey Locust, the second picture looks a lot like Silver Maple or a hybrid Silver/Red Maple but I'm just guessing on that one, as I can't tell for sure with just that picture.

Leo in Kanata ;-))

[Faust M. Ruggiero]

Leo,
You are right on with the honey locust. Someone else saw the post and sent a PM for which I am grateful. I couldn't match up the bark in any of the oaks and the cut wood just didn't smell like oak. There wasn't one seed pod on the ground anywhere or I would have picked up on that. Yes, the other is ash. Now, tell me, other than being quite hard, is honey locust a good wood to turn. I spent quite a bit of time today sawing away checks and cutting up blanks and sealing them. I don't remember seeing any of the brothers post turnings in Honey Locust.
fmr

[charlie knighton]

if it is oak and has been sitting a couple of weeks..... makes good firewood

this piece of white oak was put in cardboard barrels the day it was cut down, it was turned maybe after 6 months

Southside

[John Hart]

Nice Story. It's always nice to turn a piece as a memento. And the cookie idea is a great add-on. Good luck with the checking.

[Leo Van Der Loo]

Faust I love turning Honey Locust, or Black Locust, (black has a more yellow green color and is harder than Honey Locust).
You need good tool orientation as the wood is pretty hard when dry, quite stable and has a nice color IMO
I have a 22" one that I turned quite a few years ago (actually LOML has it:D) we will keep that one.
Got a few pictures here that show the color kind of, also a picture of one of two rough turned crotch bowls, that I turned last year and could be finished any time now :)

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