Apple wood woes

[gary beach]

Happy Saturday creekers! I just got my hands on some nice apple wood (very green) and I know apple is prone to cracking. Beyond the basic rough turn, seal, wait, and return routine, any hints / tricks to curb this "feature" of the wood? Thanks in advance for all your responses.

[Curt Fuller]

Pray, cross your fingers, throw salt over your shoulder, consult the bones. Other than that I think you've got the routine about right.

[Sean Hughto]

I have turned green apple very thin and used paper bags. It didn't crack. In short, sometimes turning to like 3 /16 walls and slowing the drying a bit will work. I think it's hard to generalize about apple (beyond it all cracks easily) because the characteristics of each piece I've ever had have varied a good deal in grain (some clear, some riddled with tiny knots) color, and even smell. As much as different sorts of apples vary widely from granny smiths to crab apples to red delicious and Mcintosh, I think the wood varies. Also may make a difference when inthe year it is cut.

[Pat Doble]

Pray, cross your fingers, throw salt over your shoulder, consult the bones. Other than that I think you've got the routine about right.

I throw in some heel clicks too, but must not have put them in the right spot in the rotation yet.

[Kurt Barker]

The Steve Schlumpf style DNA bath has worked very well for me: rough turn to 10%, overnight bath, wrap in a single sheet of newspaper, and let dry for a few weeks. To Sean's point, the stuff I have is very straight-grained and free of knots.

To keep it safe until I have time to rough turn it, I used AnchorSeal.

[Baxter Smith]

I haven't been turning long enough to offer much worthwhile advice but I have turned some apple. As Sean mentioned, turning it thin and an even thickness, 5/16 and under for me, then bagging it in a cool place for at least a month has worked well. Even after that period of time, I wouldn't bring it into the dryness of a heated house in the winter right away.

No matter how pretty any blank or roughout looks to begin with, any crack in it to start, or in the rim especially, and you are probably fighting a losing battle. CA glue and Anchor Seal are not going to stop it from spreading. Good Luck! The stuff that survives will be worth the wait!

[gary beach]

Well thanks for all the responses, there is always the alternative, those that don't survive become smoker fodder!!! It will either look good or taste good.

[Gary Herrmann]

Cracking on some is worth how the others turn out. Apple is pretty stuff. I have two dry but twisty 6/4 boards without a single crack in them. Have to ask my friend how he did that.

[Bernie Weishapl]

I have had excellent luck with the DNA bath. I soak mine for about a week then wrap with a brown grocery sack. I only had one crack out of about a dozen.

[Reed Gray]

When turning green wood to final thickness, round over your rims, and then stretch plastic stretch film a couple of times around the rim, about 1 inch inside the bowl, and the rest on the outside. This has helped me tame even Madrone, which is the most warping wood and most difficult wood to dry that I have come across. Madrone would fail inside paper bags (single, double, and even triple), but would do fine with just the plastic on the rim.

robo hippy

[gary beach]

Well I purchased some DNA today and will give that and the plastic wrap idea a shot also and see what will work the best. Thanks again for all the input!

[Rich Aldrich]

Gary,

I have had very good luck with DNA on cherry which others have told me is very prone to cracking. I have been told any fruit or nut tree is prone to cracking. How did you get the apple wood. I have been looking, but havent found any that wasnt already too rotten by the time the owners take them down.