Digital scales

[Tim Elett]

Are they a good way to measure moisture on a green turned piece, if so I'm thinking that a postal scale 90 lb max would work?

[John K Jordan]

Are they a good way to measure moisture on a green turned piece, if so I'm thinking that a postal scale 90 lb max would work?

Tim,

Much depends on the maximum weight you need. Many scales are most accurate with a range close to the maximum weight.

I've processed and dried hundreds of pieces, mostly small and large blanks for turning but also some pieces partially turned while green The biggest thing when picking a scale, as you know, is the weight of the blank or turned piece.

Most of my blanks are not real heavy so I use kitchen scales like his for 11-lbs and under: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002UEZ2FC

I mostly use these, good to 22 lbs: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002E1AVU2

I keep two of these with a capacity of 33 lbs: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07QP4XQNV

And for weighing very small samples with the oven-dry method I use tiny precision scales such as these: 1KG with 0.1g resolution and 100g at 0.01g resolution
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002SC3LLS
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0012LOQUQ
(These are great for adjusting the humidity for eggs to insure the proper weight-loss curve while incubating!)

For larger things I use digital bathroom scales - hold the piece and step on the scale.
I weigh very things on the flat scales I keep for weighing llamas and mini-donkeys, good to 100s of lbs with a 2 lbs resolution.

If I need accuracy and precision I get out the triple-beam balance laboratory scales, seldom needed.

I have sets of precision weights to check the scales but rarely needed. To monitoring dryng you don't need a scale with accuracy, you simply need repeatability!

I've never tried postal scales. With any scale be sure not to exceed the maximum weight or the scale can be damaged.

BTW, to monitor drying I write the date and weight (in grams) on a piece of tape stuck to the wood.

JKJ

[Bernie Kopfer]

I’m trying to imagine a 90 lb rough turned bowl.😳. My cheap Amazon basics scale has worked for years to determine when a green bowl has stopped losing weight and is stable. Also helps when precise measuring of epoxy is needed.

[Tim Elett]

I’m trying to imagine a 90 lb rough turned bowl.😳. My cheap Amazon basics scale has worked for years to determine when a green bowl has stopped losing weight and is stable. Also helps when precise measuring of epoxy is needed.
Noooooooo! 90 lb is the max weight of the scale I was looking at, around 30 bucks ,I think that would work for me.

[Jeffrey J Smith]

I was able to score a deal on a digital shipping scale when I retired a while back. I think its max load is 90#, but the roughouts I weigh are typically 18" and smaller and weigh less than 10# when wet...It does work well, was gifted to me when I left, but its overkill for weighing most things in my shop.

[roger wiegand]

I have what is probably considered a postal scale (I use it for that a lot). It's got a platform that is about 15" square and a remote control and readout, so you don't need to be able to see the edge of the platform. Capacity, as I recall was around 40 kg, so something over 100 lbs. In the 2-10 kg range range where most all of my roughed bowls lie it is highly reproducible, within a few grams. I have no idea what the accuracy might be, and don't really care, as I'm only looking for relative weights for drying bowls. Fedex has never complained that my box weights are off, so it must be close enough.

So yes, it works great for that purpose.

[Tim Elett]

Thanks I have had bowls I thought were ready to finish and they were still too wet in middle. And cracked.

[Randy Heinemann]

Are they a good way to measure moisture on a green turned piece, if so I'm thinking that a postal scale 90 lb max would work?

My experience says yes it works. Precision isn't really all that important when trying to determine whether a bowl is sufficiently dried or not. I measure the bowl everyday after starting the drying process. When the piece doesn't decrease in weight or decreases very little then it's essentially as dry as it will get. If you want to be sure, weigh it again the next day after there is only a small decrease just to verify it's dry. I usually measure in grams rather than pounds/ounces. The maximum weight of the scale needs to be determined by the size of the pieces you will be turning. While It's always worked for me on all the green wood I've turned.

Just looked online and found a wood weight calculator...A 15" diameter by 8" thick piece of fresh white oak would be around 50 pounds. I'm sure this isn't an exact number but that means to me that I wouldn't even attempt to turn a piece that size from a white oak tree as it would just be unmanageable for me. I would think a 90-pound maximum would be good; maybe even less. My small scale from Bed, Bath, and Beyond has never reached its max, but then I don't turn really large wet blanks. I have turned some 15" blanks but they have always been mostly or completely dry.

[Brice Rogers]

I have successfully used scales to determine when a piece stops losing moisture.

One of the scales is made for measuring luggage and has a hook on it. I hang it from the ceiling and I use a sturdy plastic bag on the bottom hook. Then I put the roughed out piece in the bag to weigh it. The scale has been hanging from the ceiling in the same place for several years. That makes it really easy to quickly take a measurement - - no set up.