Lilac Bowls

[George Guadiane]

Lilac cracks like crazy. This material has been drying for two years and it STILL cracked while I was turning it.
The blanks were large for lilac, these pieces were 30 years old or so.
The bark edge piece is 3 1/4 inches across by 1 1/2 inches high.
The "salad bowl" is 3 inches in diameter by 1 1/8 inches high.
The wood is VERY hard and has virtually no open grain. Finished with 600 oil sanding...
Next time I will go a little thicker, there was some tearout from my aggressiveness.
As Always, All Questions, Comments, Critiques Welcome.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

I like them both George. I was turning some apricot last year that had some real cracking problems. Someone here told me if I could find a way to turn fruit wood without cracking I could become a millionaire. Maybe that's true with Lilac?

[Allen Neighbors]

George: I like the way you turned these... form and all. Good job, even if they did crack.

Ken: I've got several pieces from Apricot; Vases, lidded bowls, bowls, and a trivet. I think I could have just been lucky to not have them crack. But. I turned them while green, and kept them wet while turning, by using a squirt bottle filled with soapy water every time I thought they looked a little dry. I turned them to finished thickness, except the bottom (didn't part off). Then I wet sanded through the grits, and when finished sanding, I left the tenon on, and soaked them in the soap solution for a couple of days. Then I put them back on the lathe, and sanded the last couple of grits again (I think 320 and 400) and then spun all the soap out of them that I could, using brown paper sack to keep them burnished slick. Dried them, and then sprayed them with Lacquer. They've darkened some over time, but still have not cracked . (I can't really tell (three years now) about the bowls and trivet, because I sold them, but Her Majesty latched onto the lidded bowl and the vase, and I've still got one small bowl that hasn't sold yet.)
Needless to say, I'm sold on this method for Apricot, and I think it would work on most fruitwoods (I wish I had some peach wood) and maybe even nutwoods, too.

[Steve Schlumpf]

Great looking bowls George! I've turned a little bit of lilac and it was like trying to cut steel! Apricot was hard - lilac was extreme! For you to turn these nice bowls amazes me! Very nice work - great form on each! Impressive!

[Bernie Weishapl]

George those are great looking bowls. I tried turning some lilac and you are right it cracked as I was turning. I use a lot of CA.

[Earl Reid]

Ilike your bowls, George. I have turned a lot of lilac pens in the last 4 yrs.
Earl

[George Guadiane]

Ilike your bowls, George. I have turned a lot of lilac pens in the last 4 yrs.
Earl
Thanks everyone!
Earl, in turning this stuff, I got to thinking that it would probably make great finial turning stock, so I have set a bunch of it aside to try it. It finishes SO NICELY!

[Dale Gregory]

George, very nice bowls :), I especially like the NE. I have yet to try a NE, but have them on my radar screen for this year. Dale

[Ben Gastfriend]

They all look great dispite the cracking good job, and good photography!:D

[robert hainstock]

Lilac is my favorite wood to turn, though like you I've found that it will crack averytime I look away. :):)
Bob

[Bill Bolen]

Sweet George! I've never turned Lilac. Will have to keep my open for some!...Bill...