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Yesterday a guy gave me 2 pieces of apple...one about 16-17", the other perhaps 20". All I had on hand that I did not want was some shellac (I grabbed amber by mistake).
Today a guy gave me 2 nice pieces of hickory. A bit smaller than the apple at 12-14".
All I have on hand now is poly. Will that seal the hickory ok?
...and wood glue.
I now have paraffin wax.
I can heat the wood up (it's frozen).
Which of the 3 products would you use
Here's the bigger piece of apple.
And I just happen to have a 22" lathe.
I would use the paraffin, but of all the woods I've ever worked with, apple is the most challenging to dry without significant structural failure. It's got very high tangential shrinkage, and is very good a tearing itself apart as a result. The fact that it is rarely comes in boles large enough to allow for cuts that don't include significant flat grain only makes it worse.
Apple is quite challenging to dry. If you want to turn it large you might turn it now. I would personally cut it up into smaller pieces and cut out the pith, seal the endgrain and any wild grain, and let it dry before turning. At minimum, cut rounds through the pith. Paraffin is excellent for sealing - if you are not familiar with the safety issues of working with paraffin please don't burn the house down by melting it over an open flame.
PVA (white) glue thinned with a little water is good - a demonstrator at the TAW (Mike Mahoney I think) said he preferred that to Anchorseal (I'd have to check my notes). You can even glue plastic wrap to the ends for a nearly perfect seal.
"Ponding" (storing under water) will keep any wood from drying out and warping/cracking - no sealer needed. Freezing is a good way to keep green wood for an extended time. This time of year you shouldn't have much problem with drying and checking if it is generally cold in your location. Just don't store them in a heated shop. In freezing weather you can even store blanks in plastic bags if you like - they won't be destroyed by fungus and rot like in warm weather. I'd keep them all out of the sun regardless of the method.
JKJ
Almost all fruit woods crack just looking at them. Put it into a contractors bag till you decide how to turn it. John has the best advice. cut it up and have a number of beautiful bowls.
Don't suppose there is a way to turn a large bowl (20" or so) successfully?
One piece in particular. The guy gave me a piece of the same wood that he cut into a rectangle. It has a burl on one end.
What would you suggest doing with it?
I included a pic of some of the other burls he threw in my truck. I've never turned birch so I'm pretty excited to have a piece with a burl.
One of the smaller logs had mold on both ends. When I cut the mold off with the chainsaw I was delighted to find spalding.
Wish now I'd left it as is for another year or so. The log was in good shape under the mold. No cracks.
Bill a big lathe and experienced turner can turn very large bowls. I do see some cracking on the ends of some of the pieces better remove the pith and rough turn as soon as possible. As far as the burl goes, I really don't see enough to judge properly but most of the time removing the burl and turning it separately from the tree is the best way to use it. Even if the wood under the salting looks unsalted it may continue to spalt.