Wetting dry bowl blanks

[Brian Deakin]

Approximately 20 years ago I was given a quantity of timber from a high end shopfitting company the wood has been stored in a dry shed

My question I have a range of wood eg oak , walnut ,birch , tulip wood ,cherry, sapele would there be any advantage in soaking the wood prior turning

[Reed Gray]

Nope. Mostly once the water is out, then it is gone. While you can soak it until it is water logged, that doesn't make it 'green' wood again. Some times, if you are having tear out problems, if you get the wood wet/damp, that kind of helps to lubricate the cut and reduce the tear out. You take very light cuts to remove the damp wood.

robo hippy

[Tom Wilson66]

If it is too dry, it will expand if brought into a higher humidity environment than the shed. It is a good idea to let the wood acclimate to its new environment for a period of time to allow it to come into equilibrium with the new environment. Especially if there is to be a tight fit between parts, such as the lid of a box. Otherwise the parts could become so tightly joined they cannot be taken apart.

[Russell Neyman]

Not really, but a technique I have used recently is to spray the surface of a very dry bowl blank with soapy water while I'm turning it. This doesn't make the timber wet again, but it does give it some of the green wood turning qualities. I only do this if the wood is extremely dry and prone to tear out.