Cat Litter to dry Rough Turned Pieces

[Brice Rogers]

Some kitty litter is made with clay (bentonite) and some with very fine gravel. I do metal casting and wanted to get some bentonite to make what is called "green sand". I took some fresh cat litter and soaked it for a day or two in water. I expected that in a day that it would be kind of gooey. That is when I found out that some of the cheaper kitty litter either doesn't use clay, or it is "fired" clay or there is just clay powder and fine gravel. Maybe the brand way Tidy cat, but that is my recollection after about 15 years. I had my brother do the same test with a more expensive (IIRC..."clumping") kitty litter. Over night it basically absorbed all the water and was fairly viscous. I ended up going to a well drilling supply company and bought the bentonite in a 50 or 90 pound bag for my casting project.

So, for the original poster, before you throw in the towel, take a handful of the kitty litter and dump it into a glass of water and see what happens. Maybe you have the same stuff that I originally bought.

[Jay Mullins]

I checked with the abbreviations and acronyms and didn't see "NE". What does it mean?

[Thomas Canfield]

Natural Edge. NE on a turned piece can have bark or without bark but the natural outer edge of wood. Bark has some appeal, but it is subject to damage easily in frequent use. The natural outer wood shape allows maintaining a normal grain pattern and some free form edges. Some will burn or otherwise enhance the edge without bark.