# turning green wood



## jdmule (Mar 8, 2008)

does any one here have any experience with turning green wood, i have a legacy and have been trying some larger hollow spirals,[ 6 to 8 inch diameter], and while it has been turning out ok i run into some problems with checking. anyone here familar with the procedures involved with this type of technique?


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## Dr.Zook (Sep 10, 2004)

Hello jdmule and welcome to the Router Forums.


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## chippypah (Dec 24, 2007)

Yes turned lots of green wood, will post full reply tomorrow.
Cheers
Pete


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## chippypah (Dec 24, 2007)

Hi there jdmule,
Turning green wood is a pleasure to do, if your tools are sharp when turning continuous ribbons of wood can be seen.
Like all green wood it will eventually dry out, so great care must be taken to minimize the risk of cracks and checking.
Both are caused by to much stress on the wood, heat build up will cause the surface to dry to quickly. So to help minimize this from happening keep some water close, and dampen the surface as soon as the shavings start to appear a bit dryer.
When hollowing out, you must make sure that the wall thickness is the same throughout. If this is not done then as the item starts to dry, a crack will happen due to one part drying out quicker than another.
Hope this all makes sense to you, heat and thickness are the only two factors to think about.
Cheers
Pete


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## jdmule (Mar 8, 2008)

the water part is something i would not of thought about, and i will have to give it a try because i do 1 turn called a hollow spiral and when i am turning a big one 6 to 8 in in diameter it can take a day or two to get one done , and one day when i can figure out what i am doing wrong with the upload thingy i will up load one and show it to you


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## BernieW (Sep 12, 2006)

One thing I will tell you about green wood. You do not want to leave it on the lathe for two days. If you have to put a plastic bag around it after you have sprayed it with water and make sure it is tied up tight. If you don't the wood dries out to fast. On most all of my green wood if I am not soaking it in Denatured Alcohol for drying I will turn it to finial size in one setting. I found if you do it in a two day session it can be disaster. Cracks and checking all over. I will do my Hollow Forms all in one setting, with the walls a even 3/16" thick from top to bottom and then soak it in Danish Oil or Antique Oil. I just keep brushing it on till no more soaks in. Once this happens I will let it sit for several minutes then wipe off the excess. I wait 24 hrs and apply the same finish just like I did the first time. I let this dry for 24 hrs. I have lost one yet.


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## chippypah (Dec 24, 2007)

Another way if you are going to leave it overnight or even a couple days, is to get some sacking and soak it and the get rid of excess water and wrap it around the piece. That works well in the winter months, but in the summer months I also cover with plastic to hold in the moisture. The whole concept is to not to let it dry out at different rates or cracks will appear, hopefully I will be doing a plum hollow vessel soon just waiting for the tree to be cut down and will do a photo shoot of the process.
Cheers
Pete


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## LONGHAIR (Mar 8, 2008)

Some of this has to do with the wood itself too. Some species are more prone to checking/splitting than others. Fruit woods, Apple, Pear, etc. are really bad about it. Also the location on the tree has some affect. This can be very hard to tell though, even if you are the one who cut it. A piece that was too close to a large brach, or from a tree that grew on a hillside, would be more likely to give you problems too. "Re-action wood" has internal stress that is released not only when the wood dries, but when you remove parts of it too.
This is the "fun" of woodworking in general, you just never know for sure.


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## jdmule (Mar 8, 2008)

finally got the download thing to work i think , this is a replica of the piece`s i have trouble with the checking but they are 5 to 8 foot long and 8 inches in diameter so it takes some time to make them, better than a day to shape and hollow but i like the idea of the wet sacks and will try it out the next time i do one that size. this piece here i turned because of all the ant holes, i think it came out pretty cool


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## chippypah (Dec 24, 2007)

That is very nice, a work of art.
Cheers
Pete


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## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

Hi jdmule

Nice Job 

Below you will see a PDF file for some templates for your next one..



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jdmule said:


> finally got the download thing to work i think , this is a replica of the piece`s i have trouble with the checking but they are 5 to 8 foot long and 8 inches in diameter so it takes some time to make them, better than a day to shape and hollow but i like the idea of the wet sacks and will try it out the next time i do one that size. this piece here i turned because of all the ant holes, i think it came out pretty cool


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## jdmule (Mar 8, 2008)

yea i like doing spirals also, and when i remodle the porch here shortly i am gonna do all the column `s in the pillow diamond, the pic`s are what i have done to the front of the house so far and are a form of casings i make for entranceways


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## chippypah (Dec 24, 2007)

Wow very nice mate.
Cheers
Pete


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## jdmule (Mar 8, 2008)

BernieW said:


> One thing I will tell you about green wood. You do not want to leave it on the lathe for two days. If you have to put a plastic bag around it after you have sprayed it with water and make sure it is tied up tight. If you don't the wood dries out to fast. On most all of my green wood if I am not soaking it in Denatured Alcohol for drying I will turn it to finial size in one setting. I found if you do it in a two day session it can be disaster. Cracks and checking all over. I will do my Hollow Forms all in one setting, with the walls a even 3/16" thick from top to bottom and then soak it in Danish Oil or Antique Oil. I just keep brushing it on till no more soaks in. Once this happens I will let it sit for several minutes then wipe off the excess. I wait 24 hrs and apply the same finish just like I did the first time. I let this dry for 24 hrs. I have lost one yet.



>can you brush the denatured alcohol on, it would take a big vat to do that with an 8 foot column


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## gemma.laming (May 1, 2011)

Hi everyone, just before I go to bed I would like to add a comment as I have also some experience in turning green wood. My son was making some skittles from green wood, and asked me to do the balls for him. I had not done much green turning at that time - nor have I since for that matter - but when the balls dried out they had turned a little ovoid rather than a true sphere because the timber will shrink more on the breadth than the length of the grain. Am I making any sense here? 

As to the cracks and so-on, I thought that was all part parcel and beauty of having turned green wood? Best wishes anyway and I hope it turns out as you wish! Gemma


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## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

HI

You may want to talk with
BernieW
Router Forums - View Profile: BernieW

He makes every thing on the lathe, from balls to UFO's  see his uploads...

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gemma.laming said:


> Hi everyone, just before I go to bed I would like to add a comment as I have also some experience in turning green wood. My son was making some skittles from green wood, and asked me to do the balls for him. I had not done much green turning at that time - nor have I since for that matter - but when the balls dried out they had turned a little ovoid rather than a true sphere because the timber will shrink more on the breadth than the length of the grain. Am I making any sense here?
> 
> As to the cracks and so-on, I thought that was all part parcel and beauty of having turned green wood? Best wishes anyway and I hope it turns out as you wish! Gemma


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## BernieW (Sep 12, 2006)

jdmule said:


> >can you brush the denatured alcohol on, it would take a big vat to do that with an 8 foot column


The denatured alcohol must soak in before it will do any good. So I am afraid 8 ft columns wouldn't do it. I would find some kiln dried wood myself. Green wood drying on its own take 1 yr per 1" of thickness. So even if the wood didn't crack it would probably take minimum 4 yrs or more if it is 4" thick.


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## gal turner (Mar 3, 2010)

Green wood will be a no-no for hollowing spirals. ..if you do not have kiln-dried, you must get that wood down to 6-10% moisture content. Guaranteed if you use green wood it will check, crack, and go ovoid. No way around it


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## jeeper (Jan 9, 2011)

Very nice work.. Everytime I get on here I see/learn something from everyone. Then of course I have to go out and buy a new toy and try it myself. haha Everyone, Keep up the FANTASTIC work!! Your all experts!! So nice to be part a good Forum that is always wanting to help out.


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## Bluepine38 (Oct 1, 2010)

I have a good quantity of premium sawdust for some reason, LOL, and after I turn 
green wood to its rough shape, I place the item in a garbage can full of sawdust, which
with bowls, allows the wood to dry without cracking. You have to let the bowls set
for a year or two and dig the oldest from the bottom to finish them, the time factor
is no problem for me. BernieW's idea sounds better if you are in a hurry, also you 
might have a problem finding a big enough garbage can for a 5 ft item. My better 
half wonders about the extra sawdust setting in the shed, but it keeps me off street
corners and out of most trouble, so she puts up with me.


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