Should I soak wood in water first?

"Ace" skrev i melding news:qvF%c.401246$%_6.44674@attbi_s01...

If you have not turned bowls before, hold the oak. It is _hard_.

As for the soaking, ask the "guy" to soak his head.

Bjarte

"Ace" wrote

Neither is a good wood to learn turning on, try newly cut maple of most anything else. Pine is doable, but hard to learn on since it is so soft. When you get the "wet" wood (fresh cut), try soaking it in LDD, that's probably what he was referring to. DAGS

Dave in Fairfax

Laundry and Dish Detergent?... I give up, what's LDD?

Osage should turn okay. Oak will warp on you as it dries. Availability has a lot going for it. The recommendation about maple is good, IF you have maple available. Don't let the hardness of the wood throw you, it all makes shavings on the floor, it is just that some cuts faster than others.

A bit of advice, for what it is worth. If you want to practice on something that is really forgiving and will not become some version of a pretzel after it dries (We all hold our first bowl in high . . . whatever) take four, five or six pieces of pine 1 x whatever stock (2 x is okay also), cut length to equal width, glue and stack. You wind up with what was essentially a piece of scrap (or several scrap pieces) laying around your shop and is now a nice square block waiting for your first meeting with your lathe. Your bowl blank should not be over 4 1/2" high. Knock the corners off on your table saw to form an octagon - reduces catches and makes getting to a cylinder much easier. Then let your inner being become sensitive to the wood and cut away everything that does not look like a bowl.

As for finish. Some opt for urethane, some lacquer, some oil; I happen to like shellac and wax. Like the wood, use what you have but put it on on the lathe, at least the first coat, it just goes on smoother.

As for LDD (liquid dish detergent) I have had mixed results. Overall, wood is going to do what it is going to do, though LDD probably reduces the warpage. Leif Thorvaldson is the guru of LDD and swears by it. According to him, he has had no problems. Maybe he is using a different detergent than I am. I have used the cheap stuff and Joy, same results.

Deb

You might notice in all my "ravings" about LDD that I only "guarantee" results if you use Costco's Kirkland Brand of LDD. I had good results with Ivory LDD. Those who report back having mixed results or failure have in common using non-recommended LDD and/or using wrong ratios and/or not keeping the turning object in the solution between turnings and/or allowing the object to "dry" before applying the finish.

I don't very often hear back from turners who have tried the method, so I am making those assumption s based on a few feedbacks. I have had positive feed backs in a few cases as well, but those were from folks who followed the directions! *G*

Leif

Leif just answered that one, and I agree about the ratio being important as well as the re-immersing and finshing immediately upon stopping the lathe. Deb is right about all wood making shavings, but Oak unless wet is messier than most woods and Osage Orange, unless wet is VERY hard. That's why I don't think they make good beginner woods. Pine is OK, and KD will cut easier than AD, but if you have good wood that's fresh available, I wouldn't wast the glue unless you are experimenting with segmented turning. Just my opinion, everyone has at least one, YMMV. Poplar and maple are easy to start on and Walnut, wear resp protection, is gorgeous. Have fun. Dave in Fairfax

When ever I hear about turning oak I always throw this in for what it is worth. I have never had a problem with oak trees. I have been around them all my life. Here is the but. I was in a class and started turning Silk oak. I was in short sleves and shorts. I turned the bowl and used the restroom in the middle of it all. Next morning I had broken out with poison oak. Even "down below" was swollen. Where ever the oil from the wood toutched is were I broke out. I may have been the exception as no one else in the class had any problems. But if you are the exception it was not fun. The lessons I learned were to wash your hands BEFORE useing the rest room to get rid of the oil and use long sleve shirts if you are not sure. I have not had any problems with any other wood but now it is a habit before comeing into the house I brush all the shaveings off my cloths and then wash my hands. The first one is for my wife and the second one is for my. I don't understand why she gets so upset with the trail of shaveings from the garage to the kitchen. Must be a woman thing.

====================== I guess this is right, but my wife hasn't told what my opinion is today! {:-))

That's 'cause you have no "need to know." %-)

Dave in Fairfax

I have to Chuckle a bit about brushing the shavings off before coming in from the garage as my wife is the same way about it :D

Steven Raphael Ithaca MI

Seems that you aren't the only one with this reaction to silk oak.