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Thread: Pith turned Box Elder bowls

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Feb 2003
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    Bucks County PA
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    646

    Pith turned Box Elder bowls

    <b><font color="#3333FF"><font size=+2>Hello Everyone</font></font></b>,
    <P>I'm one of those people who likes to try out new techniques and ideas on occasion. <font color="#000099"><Small><B><I>Lets face it, I'm an engineer through and through.</font></Small></B></I>

    <P>So when I was first exposed to the <font color="#006600"><B>Soap Soaking</font></B> technique by Phil Wall, I was intrigued. In fact, this was the only procedure that I was using when I first started. I was able to turn out some OK looking pieces, that didn't crack but eventually warped to a somewhat oval shape. I wasn't too happy with that and decided to pursue a more traditional approach to drying. That is, until this past weekend.

    <P>A couple of weeks ago, I came across a document on the <I><B>World of Woodturners' Website</I></B> (WOW) by a gentlemen named <I><B>Leif Thorvaldson</I></B>. Leif was using a 1:1 ratio of soap to water and was reported to be having a great deal of success. When I first got into the LDD <I>(<B>L</B>iquid <B>D</B>ish <B>D</B>etergent)</I> solution, I was using Ron Kent's ratio of 6:1. Leif also recommends that once the piece is soaked, you wipe it off, turn to final thickness, sand, and then finish all in the same session. Well, this sort of blew my socks off. I was naturally skeptical at first. But decided to give it a shot. What the heck? It's just wood. I choose a couple of pieces of Box Elder in this experiment. And not only would I test the LDD method, but I would test it in a very extreme case. Pith Turned bowls.
    <HR>
    <P>In case you've never heard of this, here's how it goes. Take a nice sized log, and slice a hunk off the end. Much as you would see someone slicing luncheon meat at a deli. Attach a faceplate centered on the pith and turn a bowl. Reverse chuck it and hollow. The reason that this method is so unorthodox is that the pith tends to dry before the rest of the bowl, which results in cracking. Thats why you normally cut this section out of the wood you intend to turn.

    <P>Since my old soap soaking setup had been dismantled, I bought some generic brand LDD from Walmart along with a 5 gallon Rubbermaid container. All that was left to do was pour the (10) 40 oz containers into the plastic bin, and add the appropriate amount of water. All told, I spent about $17.42 (w/o tax).

    <P>I selected a Box Elder log that was about 12" around. Using my chainsaw I took off (3) pieces that were about 8" in thick. I then rough turned them as I described above. As when using standard air drying, the wall thickness was about 10% of the diameter. I then immersed the roughed out bowls in a tub of 50/50 LDD for (1) day. To ensure total immersion, the bowls were held under with a brick.

    <P>After a day of soaking, I retrieved them and wiped them off with a towel. Once mounted on the lathe, I proceeded to turn them to a consistent wall thickness of 1/8" to 3/16". I used the old light-behind-the-bowl-trick Phil demonstrated to me once to achieve this. Liberal application of CA glue to the pith helped me to maintain it's integrity during final turning. Using a vacuum chuck to reverse-chuck these bowls was also a great help.

    <P>Once the bowls were turned to their final thickness, I sanded them to 1500 grit and applied several coats of Woodcraft's Urethane Oil Finish. The finish was allowed to cure for several days after which they were buffed with a Beall Buffing System.

    <P>The one bowl measures 9 5/8" O.D. x 4" high. The base is 3 1/4" in diameter. The other bowl measures 9 1/4" O.D. x 4 1/2" high. It's base is 3 1/4" in diameter. As I stated before, the wall thickness is as consistent as I could humanly maintain. The larger bowl is at 3/16", while the smaller one is at 1/8".

    <P>After turning these bowls, I can see the allure of attempting such a technique. The flame patter of the Box Elder takes on an almost <I><B>"tie-dyed shirt"</I></B> quality when turned in this orientation. So far, these bowls have gotten rave reviews at home <I>(SWMBO loves them)</I>, and here at work.

    <P>But these bowls are not for sale,.....yet. They are an experiment. I'm not sure if these will crack after several days of being in a drier environment. But so far the bowls have maintained their shape, and have not cracked. Considering that only (3) days have passed, this is not earth shattering news. After they sit in the house for a while, I will report on their status.

    <P>Thanks for viewing.

    <p><font color="#000099"><b><i>See ya around,</font></b></i>
    <p><b><font color="#000066"><font size=+1>Dominic</font></font></b>
    Attached Images Attached Images

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Feb 2003
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    Just outside of Spring Green, Wisconsin
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    9,442

    Cool Way cool!

    That's just too neat, Dominic! They look fabulous. And thank you so very much for the instructional content, as well! (As a side note, I think that maybe you should consider handing this over to our administrators to add to our permanent Articles & Reviews section.) Anyhow, I, for one, will be very interested in finding out the long-term condition of the bowls using this process. Thanks much for the delightful and informative post!
    Cheers,
    John K. Miliunas

    Cannot find REALITY.SYS. Universe halted.
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  3. #3
    Join Date
    Mar 2003
    Location
    SE PA - Central Bucks County
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    65,685
    Once again, compliments are in order! Great job!
    --

    The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Feb 2003
    Location
    Huntsville, AL (The Sun and Fun Capital of The South)
    Posts
    3,203

    As Usual

    AS USUAL -- GREAT WORK BUDDY ! ! !
    "If you believe in yourself and have dedication and pride - and never quit, you'll be a winner. The price of victory is high - but so are the rewards" - - Coach Paul "Bear" Bryant
    Ken Salisbury Passed away on May 1st, 2008 and will forever be in our hearts.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Feb 2003
    Location
    Toronto, ON
    Posts
    610

    Beautiful Work Dominic!!!

    You've got a real touch! Thank you for sharing your work with us. Howard
    Howard Rosenberg

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Mar 2005
    Location
    Newburyport, MA
    Posts
    5

    Question Bowls still solid?

    Hi Dominic,

    Having recently chainsawed myself 20 box elder bowl blanks, I came across your old thread and read and re-read it with great interest. Now that it is 2 years later, how did the bowls finally turn out? Any ill-effects from the soap on the finish? How much warp did you end up with?

    By the way, isn't box elder the worst smelling green wood you have ever smelled? Do you know what causes that red stain - is it a fungus (I have that in my blanks also).

    Thanks for an inspirational story!

    ...mike

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