Drying large dimension wood for sculpture & carving

[Doug Rasmussen]

It seems wood sculpture is becoming part of the AAW per a recent cover story and gallery photos.

So my question is how are these large, thick pieces dried to prevent cracking? I know about turning wet wood to over thickness for drying, then re-turning. I've also been led to believe kiln drying only works up to a certain thickness.

Maybe certain species can be kiln dried in thicker sections? I recently gave a 6" x 6" by 4 foot piece of dry Alaskan yellow cedar to a native carver, that piece (I think) was dimension-ally beyond the kiln drying capacity of most woods.

 

[Charlie Knighton]

I would look for large maple.....4' to 5' wide...quarter it and go from there.....if you want it dry put it off ground and in shade....probably take @ least 2 years before working....you sometimes can find that large of cherry but not much chance of large piece not cracking......suggest you drive big S in ends for support......Do not think large piece can successfully be anchorsealed......problem.....probably take 2 years to see if it would work.....easy to find oak in size if you want a challenge to carve......will be interested following thread and opinions