I will shortly be gifted with a very nice maple burl from a limb that the owner wants to remove. How should I best treat it for drying to avoid cracking, checking, and otherwise making it less than useful?
The limb above and below the burl is about 8" to 9" in diameter and I expect to see clean cuts through the limb wood. (At least we'll do our best to avoid any upstream splitting. <g>) The burl itself is about 20" at its widest point and not quite wraps around the limb. Accompanying photo should give a general idea of its appearance.
Lacking any better guidance, I would plan to paint both cut ends with sealing compound and store it on a shelf in my heated shop until I figure out what to do with it. I only have a mini-lathe, so am not in a position to eventually turn it as a single vessel. (Though that would be pretty impressive.)
Help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
The limb above and below the burl is about 8" to 9" in diameter and I expect to see clean cuts through the limb wood. (At least we'll do our best to avoid any upstream splitting. <g>) The burl itself is about 20" at its widest point and not quite wraps around the limb. Accompanying photo should give a general idea of its appearance.
Lacking any better guidance, I would plan to paint both cut ends with sealing compound and store it on a shelf in my heated shop until I figure out what to do with it. I only have a mini-lathe, so am not in a position to eventually turn it as a single vessel. (Though that would be pretty impressive.)
Help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.