The LDD soak was first done by the late great Ron Kent. He started using it for helping with sanding out Norfolk Island Pine bowls, and I think he used other woods, but Emeliano can chime in here. What the LDD does is make things WAY easier to sand out, especially with woods that have a lot of sap/resin in them. As near as I can tell with my playing with it, it does absolutely nothing for stabilizing the wood. My guess is that the lanolin in the dish soaps acts as a lubricant when sanding to keep the abrasives clean and clog free. I did turn two identical sized bowls from Pacific Madrone, and one I soaked in DNA (denatured alcohol), and the other in the LDD. They both dried at exactly the same rate, and both warped wildly, which I love. There was a time when many were doing the DNA soaks to help stabilize the woods. I am not sure how much of that is still being done as I don't hear much about it any more. I have gone back to using it on my once turned bowls since it makes sanding so much easier, and my abrasives seem to last longer. You need a big tub, and several gallons of the LDD. Get the tan Costco brand, Kirkland maybe, and pour into a big tub. Let the bowl blanks soak for 24 hours, then rinse off and dry the blanks. I wrap my rims in stretch film, except for maple which will mold under the plastic. Madrone and myrtle are fine. Bowls turned down to 1/4 inch or so are dry in a week. Ron was also soaking the bowls in Danish oil for a long time, to the extent that the bowls weighed a lot more than the dry wood, and this was after the oil was cured out. It is messy, but I have a dedicated sink and tub for it.
robo hippy
