I probably did something wrong here

[Mike Novak]

I had a large white oak taken down last month. I saved one of the logs to make large bowls. I roughed out 3 so far. After turning, I put each one in a large paper bag. The ones made for yard cleanup. I think they are 3 ply’s of paper.

Stored in basement stacked on top of each other. About 70 deg and 60% rh.

After 3 weeks, the bags still feel damp. I opened them up to see how it’s going, and this is what I found.

Before I rough out any more I’d like to find a way to get better results.

Thanks

 

[hockenbery]

I had a large white oak taken down last month. I saved one of the logs to make large bowls. I roughed out 3 so far. After turning, I put each one in a large paper bag. The ones made for yard cleanup. I think they are 3 ply’s of paper.

Stored in basement stacked on top of each other. About 70 deg and 60% rh.

After 3 weeks, the bags still feel damp. I opened them up to see how it’s going, and this is what I found.

Before I rough out any more I’d like to find a way to get better results.

Thanks

Hard to see everything. Be sure to keep the paper bags in a low air circulation space.
Paper bags in front of an air duct etc will dry too quickly.

White Oak, has a high shrinkage rate. Average reported shrinkage values are 5.6% radial, 10.5% tangential, 16.3% volumetric.
So dry it sloooowwwwly. Might use sealer which dries slower than paper bags by a couple months.
White oak shrinks about 30% more than Red maple (Shrinkage: Radial: 4.0%, Tangential: 8.2%,. Volumetric: 12.6%)


One thing I do differently is the bottom thickness. My Even wall thickness includes the tenon.
I check the thickness with calipers. At the bottom i measure between the jaws - tenon face to inside bottom.
I want this about the same or less than the side wall thickness.
If you have balanced grain the bottom doesn’t warp much but it does have to let the side walls close in
I would cut similar to the red line.

 

[Mike Novak]

This helps a lot. I had made some bad assumptions about both thickness and the wood.

Next one bottom thinner than sides. I need to decide how to slow drying. I hate the idea of using a sealer or wax because of the cost and mess. I may try the wet shavings in a box method. Gets moldy, but dries super slow.

 

[Bob Vaughan]

I hate the idea of using a sealer or wax because of the cost and mess.

I'm with you on this but what I found that I hated even worse was to waste all of the effort to get a bowl blanked out and have it split into firewood. I eventually accepted defeat and went with the sealing method and all was right with seasoning bowl blanks.
Our club got some sealant with green food coloring and I really like it. Any spot of green left during turning meant that there was a wax splotch that I clearly needed to turn off.

 

[hockenbery]

This helps a lot. I had made some bad assumptions about both thickness and the wood.

Next one bottom thinner than sides. I need to decide how to slow drying. I hate the idea of using a sealer or wax because of the cost and mess. I may try the wet shavings in a box method. Gets moldy, but dries super slow.

I personally use paper bags. But if they aren’t working for you, sealer will dry them more slowly.

You might get acceptable results with thinner bottoms.

You might also consider boiling if you have a large stainless steel or aluminum pot.
I’ve never boiled wood but those who do report less cracking
There are lots of threads and other info on boiling.
And iron kettle will turn your oak black.

Whenever I used shavings it became a mold factory.

 

[Sam Fleisher]

I have 18 white oak I'm working on right now. Never did any rough turned oak before. I gotta say you aren't helping my confidence level! Although I have been coating them with sealer and then some saran wrap on a stick loosely. Mostly just to keep the mess down until the sealer dries some.

I'm hoping my saving grace is the fact that the tree blew over 3 months ago so less sap and a hardwood lumber guy said that it was half dead and the trunk was probably hollow when he looked at the chunk of limb (14" diameter) I brought him to identify for me.

 

[robo hippy]

Well, for me, this is a 'welcome to the world of white oak turning' situation. Only done oak a few times, and had that problem with my once turned bowls. Not the easiest wood to dry without cracking.

robo hippy

 

[Mike Novak]

I was under the impression that white oak was much easier than red. So much for that. I like the idea of due to make it easier to see sealer.

 

[Sam Fleisher]

I was under the impression that white oak was much easier than red. So much for that. I like the idea of due to make it easier to see sealer.

I wonder if food coloring can be added to any sealer? I've been using rockler variety and I just got a klingspor brand to try.

 

[Dave Hulett]

I join everyone's sentiment. Reading your post, as soon as I saw white oak, I knew the problems was....White Oak!

 

[Gerald Lawrence]

I did not have a problem with cracks in WO but movement is a big problem and a platter will turn into a taco a bowl into a football, but cracks were not there. This was Live Oak and it is a different kind of White Oak as to its reaction.

 

[Bill Boehme]

I live in the middle of the Post Oak Belt, which is a species of white oak. Drying most white oak species without splitting is a real challenge. I recommend using Anchorseal plus doing what Al Hockenbery said. Especially do not use wet shavings.

 

[Mike Novak]

Just ordered anchor seal original. Pricey stuff!

 

[Rusty Nesmith]

Just ordered anchor seal original. Pricey stuff!

You can buy green wood sealer from Rockler a lot cheaper. Same stuff. I buy two at a time to get free shipping.

 

[Rusty Nesmith]

I don’t turn oak so I can’t comment on that. I have lost bowls using the paper bag method. Now I rough turn, wax inside and out and set them on a shelf for a year and they are ready to finish turn. I haven’t lost a bowl yet doing it that way. A year seems like a long time but goes faster than you think. Around half of the bowls on this shelf are ready to finish turn.

 

[Sam Fleisher]

I don’t turn oak so I can’t comment on that. I have lost bowls using the paper bag method. Now I rough turn, wax inside and out and set them on a shelf for a year and they are ready to finish turn. I haven’t lost a bowl yet doing it that way. A year seems like a long time but goes faster than you think. Around half of the bowls on this shelf are ready to finish turn.View attachment 52764

I smell a ready to turn shelf pics thread!

 

[Mike Novak]

My goal is to get a couple dozen on the shelf drying. I have 3 now, all elm which doesn’t seem to crack no matter what I do. Interlocking grain and came down in dead of winter.