I need help. I bought a 18"(?) slab of Nrfolk Pine at our last turners meeting. It seemed fairly dry but so I roughed it to make a platter. It stated to crack in the center, so I soaked it in DNA for a couple of days, as I couldn't get back to it sooner. I started to finish it but it kept cracking at the center and edges , so I kept using CA and wood dust to fill the cracks. It looked good but as I was sanding it the whole thing flew apart in multiple pieces. I didn't let it dry that long before final turning , just took it out of the container and started turning for fear of it warping. What did I do wrong?
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Norfolk pine explodes with DNA
- Thread starter Frank Alvarez
- Start date
My guess is that the alcohol still in the wood kept the CA from bonding well with the wood. At that point, cracks will expand under centripital force and "poom". The problem wasn't the DNA, it was the cracked wood.
Dietrich
Dietrich
Norfolk Pine and DNA
OOPS! You made a boo-boo, Frank. It is critical that the wood (any wood) which has been soaking in the DNA reach equilibrium before you do anything with it. Equilibrium as I understand it is when the DNA has evaporated and the wood has absorbed however much moisture it is going to from the air. At that point the wood is stable. (Stable is relative.)
I have DNAed Norfolk Pine, Seagrape, Maple, Oak, Mangrove, Black Olive, and some of the sub-tropical exotics and they all more or less require the time to stabilize. I wait anywhere from two weeks to a month and if they crack, oh we
ll, I have lots of CA and epoxy.
You can mosey over to Wood Central and read the info by Dave Smith who gets credit for developing this method of speed-drying wood.
OOPS! You made a boo-boo, Frank. It is critical that the wood (any wood) which has been soaking in the DNA reach equilibrium before you do anything with it. Equilibrium as I understand it is when the DNA has evaporated and the wood has absorbed however much moisture it is going to from the air. At that point the wood is stable. (Stable is relative.)
I have DNAed Norfolk Pine, Seagrape, Maple, Oak, Mangrove, Black Olive, and some of the sub-tropical exotics and they all more or less require the time to stabilize. I wait anywhere from two weeks to a month and if they crack, oh we
ll, I have lots of CA and epoxy.
You can mosey over to Wood Central and read the info by Dave Smith who gets credit for developing this method of speed-drying wood.
Frank,
The best process with DNA is the following:
1. Rough turn the blank.
2. Soak in DNA for 24 hours.
3. Take out of the DNA bath.
4. Let air dry for about 15 minutes.
5. Wrap in a double layer of newspaper or brown paper.
6. Tape up the paper and cut a hole to make an opening in the side that will expose the inside of the bowl (just leave enough to where the rim of the bowl remains covered with paper).
7. Set somewhere Upside Down and allow air to circulate around the wrapped bowl blank for about 21 days. It is important to have the air be able to freely circulate to the inside of the bowl as this is where the drying really takes place in the DNA process.
8. Unwrap and set aside for about 1 week.
9. Finish turn, sand, and apply finish of your choice.
This is how I've been doing this for just over 2 years now with great results.
If you have badly cracked wood to begin with? It's probably a good idea to use it for firewood or find a way to turn something smaller out of the good pieces. I've been hit with a piece or two of flying wood off the lathe and it's no fun!!! Be sure to always wear full face protection.
The best process with DNA is the following:
1. Rough turn the blank.
2. Soak in DNA for 24 hours.
3. Take out of the DNA bath.
4. Let air dry for about 15 minutes.
5. Wrap in a double layer of newspaper or brown paper.
6. Tape up the paper and cut a hole to make an opening in the side that will expose the inside of the bowl (just leave enough to where the rim of the bowl remains covered with paper).
7. Set somewhere Upside Down and allow air to circulate around the wrapped bowl blank for about 21 days. It is important to have the air be able to freely circulate to the inside of the bowl as this is where the drying really takes place in the DNA process.
8. Unwrap and set aside for about 1 week.
9. Finish turn, sand, and apply finish of your choice.
This is how I've been doing this for just over 2 years now with great results.
If you have badly cracked wood to begin with? It's probably a good idea to use it for firewood or find a way to turn something smaller out of the good pieces. I've been hit with a piece or two of flying wood off the lathe and it's no fun!!! Be sure to always wear full face protection.
I appreciate the input. Sounds like I didn't let it dry long enough, started with cracking wood and the CA didn't bind. Not sure if there wasn't something else I could have done wrong, but I am sure I will discover something else in the future. Thanks again.
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Since alcohol does nothing except displace air, you could simply have ejected it with compressed air. George V told me about it, and it's a real boon to guys like myself who turn in basements and want to get things dry enough to stop mildew quickly. Had a bunch of maple that does not improve with mildew that I ran recently, and other than sugar stains where the grain is too long to eject fully, no black spots. Some birch roughs from the same period got the "treatment" and some didn't, and I can tell which, even though I followed my normal spin, open dry for a couple days and then shelve procedure. Nothing major, but nice to escape fully.
I suspect you might have had the piece sitting on its base? Next time elevate it on stickers to provide circulation beneath. If you set it on its base, you keep that side wetter because of restricted air flow, and promote what creates drying degrade, a differential moisture content. I might add that a mounted faceplate/chuck is a moisture barrier too. Equalizing the rate of loss will do a lot for you, control of the relative humidity around the piece is up to you. I find it easier to monitor a space or room with an inexpensive humidity gage than to guess at wraps. Even an appliance box qualifies as a space, but be careful to treat the interior against mildew!
I suspect you might have had the piece sitting on its base? Next time elevate it on stickers to provide circulation beneath. If you set it on its base, you keep that side wetter because of restricted air flow, and promote what creates drying degrade, a differential moisture content. I might add that a mounted faceplate/chuck is a moisture barrier too. Equalizing the rate of loss will do a lot for you, control of the relative humidity around the piece is up to you. I find it easier to monitor a space or room with an inexpensive humidity gage than to guess at wraps. Even an appliance box qualifies as a space, but be careful to treat the interior against mildew!