sanding green turned bowls

[Ivan Stancioff]

I recently started turning maple and chestnut when its green and wet. I find the turning to be very easy and the result, after drying, very interesting. I would like to know what people use for sanding the wood when green. I find it far more awkward to sand them after they are dry and can no longer be mounted on the lathe.

 

[Dean Center]

Me, too. I'll be interested to get some pointers from responses to your post. Thanks for asking.

 

[Richard Coers]

I turn my green wood bowls relatively thin. I use the method John Jordan taught. He said that most of the water gets throw out of the wood cells when you get thin. You can reduce the moisture level even further by blowing compressed air through it. Then the bowl goes into a yard waste paper bag (double thickness of paper). I leave the bowl in that bag for a day. Day 2 I switch to a dry bag and hang the wet paper bag on the clothes line. I keep doing that for at least a week, maybe more. Then I use random orbit sanders to sand. It never goes back on the lathe. I have a 20” disc sander that I use to flatten the bottom. I would bet I’ve done it that way for at least 100 bowls.