Turning blanks

[MrMoo]

Hay Guys, given this is a sawmilling forum I was wondering if anyone here makes their own bowl turning blanks? If you do could you provide some information about how you do it. I just got a lathe and I have a wood lot some so I am interested.
Thanks,
Moo

[POSTON WIDEHEAD]

Hey Moo, glad you joined the FF.
I know nothing about turning or collecting blanks.
But I love collecting signed wooden bowls that craftsman have turned.
Please post some pics of your work when you're up and running.
And again.....Welcome! 

[Ianab]

Don't think there is any real secret to making turning blanks. 

Depends what you plan to turn really? You could take a heavy D slab off the top of a log, then cross-cut that into squares, trim the corners off with a band saw and you have bowl blanks. Rough turn them green, then put them up to dry. They will turn easier green, and because the bowl is now roughed down to ~1" thick ot dries faster with less chance of cracking.

Or for spindle stock you just saw a pile of 2x2 or 3x3, and dry them normally.

Platters can be turned from pieces of 12x2, roughly trimmed on the band saw.

You can also get into laminating up blanks from smaller offcuts, using contrasting woods etc.

It's a great use for shorts, reject logs, and ugly logs that you otherwise might not bother sawing. Some of the best turning blanks are found in the firewood pile, with the crotch wood and curly grain etc.

[justallan1]

Yup, what Ian said.
I saw mostly box elder and box elder burls to sell and I feel besides shooting for quality chunks of wood a huge part in sawing blanks is to keep them in sizes that fill USPS flat rate boxes, either one blank or multiples to get the box full to keep it affordable for the customer.
With sawing straight grained wood it depends on what you or your customer wants, but I have found that for the most part on pens, pencils, duck calls, razor handles, pizza cutters, peppermills, ETC. you want the grain to go lengthwise with what you are making. With platters and bowls you want the grain horizontal or you stand the chance of it cracking on you. Meaning I cut a round of wood to where the diameter inside the bark and the length are the same and split it in half like you would split firewood, BLAM you have two bowl blanks.
On any block of wood that short you want to seal the ends to keep it from drying to fast and checking.
On any burls you want to seal ALL sawn faces. Please believe that. I could show pictures that make folks want beat me up. :-[

[Larry]

This advice coming from a shade tree sawmiller and wannabe bowl turner so its only worth what ya paid for it.

Saw your blanks from either side of the pith.  The pith will always crack when in a bowl.  Cut to length and end seal immediately.  I've used both Anchorseal and paraffin.  I like paraffin the best and usually seal twice a few minutes apart.  I keep my roaster filled and ready to go at all times.



Even though they are sealed I like to turn them fairly soon.

After a while you will see stuff in the log nobody else sees and get better at your blanks.  This is a little one I turned couple of days ago that came from a log most would have sent to the burn pile.  It gets shot with lacquer and buffed maybe next week.



A good bowl turner, that turns green can tell how the wood will warp as it dries and takes that in accord with the design.  I've learned a lot from those guys and it has helped with just sawing plain old boards.

[Den-Den]

I turn quite a few bowls but rarely is the sawmill involved.  Like Ianab wrote, the best bowl blanks come from wood that would not normally see a sawmill.  Many of mine were cut into firewood length before being given to me.

[ESFted]

Turning blanks for bowls need to have the pith cut out to minimize cracking. I don't have a mill so I use a chainsaw to cut a log section about 6" longer than the diameter of the log.  Cut the section lengthwise about an inch on either side of the pith.  The two resulting halves get the corners trimmed off so they are roughly round and then, if not being turned right away, the cut surfaces, or at least the end grain gets well coated with Anchorseal to minimize splitting. I save the center section and rip it in half on the band saw to get two nice quartersawn short project boards a couple of inches thick.  I made a series of Masonite circles that I screw to the blank as a guide for further rounding on the band saw.  That blank is ready to rough out on the lathe, or re-coat with Anchorseal for long term storage.

[Kasba]

I cut the round down the centre right through the pith. I then cut it on my bandsaw round, rough it out to the shape so it is 10% thickness of the finished size( ie 15 inch bowl 1.5 thickness in the wall thickness). I then end seal the whole bowl and put it in a cool place low to the floor where it will be stored, after that up on my shelves where it is warmer for another 6 months. If I have cut a slab and don't have anytime then I just cut it round and end seal the whole thing and let air dry 1 inch thick a year theory. The other thing I do with our local oak (Gary) and madrone is rough it out then boil it to take the tension or soak in water for 3 months. I spend many hours on my lathe and sell all my items at local studios and have not had to many failures using the methods mentioned. Enjoy yourself it is a wonderful past time . I joined a local guild and have learned so many things over the years, you will find most Wood turners are passionate about sharing information with others.

[azmtnman]

  I keep my roaster filled and ready to go at all times.

You must have a very supportive wife!!! :D :D :D

[Larry]

That's the kitchen in my shop were I can do all kind of fun things.   In her house I have to behave and that's really boring. : ??? :

[OffGrid973]

Do you just seal the ends with the wax or the entire blank?  I have a sawmill and really like to turn but never can get the right thickness and sealing figured out before checking, especially on cedar which I love minus the sanding.  The misses says paraffin at Bed Bath And Beyond are cheap and you just leave wax in there vs. using the crock pot which was my first suggestion, she didn't agree

[Raym]

As a seasoned turner I find that my turning stock is considerably different than logs to saw. However there have been times that I have dedicated a log to bowl blanks. On one occasion I took a 12" tulip poplar, centered pith, cut slab off one side, cut 1/2" above the centered pith. Then rotated remainder log 180 degrees to cut opposing slab. Rotated 180degrees again to cut 1/2 below the now centered pith. Interesting to watch this cut as it yields a 1" board but you can watch it split in two from the tension as the blade passes down the log.

[MrMoo]

Thanks to every one for the replies and info.

Ok now for more info. This past summer at my wife's family farm they cut a giant ash tree that had stood sentinel over the family cemetery since 1832. The main stem log is not much good for the sawmill as the top is just very large knots. I feel the bottom 2 feet of the log could be used to make turning blanks. The log is over 48" diameter but we feel we could chainsaw off the bottom 2 feet. I guess from there we could chock what is left and use the chainsaw to make slabs that could be made into blanks for the lathe. Does sound reasonable?

[Ianab]

Sounds reasonable. I would get the chainsaw and start whittling.

Not all turning blanks need to be huge. You can make eggcups if you are so inclined  ;) :D  So at least get in that and make some candlesticks to give to the family members, considering the history of the tree.

Don't discount the knotty portion of the log. There is often sections of interesting grain around the knots. Trying to leave the pith or a large knot in a blank will usually end badly, but the curvy grain around the knot can be interesting.

The other guys have given good advice about controlling the drying. End grain wood dries much faster, so it shrinks and cracks before the long grain section has a chance to catch up. The wax slows this, and restricting the air flow and heat slows the whole process down. Means you have a much better chance of the piece drying intact.

[MrMoo]

Yes I agree that small blanks would be good. I have been thinking of things like small boxes would be nice keepsakes.

The interesting grain around knots is always good but the top of this log has so many large knots I really doubt anything good would come out of it. I have looked it over several times with an attitude of I will get some kind of boards out of this but when I look it over I just do not see it.

[CHARLIE]

I don't usually cut up a whole log at one time into bowl blanks.  Leaving the wood as a log until I need a bowl blank helps cut down on cracking.  Smaller chunks of wet wood crack faster unless dried down properly.  As stated in previous post, be sure to seal the end grain of the log to reduce the chance of it cracking.

First thing I did was make several disks from 1/4 inch thick Masonite (hardboard).  I made a 4" disk, a 6" disk, a 8" disk, a 10" disk and a 12" disk.....or any sized disk you want for the size log you have and the size bowl you want. Center a screw in each disk.

When cutting a bowl blank from a log, measure the diameter of the log and cut the length off the log a little longer than the diameter of the log.  For example, if you have a 10" diameter log, cut off a length of the log equal to about 12 inches.

With your chainsaw, cut the length of that chunk in half, removing the pith. As tempting as it might be to keep the pith, it will only cause you lots of problem later. Get rid of it.

Now, place the correct sized disk on the bark side and screw it down.  For the 10" diameter log I might chose a 10" disk or an 8" disk.  The disk will be your guide for cutting a bowl blank on your bandsaw.

Now, lay the flat part of the half log down on your bandsaw table and carefully cut out the circle by cutting around the hard board disk.  It doesn't have to be perfect because you'll true it up on the lathe later.  I have a large bandsaw that will cut through 12" thick chunks of wood but most bandsaws are lucky to be able to cut through 6 inch thick pieces of wood.  If you wood is too thick for your bandsaw, you may have to trim some wood off to make it fit.

Once you have your bowl blank cut, remove the disk and mount it on the lathe.  I have a 4 jaw chuck I like to use, so I usually mount my chunk of wood between centers, true up the blank, turn it to the shape bowl I want and cut about a 1/2 inch to 3/4 inch tenon on the bottom.  If I was going to mount the blank on a faceplate, I'd still mount the wood between centers to true and form the rough shape of the bowl and cut a flat spot on the bottom for the size faceplate.   *Note: Speed can kill, so keep your lathe just fast enough to cut the wood. The larger the chunk of wood, the slower I run my lathe.

Once I shape the outside of the bowl and add a tenon, I mount the blank onto my 4 jaw chuck and rough hollow out the inside, leaving the walls of the bowl about 3/4 inch thick.   *Note: Speed can kill, so keep your lathe just fast enough to cut the wood. The larger the chunk of wood, the slower I run my lathe.

Now it is time to dry the wood. This takes time. First, weigh the rough turned bowl, then place it into a paper grocery sack along with a bunch of wood shavings and roll the bag shut. Write the date and weight on the outside of the blank.  Each week take the rough turned bowl out of the bag, weigh it, record the date and weight on the bag and return it to the bag.  When the weight finally becomes stable, the bowl is ready to be finish turned.  With that said, you can finish turn a green wooded bowl and then dry it but the bowl will go oval as it dries, which can sometimes have a nice looking effect.  There is a method of soaking the rough turned green wood bowl in a soap solution that does a good job of keeping the green wood from cracking, but it will still go oval as it dries.

Finishing the bowl is a whole different subject. I tend to stay away from varnish because it gives the wood a yellowish hue and for how long it takes to dry.  Some people prefer oils and that looks good but has to be re-oiled periodically. I tend to lean toward shellac because it dries fast and doesn't alter the color of the wood.   

I'm sure every woodturner has their own methods and I'm sure they work as well as mine. 

[Peter Drouin]

I don't usually cut up a whole log at one time into bowl blanks.  Leaving the wood as a log until I need a bowl blank helps cut down on cracking.  Smaller chunks of wet wood crack faster unless dried down properly.  As stated in previous post, be sure to seal the end grain of the log to reduce the chance of it cracking.

First thing I did was make several disks from 1/4 inch thick Masonite (hardboard).  I made a 4" disk, a 6" disk, a 8" disk, a 10" disk and a 12" disk.....or any sized disk you want for the size log you have and the size bowl you want. Center a screw in each disk.

When cutting a bowl blank from a log, measure the diameter of the log and cut the length off the log a little longer than the diameter of the log.  For example, if you have a 10" diameter log, cut off a length of the log equal to about 12 inches.

With your chainsaw, cut the length of that chunk in half, removing the pith. As tempting as it might be to keep the pith, it will only cause you lots of problem later. Get rid of it.

Now, place the correct sized disk on the bark side and screw it down.  For the 10" diameter log I might chose a 10" disk or an 8" disk.  The disk will be your guide for cutting a bowl blank on your bandsaw.

Now, lay the flat part of the half log down on your bandsaw table and carefully cut out the circle by cutting around the hard board disk.  It doesn't have to be perfect because you'll true it up on the lathe later.  I have a large bandsaw that will cut through 12" thick chunks of wood but most bandsaws are lucky to be able to cut through 6 inch thick pieces of wood.  If you wood is too thick for your bandsaw, you may have to trim some wood off to make it fit.

Once you have your bowl blank cut, remove the disk and mount it on the lathe.  I have a 4 jaw chuck I like to use, so I usually mount my chunk of wood between centers, true up the blank, turn it to the shape bowl I want and cut about a 1/2 inch to 3/4 inch tenon on the bottom.  If I was going to mount the blank on a faceplate, I'd still mount the wood between centers to true and form the rough shape of the bowl and cut a flat spot on the bottom for the size faceplate.   *Note: Speed can kill, so keep your lathe just fast enough to cut the wood. The larger the chunk of wood, the slower I run my lathe.

Once I shape the outside of the bowl and add a tenon, I mount the blank onto my 4 jaw chuck and rough hollow out the inside, leaving the walls of the bowl about 3/4 inch thick.   *Note: Speed can kill, so keep your lathe just fast enough to cut the wood. The larger the chunk of wood, the slower I run my lathe.

Now it is time to dry the wood. This takes time. First, weigh the rough turned bowl, then place it into a paper grocery sack along with a bunch of wood shavings and roll the bag shut. Write the date and weight on the outside of the blank.  Each week take the rough turned bowl out of the bag, weigh it, record the date and weight on the bag and return it to the bag.  When the weight finally becomes stable, the bowl is ready to be finish turned.  With that said, you can finish turn a green wooded bowl and then dry it but the bowl will go oval as it dries, which can sometimes have a nice looking effect.  There is a method of soaking the rough turned green wood bowl in a soap solution that does a good job of keeping the green wood from cracking, but it will still go oval as it dries.

Finishing the bowl is a whole different subject. I tend to stay away from varnish because it gives the wood a yellowish hue and for how long it takes to dry.  Some people prefer oils and that looks good but has to be re-oiled periodically. I tend to lean toward shellac because it dries fast and doesn't alter the color of the wood.   

I'm sure every woodturner has their own methods and I'm sure they work as well as mine. 

All good info here. I have made a few.


  Some with flat bottoms some round.


  

  

  

  

  

  

 
I melt them and use the hot wax on the ends
Some day I'm going to turn this cherry burl.


  

  

  

  

  

 
:D :D :D :D :D :D :D

[MrMoo]

Charlie thanks for the great info. Peter great pictures.

[Ianab]

That's what I mean by the "interesting" grain that you find around knots and crotches.

As a board it would be a reject because you know it's going to warp, and be weak due to the changing grain direction. But as a turning blank, those things don't matter so much, and the grain makes for cool patterns in the finished piece.

[bkaimwood]

Great point lanab..don't discount the ugly parts of the logs, esoey in ash, as I've learned recently... I put a huge, ugle, gnarly ash log on the mill recently to cut utility grade stair treads from...the outside produced the most highly figured ash I've ever seen!!! Once past defect, it made beautiful clear boards for 14 feet!!! But how???!!! The changes and things that go on inside a tree, throughout its lifetime, are amazing, which keeps me always wondering what the next one will look like...love what I do!!

[Lud]

Instead of discs I cut some 3/4 plywood into rings by cutting in on an angle about an inch and a half wide.  I reglue the angle cut and put three medium long screws thru the ring on the triangle.The one piece of ply yields quite a few rings.  I mark the size on the ring and you rotate the ring on the bark side of your blank to find a level, centered on the edges and run the screws in and the ring is a guide and a handle both on the bandsaw.  I throw the corners into burlap bags and they are welcome to the stove burning buddies.