Turning Walnut

[Peter Malcolm Jardine]

I have a nice chunk of 2X9 inch walnut that I cut an end off of for a turned base for my big danforth compass. I have turned it and parted in the lines I want, and sanded quite a bit. I notice the end grain on walnut tears quite badly.

I am thinking that grinding up some sawdust into fine dust for grain filler would be the answer. Any thoughts? It's not awful tearout but it's a pretty thang ya know. :D My chisels are sharrrrrrp by the way.

[Garth Jones]

Peter,

Your other option is to sand it while it is still on the lathe. If the tearout is past sanding range, then walnut sawdust plus a binder (I often use West's 5 minute epoxy) will do the trick. Fill the area, then turn/sand the area on the lathe.

On other trick that can be helpful, especially in lighter woods, is to add a bit of the stain or finish to the sawdust/epoxy mixture so the resultant filler is the same color as the finished piece.

Hope this helps,
Garth

[Peter Malcolm Jardine]

Thanks Garth. I did sand while on the lathe, but the complex grain on the end refused to completely disappear. I would say it's very very shallow now. By golly you can burn the sheittski out of your hand with sanding walnut on the lathe :D It's a simple little platform, but it'll be purty I think.

[Bob Smalser]

You need exceptionally sharp tools for efficient endgrain work. Otherwise you are relegated to time consuming sanding.

Typical lathe tools, including all the spendy ones, are made of M2 High Speed Steel, which grinds easily but takes a grossly inferior edge to carbon without lengthy work using diamond paste on indexing plates.

http://pic3.picturetrail.com/VOL12/1104763/5813427/74603564.jpg

My solution is to make my own lathe tools from easily-honed, flea market prewar socket chisels and hone them by hand like I do my bench chisels. The difference is amazing, and all my Sorby and Taylor M2 stuff except for that sizing gage was long ago sold off.

All you need is one sharp, half-inch carbon skew to make short work of that walnut end grain. Use the heel of the fresh edge, high speed and extremely light cuts.

In the meantime, raising the moisture content of your walnut via soaking will often provide cleaner cuts.

http://www.woodenboat-ubb.co m/cgi-bin/UBB/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=1&t=010593&p= (http://www.woodenboat-ubb.com/cgi-bin/UBB/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=1&t=010593&p=)

http://www.woodcentral.com/cg i-bin/readarticle.pl?dir=smalser&file=articles_443.shtml (http://www.woodcentral.com/cgi-bin/readarticle.pl?dir=smalser&file=articles_443.shtml)

You know your tools are sharp and the wood is right, moisture-wise, when your noodles are so long they clog the process and have to be cleared away to see what you're doing.

http://pic3.picturetrail.com/VOL12/1104763/5813427/74603585.jpg

[ 08-22-2005, 12:53 AM: Message edited by: Bob Smalser ]

[Jack Heinlen]

Yeah, sharpen your tools and try again.

[SandMaster]

http://pic3.picturetrail.com/VOL12/1104763/5813427/74603585.jpg

Thats a long piece of end grain Bob, what is it?

[Mrleft8]

Reverse your rotation and continue sanding for a bit longer. Walnut is fairly soft, and the end grain tends to fuzz more than tear out.

[Bob Smalser]

Originally posted by SandMaster:

Thats a long piece of end grain Bob, what is it?240-year-old Pacific Madrone. Similar in properties to your eastern American Beech, but harder and heavier.

http://woodenboat-ubb.com/ubb/ultimatebb.ph p?ubb=get_topic;f=4;t=002338 (http://woodenboat-ubb.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=4;t=002338)

http://pic3.picturetrail.com/VOL12/1104763/4110272/50978394.jpg

[ 08-22-2005, 08:50 AM: Message edited by: Bob Smalser ]

[Paul Girouard]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Bob Smalser:

QUOTE]240-year-old Pacific Madrone.

Bob have you had any issue with checking and splitting with the Madrone you have turned ??

I got some from a beach stair job , tree fell in wind storm. Good size one , not as large as the one you got it from .

Any way most stuff I turned did split and check. I let it dry with bark on for 6 to 8 months. So most was turned still green. I tried plastic bagging the turning with damp paper towel , in the shade in the shop. Just let it dry in the shop. All of it had tung oil on it right after turning it .

I've heard some carver in the Islands boils his wood in salt water , never tried that.

[Bob Smalser]

Bob have you had any issue with checking and splitting with the Madrone you have turned ??

Any way most stuff I turned did split and check. I let it dry with bark on for 6 to 8 months. So I've cut a bit of it from various trees without much major trouble.

Like beech, it's a wet, unstable wood. Needs to be dried slowly at the rate of one full drying season per inch of thickness....without the bark. Yours sounds like it was too wet and once turned, dried too fast.

[ 08-22-2005, 09:45 PM: Message edited by: Bob Smalser ]

[Peter Malcolm Jardine]

This piece was dry dry... I did soak it and rechecked my chisel... it worked great. Thanks for the tips all.

P.S Looooooooovely chisel set Bob. I'm gonna try making a couple

[ 08-22-2005, 09:49 PM: Message edited by: Peter Malcolm Jardine ]

[Paul Girouard]

Originally posted by Bob Smalser:
I've cut a bit of it from various trees without much major trouble.

< Small cracks and splits, IMO, are major trouble in tool handles and turned vessels.> (PEG writting.)

Yours sounds like it was too wet and once turned, dried too fast.[/QUOTE]

Did you use the PEG stuff ? I didn't , cost to much for what I was doing.

So you used nothing but time ? The tree in question was cut in April of 2004 , or one year 4 months or so ago. Or so it appears from the posts. Looked larger than 2" stock , what I'm I missing ??

Glad the wetting down idea helped Peter , I have done that on really dry wood .

I enjoy turning stuff when it's green , quite fun . until it dries , then some woods do better is all. Madrona is fun to turn but result varie.

Nice work Bob , on the tool handles . And the post , thanks .

[Bob Smalser]

So you used nothing but time ? The tree in question was cut in April of 2004 , or one year 4 months or so ago. Or so it appears from the posts. Looked larger than 2" stock , what I'm I missing ?? I haven't used anything thicker than 6/4, yet. Last sumemr was exceptionally dry...the 5/4 was ready by October and I did get a little movement using the 6/4 before its time last winter....but no checking.

[Paul Girouard]

Jee the last 5 summers have been dry. Our neighbors pine tree is slowly dieing. So you've not used any thing I didn't try but time . Patiences :rolleyes: Tough nut for me.
Thanks Bob , Paul