Green wood turning

[rjent]

I have so much to learn LOL

A friend of mine just dropped off a couple of 9 inch logs of Mesquite just cut down. Green at I am. There is a crotch at the top with three "branches" two major and one small. My question is how do I handle this? Do I chain saw the crotch into a manageable size and then let it dry for a year, or what. I know it will probably distort if I cut a bowl green .....

To the rest of the wood, I would like to cut some of it up for later use. What is the best procedure? It is a very very hard wood when dry, so do I saw it into boards now and then dry it (and how do I do that ), or what. I am at a loss, but I want to utilize this wood. I made some gun grips decades ago, but after a bandsaw cutout of the shape, I mostly just sanded everything to shape.

So green mesquite, what do I do with this stuff?

Thanks in advance!

[masonsailor2]

The bottom line with turning green wood is you can wait for it to dry which can take a year or so air drying and it may check or you can rough turn it and the use various methods to retard the drying process again to prevent checking. I have done manzanita for instance both ways and turning the object green and then drying slowly worked best for me. I tried the paraffin method which is messy but worked pretty well. I have also just put it in a plastic bag, put a couple of pin holes in it and put it on the shelf which was simpler and worked well. Then once you have dried turn your object and it should remain stable.
Paul

[benush26]

A few years back I played with turning a few different species of wood while green and then letting the bowl dry to its own shape. None of the bowls had wall thicknesses over 3/8".
Sorry but no pictures as they were given as gifts. Some of which I am certain quickly made it to a closet or the basement and never saw daylight again!
The wetter the wood the more bizarre the outcome. When they split near the top I tried to remove down past the split but had little success in keeping any resembling a vessel (most were long bast resembling a bowl shape).
Some were opposite the rays so the rings were more diagonal That made for an interesting if not very fragile outcome, so instead of splits I had chunks fall out.
I have no clue how mesquite dries so who knows what would happen if you turned to finished size before it dried, but it might make for some interesting designs.
I am positive their are a multitude of great turners who will give fantastic advise, but I would say to play with some of the pieces just to see what comes out.

Anyway, just a thought.

Be well,
Ben

[Mike907]

I have only turned green birch bowls (birch is about the only plentiful hardwood here) but the method is to turn them to a wall thickness of about 10% of the diameter, and then let them dry slowly. I use Anchor Seal to paint the end grain areas on the inside and outside of the bowl so that the end grain doesn't dry too fast. Another method is to put the bowl in a paper sack and surround it with the wet shavings. Close up the bag and let it sit for a couple of months. After that, start weighing the bowl every once in a while and when it stops losing weight, it is ready to finish turn. Sometimes, no matter how careful you are, the bowls crack anyway. Good luck.

Mike

[rjent]

OK, Mike, Ben, and Paul. I appreciate the feedback. I may just start turning using your suggestions and see what happens as a learning experience. I have turned a little with pretty good success so far, nothing profound, but functional pieces like handle cranks for the planer, and a few other items. I like it, it seems to be relaxing and interesting seeing the work piece shape as you cut. Soft wet wood should be fun to do.

Thanks guys!

[dusty]

I can only tell you that there is some blade sharpening in your future.

There are harder woods but I do not believe they will dull your blades any quicker than will mesquite.

However, it finishes beautifully with some very interesting grain patterns.

[JPG]

Green wood? Be prepared for the 'sap'. Actually bound moisture, but can be sticky.