Shopsmith Forums

Did a search but couldn't find anything along the lines of storing & drying raw logs for turning.

I'll be getting a truck load of aspen which will mean I'll have to actually build a rack along the outside of my garage. Would it be better to put it on the north side, in the shade almost all day, but that's the side that sheds the rain and snow(some years a LOT of snow). Or on the east side which gets most of half a days sun (which can be pretty harsh here in the summer)?
Was planning on a simple roofed frame to store full & half logs as big as I can get when the opportunity arises for turning projects and such. Probably 3' deep x 6' high by no more than 15' long.

Where did you search?

Google found 735,000 results in less than half a second.

The second one from Wood Magazine seemed pretty good.

Everett

everettdavis wrote:Where did you search?

Google found 735,000 results in less than half a second.

The second one from Wood Magazine seemed pretty good.

Everett

storing and drying raw logs for turning.png

I usually go to he Internet when I want general information I can trust fully. In this case I only searched the best source, this forum.

The forum's search is rather dated and is tweaked from time to time to make the hits the Admin finds most relevant.

I use Google to externally search in the fourms far more than the forum search.

Everett

Cut the logs into sections of appropriate size for the turnings you want to create and then seal them with Anchor Seal for green wood. That will retard the drying process and eliminate most of the checking. I have several logs about 20" diameter and 12" high that have been drying for about three years. It takes a few years to get them dry. Another method is the plastic bag/paper bag method which also works quite well but takes monitoring which I am not to diligent about. The bag method gets to dry much quicker. I don't monitor the moisture content I just seal them and let them sit sealed for a few years under the bench. Those who are into turning from live wood usually have them stacked on shelves and keep several years ahead.
Paul

If it is for lathe turning only , a lot of folks turn them wet and let them dry on a shelf in a controlled climate ,, then finish them a year or two later , the biggest issue is to get the bark off,,paint the ends like all ready said ,,,, and keep them dry in a low humidity area .

if you can do that then you should be golden ..

Can you cut and turn the blanks and put them in a attic?

I have 2 walnut planks ,, 1 is 9.5 in wide and 4.5 in thick , the logs were cut last fall and left whole out side, they were just cut into planks a week or so ago , they will stay inside and off the floor to finish drying until I need them.

There will be spindles turned and probably a bowl or two.

I have not done it lately but we have a fair sized river running through our property in the next county (Big Flat Rock River) and it constantly has big piles of driftwood moving downstream during floods. For years I pulled logs out of those piles to cut up for firewood. One early observation was just how stable that wood often was and how little splitting occurred to it. There were very few really large logs but logs from 12" up to about 16" were pretty common. I used to save some of the nicer blocks.
Over many years I also found that there is something almost magic about drying stuff in the lofts of these old timber frame barns, especially if the loft also contains hay. All you have to do is put up a nice timber frame wood barn about 40' x 40' and fill the loft with hay and logs. If you don't need the ground floor for animals or machinery then install your woodshop there.
My wife's oldest brother (now deceased) beefed up the small attic space of his attached two car garage and used that space to store a number of logs as big as he could lift up there. I'm sure some were there about 5 years.
I'm kind of spoiled by having a lot of wood available here and I seldom do much to avoid end splits. I have used some old paint to seal log ends but mostly I just cut stuff extra long and trim ends off.
I also enjoy using used lumber if it isn't too full of nails and it is normally quite stable. I did once get the frame lumber from a small country store that had been torn down. It had been built around 1830-ish and OMG! I swear that it had two zillion nails in it. I thought that nails were supposed to have been costly back then... At least they were all wrought iron nails and soft enough that if you missed a piece of nail an old carbide blade would cut through it OK. I got the lumber for free and that was about what it was worth with all of those nails... I did get some nice ceiling joist for an open section of the farm shop out of that batch. I also built a combo storage shed / chicken house about 10' x 20' mostly out of it and rafters for a little hog / sheep barn as well. In later years our son did a fair amount of work on that little barn so he could store some stuff in it. Just a few months later a freak mini tornado hit it and pretty much exploded it in all directions.
Why yes, this is turning into a ramble...


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robinson46176 wrote: ... I also enjoy using used lumber if it isn't too full of nails and it is normally quite stable. I did once get the frame lumber from a small country store that had been torn down. It had been built around 1830-ish and OMG! I swear that it had two zillion nails in it. ...

... I also built a combo storage shed / chicken house about 10' x 20' mostly out of it and rafters for a little hog / sheep barn as well. In later years our son did a fair amount of work on that little barn so he could store some stuff in it. Just a few months later a freak mini tornado hit it and pretty much exploded it in all directions. ...

Guess you didn't put enough nails back into that lumber, huh, Farmer?

I think the nails he used were round and shiny and too hard and the heads too big.

Picked up the wood last night from my buddies house. His wife was happier to have it gone than I was to have it! Not a big couple of trees. Biggest round is 11". Looks like some might be spalted some. Just a truck bed full. All anchor sealed and ready to store. I've decided the east side of the garage is where I'll build the storage. I'll have to level a spot but that's the best place for wood storage. I'll save my north side, which is the longer side of the garage for a full length lean too. I'll turn a chunk this afternoon and see what it looks and feels like.