# My Bowl Blank Is Checking: Wait It Out vs. Once Turned Dilemma



## Steve in VA (Oct 1, 2021)

So far I've had very good luck with my twice turned bowl drying process in that I have very few ever crack on me. I typically turn to the standard thickness of 10% of the diameter and bag them. 

That said, I have a 15" diameter maple bowl in the drying process that after two to three weeks is now beginning to check on the end grain, on both sides. Now the dilemma. Do I wait it out, monitor it along the way, and pray or do I put it back on the lathe while it's still relatively green and finish turn it? I'm leaning towards the later in order to eliminate those checks, salvage a bowl, marvel at the natural warping that will occur, and hope that prevents further checks from forming.

Would love to hear the thought process from the experts about when to make the call to throw it back on the lathe sooner rather than later versus allowing it to dry and have the checks develop further.

@Jonkou You always have great bowl blanks. Would love to hear your thoughts along with those of everyone else. 

Thanks in advance!


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## trc65 (Oct 1, 2021)

I've turned very little maple, but what I would probably do is saturate all the checking areas with CA right now and continue drying. That has worked for me on some types of wood, but I've not tried it on maple. Watch it or a few more days (or a week or two) if it is stopping the checks great. If not you could always finish turn it.

That strategy is working for me on my walnut forms, but different wood moisture, shape, etc...


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## JerseyHighlander (Oct 1, 2021)

You know my expertise is more with carved bowls not turned but still working from green to dry so maybe I can help. Two questions;
- When you say "bag them", what kind of bag, what process?
- What is the grain structure of the blank you're working with? (is the center pith still part of it, knots etc)

My process with slow drying it is a plastic bag while I'm still working it but it comes out, gets and hour or three of work, goes back... so it releases a bit of moisture each time. When I'm ready to let it dry, I may go plastic bag, let it sit for a few days/week, take it out for a half hour, still in the semi-damp basement, put it back and repeat. After a couple weeks of that, having lost the major moisture, I switch to a paper grocery bag, usually with some wood chips/shavings, end rolled closed and let it go that way for a while, then again, in/out, in/out. Releasing the moisture as slow as possible is the key. 

If the center pith is still there, all of the above applies 10x more. I generally never have any pith in my bowls.

Reactions: Like 1


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## Jonkou (Oct 1, 2021)

Pics would help but here’s my thoughts. Fill the checks with thin CA so it wicks into the finest spaces first then fill the gap with thicker CA if needed, thought being is want to stop those checks from expanding. From what you are describing the blank is very green and chances are high it’s going to check again. Definitely finish turn it thin now and hope you can remove all traces of the checks, if not the remnants will be filled, should be minimal and will disappear to the eye when the finish goes on. 

There is nothing wrong with a warped edge on a well turned thin wall bowl, so long as the grain is aligned/centered it will distort evenly and make a piece begging to be touched. Slightly hollow turn the bottom to make it much easier to flatten by hand using a block wrapped in sandpaper when completely dry, no belt sander. Hope this helps and let us know how it turns out.

Used to turn twice but rarely any more, much prefer once turn to completion from a dry blank. Leave outdoors in log form protected from sun and rain until the free moisture is gone, usually about 18 months for a 16-20“ log then cut into blanks with pith removed and all end grain gets anchorsealed. Leave it on the shelf in the climate controlled shop until completely dry, typically a few years for 5-6” thick blanks. Time is a friend, slow down the drying process and lose very few blanks.





The older pic doesn’t show well but this 15ish” is football like from a top view and sold while we were still doing the delivery paperwork.

Reactions: Like 3 | EyeCandy! 2


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## Steve in VA (Oct 1, 2021)

Thanks guys!

I did use thin CA when I first noticed it, and hopefully that will stop it. 

My "bagging" process is to simply use paper grocery bags without the shavings. When I first started, I used shavings but noticed I got a lot of mold / mildew. Once I switched to bagging them without the shavings I've had no issues with that, and have had great success. I typically weigh them once a month or so until they've stopped losing weight.

As far as the grain structure goes, I try to always completely remove the pith by ripping it twice down the center instead of splitting the log directly through the pith. I then get the quarter sawn pieces from that center section, and have the two remaining bowl blanks. Again, I've had pretty good success with that. 

I think I'll throw this one back on the lathe this weekend and and see how it turn out. Most of my bowls have been twice turned, so maybe it's time to mix it up a bit.

Thanks again for the advice! Great looking collection of blanks John, though I'm not the least bit surprised!

Reactions: Like 1


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## TimR (Oct 1, 2021)

Hey Steve, others advice is all relevant and sometimes no matter how slow you dry it can still crack.
I will add the technique I use, which starts with a rough out that is as uniform thickness as you can. This will help drying be somewhat uniform and not cause different rates of drying which will cause stresses in the blank. 
Secondly, use that differential stress to your advantage by directing the drying from the inside out by coating the exterior of the bowl with end grain sealer or several coats of lacquer, shellac or paint. Most cracking starts from the outside of the bowl due to stresses that can be reduced by slowing the drying of the exterior relative to the interior. I never coat the interior so the drying can happen at a decent rate. I then put the blank away on a shelf where air can get around the blank, but for crack prone woods, like Cherry or pear, I might also place in paper bag with some shavings to slow drying more. Hope that makes sense and helps.

Reactions: Like 1


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## Steve in VA (Oct 1, 2021)

Definitely makes sense Tim; thank you!

I've used Anchor Seal from time to time as well on the outside, but never really noticed a difference in the amount of cracking I get by using it vs. not. That said, I always bag mine until the rate of moisture drop starts to slow significantly. Then I typically take them out of the bag and just store on a shelf. Here in VA it typically takes about 8 months +/- for a typical 10"-12" bowl that's 1"- 1.25" thick to dry enough where I then take it out of the bag. 

This one isn't following the plan though and rather than cross my fingers I thought I'd seek out some additional advice. It sounds as if we're all generally on the same page. I'm going to pull it out again tomorrow and take a much closer look, but the more I think about it the more I feel like making some shavings out of this one sooner than later.

Reactions: Like 1


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## JerseyHighlander (Oct 1, 2021)

Key to preventing the mold for me has been to just open the bag and change the air, release the excess moisture once a day for the first week or so. Sounds like maybe you want to start with a plastic bag just for the first week or so.

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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## barry richardson (Oct 2, 2021)

Like Tim, I put anchor seal on the end grain areas if I'm concerned about checking. I have also found that minor checking often disappear as the wood regains it's moisture equilibrium, when it is completely dry....


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## Karl_TN (Oct 2, 2021)

If it’s a really nice piece of maple and you have the time then consider turning more than twice as it’s drying. This way there will be less warping between each turning, a little stress gets released each time, and small drying cracks can be removed. Keep sealing or bagging the bowl as needed to slow down the drying. 

If you need to be away for a while and worry about mold taking over then put the bowl in a bag and stick it in a freezer until you get back.

Reactions: Like 1


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## Steve in VA (Oct 2, 2021)

Some more really good advice; thanks everyone!

I went ahead and turned it this afternoon and ended up at 12.5" in diameter and about 1/4" thick. I've got it in plastic bags for tonight and we'll see how it looks in the morning. 

I still need to sand it and take the tenon off, but hopefully the checks are gone forever and this one will survive. Time will tell, but I'm feeling good about it.

Reactions: Like 4 | EyeCandy! 3 | Way Cool 1


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## trc65 (Oct 2, 2021)

Pretty bowl, great rim treatment!

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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## JerseyHighlander (Oct 2, 2021)

That's a beauty! Love that shaped rim & that piece of wood is awesome.

Reactions: Thank You! 1 | Agree 1


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## Steve in VA (Oct 3, 2021)

No checking at all this morning, so I sanded to 240 and put a coat of sanding sealer on it. Will let it dry a bit more throughout the day and then finish sand this evening. 

The collective minds of Woodbarter is amazing!

Reactions: Like 3 | EyeCandy! 3


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## Albert Kiebert (Oct 3, 2021)

That is a Great looking bowl, really cool rim treatment


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## Barb (Oct 3, 2021)

Beautiful bowl! And like everyone has said before, I really like the rim. :)

Reactions: Agree 1


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## Mike1950 (Oct 4, 2021)

I know more than one person, that rough turns, puts in plastic bag seals bag and then in freezer. Empty's The frost every week or 2. They swear by it. Another buys Big ticket quilt billets Bags and freezes those and dries the same way- Large thick billets. I think he has 10 freezers. Kimball?? on Instagram . Cannot find him today but he has info posts.

Reactions: EyeCandy! 1 | Informative 3


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## Barb (Oct 4, 2021)

Mike1950 said:


> I know more than one person, that rough turns, puts in plastic bag seals bag and then in freezer. Empty's The frost every week or 2. They swear by it. Another buys Big ticket quilt billets Bags and freezes those and dries the same way- Large thick billets. I think he has 10 freezers. Kimball?? on Instagram . Cannot find him today but he has info posts.


Interesting. This is the first time I've heard of this method. I'll have to try it sometime if I ever get enough freezer space.


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## Albert Kiebert (Oct 4, 2021)

Barb said:


> Interesting. This is the first time I've heard of this method. I'll have to try it sometime if I ever get enough freezer space.


Hey Barb, got an ideal to think about. How bout I send you some fresh cut wood and you send me some of that Moose and Salmon filling your freezer??

Reactions: Agree 1 | Funny 1


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## Barb (Oct 4, 2021)

Albert Kiebert said:


> Hey Barb, got an ideal to think about. How bout I send you some fresh cut wood and you send me some of that Moose and Salmon filling your freezer??


That would be great but I don’t have any moose and I didn’t go salmon fishing this year. :)

Reactions: Sincere 1


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## Albert Kiebert (Oct 4, 2021)

Barb said:


> That would be great but I don’t have any moose and I didn’t go salmon fishing this year. :)

Reactions: Sincere 1


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