Our next virtual meeting 01-04-2021

Our next meeting should be on Thursday 1st April 2021, this meeting has been turned into a virtual meeting due to the ongoing Covid-19 restrictions. The meeting was to be managed by Nick Simpson and Nick’s theme for the meeting was green woodturning. Green woodturning is using wood that is still wet or fresh cut, this can still be achieved with good results if you know what you are doing, It can also be very interesting to see what actually happens to a piece of wet turned work after it has dried out, sometimes it can be quite beneficial but on other times a complete disaster. If you do make anything with wet or fresh cut wood, try to cut it very thin, this will give you the best chance of making something that after it dries is still useable. Wet turning can be very good when making items that are natural edged, these can distort in the drying and because of the natural edge can be difficult to see the distortion.

I have given you a couple of pictures to look at from a Holly plate I made some time ago, the wood was really wet having been down only a few weeks.

This was the fresh cut piece of Holly.
Now marked out to be cut on the bandsaw.
The disc cut and ready to mount on the lathe, you will see there are hints of green on the surface of the blank, this is a sure sign that the wood was indeed very wet, it will disappear when dry.
Here the turning is almost complete, I have placed a light behind the plate the effect it has on the wood is to shine through as the sides get thinner, you will see a pink glow on the wood, just try to keep the cut even all the way through, the pink glow will follow your cuts, just keep them even.
Here is the completed plate, now it has to dry, this can be achieved by placing the plate in a poly bag along with a lot of dry sawdust, check it weekly it should not take more than a month to dry it sufficiently well to then finish it with a coat of finishing oil.

You are all invited to make something with green wood and then to send the pictures and text to me, your entries should arrive with me no later than Friday 2nd April 2021.

Send them to me at, a.j.mutch4321@btinternet.com

We are hoping for a bumper crop of entries.

Do remember the clubhouse remains closed.

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