Turning with the pith

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  • poolhound
    Veteran Member
    • Mar 2006
    • 3195
    • Phoenix, AZ
    • BT3100

    Turning with the pith

    I am still on a very steep learning curve with respect to turning and am experimenting with all sorts of techniques. The vast majority of opinion and material relating to how to turn logs tell you to cut out the pith as it is EVIL! I do understand the basic reasoning but when you have a nice round log it seems so logical to just mount it and turn rather than first turn it into a square and then back round again :-) Plus you get to use the full diameter!

    I did find a couple of articles where folks had turned pith to pith right through the center of the log and had zero issues with checking. It does seem to depend on the species and of course how long the log has been drying. I had a nice round log (~5"dia) on my woodpile that had to have been sitting there for at least 3 years. SO I decided to experiment and mounted it with centers directly on the heart of the pith.

    This was the result. Not quite sure what the wood is but it seems very tight grained and pretty dense. I rough turned it maybe a month ago and then finished it yesterday. no sign of any cracks. I guess we will see. Turning through the dead center like this does create some awesome radial grain patterns. I plan to keep my eye out for other logs that may be treated in a similar fashion.

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    Jon

    Phoenix AZ - It's a dry heat
    ________________________________

    We all make mistakes and I should know I've made enough of them
    techzibits.com
  • Bill in Buena Park
    Veteran Member
    • Nov 2007
    • 1865
    • Buena Park, CA
    • CM 21829

    #2
    Nice vase Jon, well done. Can't ID the wood from the radial grain, but the grain is cool! I've seen some turners keep the pith, but off-center, for turning goblets (so the weak pith is not in/near the stem) and I haven't heard them say anything about cracking. I have no experience with goblets - but I'd have to agree that the species, turned thickness, whether there were cracks in the dry wood to start, etc. must contribute to whether cracking/checking will occur. Let us know if anything changes over time.
    Bill in Buena Park

    Comment

    • gerti
      Veteran Member
      • Dec 2003
      • 2233
      • Minnetonka, MN, USA.
      • BT3100 "Frankensaw"

      #3
      I used it in several projects and agree, it is by far not as evil as many make it seem. Clearly a YMMV thing. Some cherry boxes I turned from a whole log turned out rather nice, and I have used it elsewhere too.

      Comment

      • poolhound
        Veteran Member
        • Mar 2006
        • 3195
        • Phoenix, AZ
        • BT3100

        #4
        Originally posted by gerti
        I used it in several projects and agree, it is by far not as evil as many make it seem. Clearly a YMMV thing. Some cherry boxes I turned from a whole log turned out rather nice, and I have used it elsewhere too.
        Nice thought on turned boxes. They would suit this very well and show off the interesting grain patterns. I will have to dive through my woodpile and see what else I can find.
        Jon

        Phoenix AZ - It's a dry heat
        ________________________________

        We all make mistakes and I should know I've made enough of them
        techzibits.com

        Comment

        • atgcpaul
          Veteran Member
          • Aug 2003
          • 4055
          • Maryland
          • Grizzly 1023SLX

          #5
          Very nice vase.

          When I got interested in turning (haven't actually turned anything yet), it kind of blew mind that you don't include the pith because that seemed like the obvious thing to do. Then it really blew my mind just how large a chunk of wood you need to start with to make big bowls, and then it started to really make sense why big bowls like that cost a lot of money.

          Comment

          • poolhound
            Veteran Member
            • Mar 2006
            • 3195
            • Phoenix, AZ
            • BT3100

            #6
            Originally posted by atgcpaul
            Very nice vase.

            When I got interested in turning (haven't actually turned anything yet), it kind of blew mind that you don't include the pith because that seemed like the obvious thing to do. Then it really blew my mind just how large a chunk of wood you need to start with to make big bowls, and then it started to really make sense why big bowls like that cost a lot of money.
            Its also why segmented and laminated turning developed so you can make big blanks from smaller pieces.
            Jon

            Phoenix AZ - It's a dry heat
            ________________________________

            We all make mistakes and I should know I've made enough of them
            techzibits.com

            Comment

            • capncarl
              Veteran Member
              • Jan 2007
              • 3564
              • Leesburg Georgia USA
              • SawStop CTS

              #7
              Now that you mentioned big blanks. I copied this from somewhere.
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              • gerti
                Veteran Member
                • Dec 2003
                • 2233
                • Minnetonka, MN, USA.
                • BT3100 "Frankensaw"

                #8
                Of course the issue with the pith is that it expands and contracts different from the surrounding wood, so cracks are unavoidable. How bad those are and if they affect the project negatively depends on the circumstances. Here are some old examples of things I turned with the pith. Mostly because it was free wood from my or my neighbor's yard (or found be the side of the road), and just not that big.

                Comment

                • poolhound
                  Veteran Member
                  • Mar 2006
                  • 3195
                  • Phoenix, AZ
                  • BT3100

                  #9
                  Found this article on that huge bowl, descriptions of how it was done and more pics.

                  Jon

                  Phoenix AZ - It's a dry heat
                  ________________________________

                  We all make mistakes and I should know I've made enough of them
                  techzibits.com

                  Comment

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