[Dundee]

I purchaced some wood (various species) online that was heavily waxed. I've noticed it's weight has changed over time. How long should I wait before carvin it? At the moment I have been keeping it in my car so the extra heat will help dry it out even with the wax on. Has anyone tried that before?

Thanks
Chris

[Hi_Ho_Sliver]

nope, keep mine in the rafters of my shop (which are open by the way)

[Plain_Ol_Ed]

Yep, Old bowyers trick. Keep the stave in the back window of the car. Dries a lot quicker. Almost like a Kiln in the summertime. Doesn't seem to cause extra cracking, at least not in woods commonly used for making bows. Osage, hickory, pecan, etc.

As to how long? A lot of variables there.

[Claude]

If you're going to put a piece of heavily-waxed wood in your car back window, make sure you put it on some foil or something to keep the melted wax from soaking into your car upholstery. Maybe a layer of foil, a layer of paper towel, then the wood...

Claude

[makinchips]

Air circulation will also help it dry out. Keep a close eye on it for checks......if you see one, I would get it to a cool dry place right away.

I would weigh it on a very accurate scale.....when it stops loosing weight....it's ready.

All that said, generally speaking when drying green wood, it's important to remember that the outside surfaces dry and then shrink around a core that isn't. This is when checking and cracking begin. To keep the process in balance, it's a good idea to alternate between drying the block so the surface moisture leaves and then wrap the wood in canves (not plastic) for a while. This process causes the dry surface wood to stop evaporating and it will suck moisture from the core (bring it to the surface). remove the canvas for awhile.....the surface dries.....wrap it and it draws internal moisture....dry, wrap, dry, rap etc. This is the fastest way to do it, IMHO. The wax just slows the process down.....it doesn't change it.

That's the way the Ship Carvers did it but they did it while they were carving. Carve the green wood during the day.....wrap at night. When the carving was done, it was dry.

That's the way Dave Sabol does it.

Like I always say......what works best for you is the best way.

Joe,

Make Chips!

[Hugh P.]

Thats great never heard of that before, I'll give it a try. Great things to be found on this site, thanks. And Dave, what is a way. I don't have one, but if it helps drying wood, I'd get one. Grin

[Dundee]

I have the wood on a outdoor rubber backed carpet. I also keep the sunroof and side windows open to allow for some air flow and help keep the heat down. We've only had one 80 deg day so far. So I havent seen any cracking or wax melting.

Chris

Originally Posted by Claude

If you're going to put a piece of heavily-waxed wood in your car back window, make sure you put it on some foil or something to keep the melted wax from soaking into your car upholstery. Maybe a layer of foil, a layer of paper towel, then the wood...

Claude