Wrapping DNAed Bowl Blanks

Man, you go to a lot more trouble than I do. I use a few (4 or 5) layers of newspaper, with the edges wrapped towards the inside of the bowl, with usually just the crinkling of the paper all that's holding it in place...tape only if the paper doesn't want to stay. Then if necessary, I claw/rip a hole to expose the inside to the air a bit more than the outside. For hollow forms, I just poke the edges of the paper into the opening of the HF, trying to avoid completely blocking the hole.

Haven't had any catastrophes yet.
 
The reason I didn't reply to Stu's DNA or this thread earlier....I know DNA works..too many turner's swear by it. .....So far, I've only had about 60% success rate.....I think the extremely dry conditions where I live has a lot to do with it and I'm going to have to modify the normal procedure to make it work here.
 
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The reason I didn't reply to Stu's DNA or this thread earlier....I know DNA works..too many turner's swear by it. .....So far, I've only had about 60% success rate.....I think the extremely dry conditions where I live has a lot to do with it and I'm going to have to modify the normal procedure to make it work here.

Perhaps it is in the material you wrap or the time in the tank. I leave mine submerged over night and the air dry a few minutes before I wrap with several layers of Brown Paper (grocery bags. I also wrap with tape (although not as pretty as Stu's but then I open the inside of the bowl after a couple of days. I think Newsprint allows too fast of evaporation (personal opinion) Works for me and I have a 0% failure rate on the drying (not that my turnings have that low of a failure rate,) just no cracks, other than the spigot sometimes checks a bit but it is a thicker chunk)
 
The reason I didn't reply to Stu's DNA or this thread earlier....I know DNA works..too many turner's swear by it. .....So far, I've only had about 60% success rate.....I think the extremely dry conditions where I live has a lot to do with it and I'm going to have to modify the normal procedure to make it work here.
Ken, I think you need to try the high-altitude special*, which is a combination of all the tried and true methods...

1. Rough-turn the blank to 1/5 the square of the diameter over pi.

2. Boil it in DNA for 4 days.

3. Dip the end grain in paraffin wax melted on a high open gas flame.

4. Wrap the blank in exactly 5 alternating layers of paper bags and newspaper, starting with newsprint for darker woods, and paper bags for lighter woods. Except zebra wood, which is anyone's guess.

5. Tape the circumference with the 4" stretch wrap (the 3" isn't good enough).

6. Bury the blank in the back yard under a garbage bag full of beer for about 336 hours.

7. Oh, and don't forget the chicken bones. :D

Kidding of course. ;) It seems there are a bazillion successful ways, so eventually I'm betting you'll find one that works for you in your climate. As dry as it is there, I'm guessing you need to make sure your wood dries slowly. Dunno how to correlate that with DNA drying, but that's my guess anyway.




* Kids, don't try this at home. This is a joke. If you follow these steps there's a good chance you'll burn down your mom and dad's house. :rolleyes: Now put down the matches and go read the next post.
 
The reason I didn't reply to Stu's DNA or this thread earlier....I know DNA works..too many turner's swear by it. .....So far, I've only had about 60% success rate.....I think the extremely dry conditions where I live has a lot to do with it and I'm going to have to modify the normal procedure to make it work here.

Ken have you tried using anchorseal on your bowls like Mike Mahoney does. It does take longer to dry but he told me he has only lost one bowl in the last 3 yrs. Just a thought. I have also toyed with the idea of the Dish Soap soak. The neighbor has had excellent luck with it on Elm and Cottonwood. He also said it turns easier and sands easier.
 
Ken have you tried using anchorseal on your bowls like Mike Mahoney does. It does take longer to dry but he told me he has only lost one bowl in the last 3 yrs. Just a thought. I have also toyed with the idea of the Dish Soap soak. The neighbor has had excellent luck with it on Elm and Cottonwood. He also said it turns easier and sands easier.

....and his hands wash up without any soap after turning.... :rofl:

I know I might do more wrapping that I need to , but I've not lost one bowl this way. The Dungeon can be either bone dry, or tropically humid, so I figure if I can spend some more time wrapping and not lose a bowl, why not? :dunno:
 
Just to be clear, I know there are a lot of workable ways to do it, and I fault nobody for doing it any way that works for them. My step-by-step list wasn't intended to poke fun at any of us...it was meant to poke fun at all of us. :D

Also, to add to the methods discussed in this thread, I unwrapped a red eucalyptus hollow form tonight that had been DNA soaked for a day or two. It still felt ever so slightly damp (or cool) after about three weeks of being wrapped in newspaper (and stored in the house). I thought it felt like more, but I just now re-counted the pages, and it was four layers thick. By the time I wadded it up and into the hole on top, though, it was effectively more like ten layers thick, especially at the rim. The piece warped a bit, but no cracking despite a small bit of pith on the side. (The little knot itself cracked, but that'll be art.) ;)

Like I said, if anybody has a working method, they shouldn't change it. :thumb:
 
I can't fault anyone's DNA technique as I have never tried it myself. But, two thoughts do come to mind that puzzle me. 1) Where do you buy DNA in large enough quantities for bowl bathing? Buying in the pint sizes I can find around here would cost a fortune to fill a 3 or 5 gal bucket. And (2) How long can a bucket of DNA be useful for drying wood? After all it removes the moisture and the water content of the alcohol increases each time.
 
I can't fault anyone's DNA technique as I have never tried it myself. But, two thoughts do come to mind that puzzle me. 1) Where do you buy DNA in large enough quantities for bowl bathing? Buying in the pint sizes I can find around here would cost a fortune to fill a 3 or 5 gal bucket. And (2) How long can a bucket of DNA be useful for drying wood? After all it removes the moisture and the water content of the alcohol increases each time.

I buy mine from a chemical supplier, it is cheap, even for Japan.

I dunno how long it will last, but I hear a LONG time :dunno:

Mine is a DARK brown soup now.

I would think that the alcohol would "Burn Off" the water.......... :huh:

Cheers!
 
I would think the alcohol would evaporate faster than the water, leaving water behind. JMHO.....

I know Dennis Peacock, Mark Cothren and others periodically add fresh alcohol to their containers but have containers they've been using for years. Like Stu...they say the containers contents are look ugly but still work well.
 
I would think the alcohol would evaporate faster than the water, leaving water behind. JMHO.....

I know Dennis Peacock, Mark Cothren and others periodically add fresh alcohol to their containers but have containers they've been using for years. Like Stu...they say the containers contents are look ugly but still work well.

Nope, Stu, alcohol absorbs and holds water. Ken has it right, the alky will evaporate faster, much faster, than the water. But, if old and ugly works, it works. Can I tell a 'wife' joke here? :eek: Nope, better not. :rolleyes:
 
OK Then how does that stuff you add you your gas tank work to burn off any water that might be in there, I thought that stuff was basically alcohol...:huh:

Mine Tank-O-Ugly brown soup seems to be working fine, it is a 5 gallon (18.9L) bucket, and the DNA I bought was 18L, so after a little while, I'll buy another 18L to refresh the pail. I can also use the DNA to make Shellac, just got to buy the flakes.

Cheers!
 
Water and oil under normal conditions won't mix. The theory that was told to me about deicer (which is alcohol) is that the alcohol molecules bond with the water molecules and cause the water molecules to evenly disperse throughout the tank. Because they are evenly dispursed they can't freeze in a big enough "clump" to form an ice blockage.
 
Another note........I am convinced the DNA method works....I think I'm going to have to adjust the drying portion of it to suit my dry climate.....I've got a rather large slab of green maple...I think I can get 4 bowl blanks out of it. I'm planning to rough turn and DNA all 4. I'm going to turn 2 with a 1" wall thickness and 2 with a 5/8" wall thickness.....all just the same very basic shape. Then I plan on trying different wrapping methods on 2 of them...one of each thickness and see if it's the wrapping method or possibly wall thickness or a combination of both....
 
Sounds good Ken.

Make sure your walls are slightly thicker than the base, or bottom of the rough out, I find this helps with drying too.

Cheers!
 
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