TRYING SOMETHING NEW (?) AND WOULD LIKE A LITTLE INPUT

[Ted iin Michigan]

Back story - With the weather we've had this spring, there have been some casualties at our place. One of those was a rather old lilac that LOML planted long before we met. I was cutting up the poor thing and remembered (looong ago) seeing here a rather lovely lilac pen someone had turned. Quick inspection of the wood showed there might be something interesting inside. Then LOML said, "Could you make a pen?" Aha - a challenge.
Request for input - I took a hunk to the shop and made a blank (see the pic). It's green wood, so I need to get it dry. I've never microwaved wood before. I've been putting it in the microwave for 30 seconds at a time and letting it cool to room temp before doing it again. How many times should I do this? The blank started out at 7/8" square and is now about 13/16".
Thanks for your input.
Oh - and it smells nice, too.

 

[its_virgil]

From what I understand keep cycling the wood in the MW until it stops loosing weight. Someone may have a better answer for you.
Some good information from a Google search on "microwave oven wood drying".
Don

 

[mark james]

It took a few trials, but last year I was able to use the microwave. If you have one, a moisture meter is also handy to monitor the reduction in moisture. I would also suggest letting it dry as long even afterwards (4-8 weeks?). The very center is what you will end up after turning, and this is the deepest area.

Also, maybe drill out (undersized) a blank and after letting it dry, redrill it to size. Good luck.

 

[1080Wayne]

I find the microwave process works best when you know the original MC (moisture meter) , then weigh (gram scale) after each microwave session until down to about what you calculate the 5% MC weight should be . Then , I would drill , which should take out the moistest remaining
wood . Let the drilled blank stabilize to equilibrium MC for a couple weeks , then turn .

Lilac is a lovely wood to turn . Unfortunately , the smell is ephemeral .

 

[keithbyrd]

Another perspective-much like bowl turning - turn to rough size and let it dry for a few days.
If you drill and turn to rough size (1/8" from bushing?) the wood is very thin and will dry very quickly.

 

[SabertoothBunny]

First, it would have been better to leave it as a larger block of wood for drying. Drying this blank could result in splits or cracks.

I would set the oven, or toaster oven, to 200-225 and put this wood in there for an hour at a time. Let it cool and test moisture with meter and put it back in the over for another hour. Repeating this until dry.

 

[woodwzrd]

The general rule is to keep cycling until it stops loosing weight. You have to be careful doing it in the microwave because if it gets to hot you can case harden it and it will not continue to loose its moisture. I actually prefer to use my dehydrator set at about 150 degrees. I start checking the weight after 24 hours twice a day. Once it stops loosing weight I let it acclimate for 3-4 days then turn it.