Thanks, Isaac, for a Memento of Mr. Ben

I’m thinking Mr Ben would approve.

-- There is nothing like the sound of a well tuned hand plane. - http://timetestedtools.wordpress.com (timetestedtools at hotmail dot c0m)

Oh yea , Ben would approve ! Charlie , I turn green wood whenever I get the chance ! As long as you eliminate the heartwood from the blank before turning, you’ll only have to deal with a little distortion…not much problem with checking. If however, you leave the heart (not heartwood but the dead center of the heart) you could have problems. I love the look of long peels coming off relatively green wood, and if you take your time turning and turn to a uniform thickness it will dry sufficiently during turning to only require a couple days of drying before final sanding and finishing that is if you are at about 1/4 to 3/8” thickness. Some really good turners like to turn to 1/2 ” or more (depending on mass of piece planned) and let it dry thoroughly for a month or more before final turning (leaving it on an aluminum face plate the entire time it dries is supposed to be helpful.) I have a good moisture meter and have found the heat and friction of turning a large open vessel requires no more than 2 days post turning to my favored thickness to test the vessel out to 15% + or – (Mas amenos) ! That of course is affected by the variety of wood being turned . A good friend who has since passed used to pop his turned green vessels in the oven on low heat 200 for 1 hr. then test with moisture meter. I always just turned green and tested …love the smell of green oak being turned wet…messy though ,, I use a plastic sheet hung a couple feet away in the firing line ! And I agree with you, doesn’t look like oak ! but it is pretty, and that is nice work ! Don s.

-- some men see things that are and wonder why, I dream of things that never were and ask why not .... rfk

Thanks for the tips, Don.

I turned it to rough outer shape, then left it sitting on the lathe for almost a week before I got back to it. It did seem much drier than when I started. We’ll see what happens.

-- Charlie M. "Woodworking - patience = firewood"

good thing& a good way to remember folks..

-- We call the destruction of replaceable human made items vandalism, while the destruction of irreplaceable natural resources is called development.

That is nice Charlie, Good way to remember him!
I hope it stays this nice for ya’ Great work.
Thanks for sharing.

-- Robert B. Sabina, Ohio.....

Great looking piece AND story behind the piece. Nice work Charlie. I have just started back with my lathe – I think that will be my primary interest going forward. Turning is so rewarding – and you don’t have to wait too long to see the finished project. Now if I can just get back to where I was a few years ago :-) Practice, practice, practice.

-- Bill - "Suit yourself and let the rest be pleased." http://www.cajunpen.com/

That is wonderful Charlie. You had a great idea and did a fine job on the lathe.

-- "Too much hurry ruins the body. I'll sit easy … fan the spark" - I. Anderson

Nice in every way, Charlie.

-- If you're going to stir the pot, think BIG spoon or SMALL boat paddle. David Grimes, Georgia

well done Bud

-- keeping myself entertained

Nice tribute and memory.

-- Ivan, Croatia, Wooddicted

Good work(s) and good job. Love it.

-- "Bordnerizing" perfectly good lumber for over a decade.

Great tribute Charlie. I’m sure Mr. Ben is pleased.

very nice tribute…very nice…

-- Matt--Proud LJ since 2007

Projects are always better when there is a story to go with them. The project and story are great.

-- Steve - Impatience is Expensive

That’s nice Charlie, I hope the family appreciates the sentiment. It’s nice to have community, people that care. There are too many disconnected people in the u.s. imho…

As for species, shoot, if I didn’t know better I’d call that some type of pine. Any more clues? Pictures of the wood before cutting, bark, leaves, etc? Could it be fir?

-- Sneaking up on the line....