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As I mentioned, I owe my sister a clock for the burl she let me take from her yard. Here's the burl in my clamp getting ready to be Sawzalled into clock faces:



I'm being a very good little brother by using this particular face because the others don't have nearly as nice a combo of burl patterning mixed with light colored wood. Here are the others:



She has not seen the final product yet (weather permitting, I'll be driving back to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan next Friday to hand deliver her clock). She did have some say in selecting the style, and she liked my previous use of the two rods with a rod running diagonally through them.

Since this will be for her cabin that overlooks Lake Superior, I thought keeping some live edge around the clock would be a nice touch. It's finished in a semi-gloss poly.

I'm glad to be finished with this one. Excuse the pun, but each day that passed really reminded me that the clock was running out as Dec. 3 was approaching! I felt all the more pressure given the projects we'd started around the house plus hosting SeafoodsGiving.

I am told that her husband has another burl for me, so that will be good!

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Really good looking design…She will love it…

Knowing you are new to wood working, I will mention a couple of things I'm not sure you are aware of…If you are then carry on…

I'd ask how dry those chunks of wood are? Those slabs might move over time if not dry…The bark might seperate, the slabs might split…If the tree was cut while dormant the bark should be fine…but if summer cut then the bark will eventually seperate from the wood…
Saying because before you start selling them you might want to be sure they are stable…Let them age in the warm of the house and you should find out fairly soon…

Cool man…Still getting a lot out of a little…
 

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thats a real beauty.jack made a good point,hopefully that wont be an issue ?
 

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There you go… That'll do real nicely.
 

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Yeah, I'm slowly learning about the pitfalls of green wood! I've seen a few bowls develop cracks, but honestly they only add to the character in my eyes. I've had some boxes, though, warp to the point that I needed to do some additional grinding to get them to close again! So, I don't bring anything to sales that I'm worried about or I think might develop problems.

I had one box, my double decker box, warp (the wild cherry galls are usually super wet)... but I actually like how it looks warped… like a Salvador Dali box or something:



My recent clock faces are holding up well so far! I have two that are "sold" but I told the would-be owners that I want to hold them for a couple months indoors to see if any issues develop in the dehumidified air.

But, I appreciate the tip, and I have quite a few burls in the garage right now that are naturally drying out… so I think I'll soon be able to work from stabler wood!

Really good looking design…She will love it…

Knowing you are new to wood working, I will mention a couple of things I m not sure you are aware of…If you are then carry on…

I d ask how dry those chunks of wood are? Those slabs might move over time if not dry…The bark might seperate, the slabs might split…If the tree was cut while dormant the bark should be fine…but if summer cut then the bark will eventually seperate from the wood…
Saying because before you start selling them you might want to be sure they are stable…Let them age in the warm of the house and you should find out fairly soon…

Cool man…Still getting a lot out of a little…

- mtnwild
 

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It could be an issue… time will tell. Fortunately, I'm giving that one away for free!

thats a real beauty.jack made a good point,hopefully that wont be an issue ?

- pottz
 

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Looks like you are learning like, probably, most of us…Some are hard ones…Maybe start a collection, date, and stack…Time flys and years go by…It'll be worth it in the long run…Those pieces will only go up in value and make better projects…Patience is a hard one to develop…Each step in a project needs to be calculated…This from years of screwing up…Self taught is a long way around to a finished product…Best of luck on your journey…
 

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Way to go there, you have another one completed. It looks very nice and will be a great companion for your sisters cabin
 

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Yeah, that's some of my goal for the new year… get more organized, clean up my space a bit, track my wood better.

So far, I think I've been really lucky on projects not getting totally warped or cracked.

Though originally, before Zero Whiskey Woodworking, I was going to call my shop, Cracks Happen Woodworking… you know, just kinda be up front!

And, I like self taught. Might be slow, but it makes for a more meaningful journey. As Joseph Campbell noted of the Holy Grail myth, the knights traveled separately because they thought it would be a disgrace to travel in a group. Each knight then went to the darkest spot of the forest to begin their journey. It's a metaphor for how we need to live… not following someone else's path, but struggling our way through our own unique journey at the end of which our true self waits for us.

Looks like you are learning like, probably, most of us…Some are hard ones…Maybe start a collection, date, and stack…Time flys and years go by…It ll be worth it in the long run…Those pieces will only go up in value and make better projects…Patience is a hard one to develop…Each step in a project needs to be calculated…This from years of screwing up…Self taught is a long way around to a finished product…Best of luck on your journey…

- mtnwild
 

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Thanks!

Way to go there, you have another one completed. It looks very nice and will be a great companion for your sisters cabin

- Eric
 

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So true…That's why I drove truck…I wanted my projects free from pressure…No need to make me money, no need to please a client, no time constraints…no reason other than that sounds like a fun idea, lets give it a try…Nobody can do it like you, even if they make the same thing…No one else can see through your eyes…
 

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I think we are kindred spirits, buddy. I learned to fly fish the same way. My father-in-law (or at least my father-in-law at one time!) always wanted us to hire a guide. I never wanted to. I'd rather walk down a river and not get fish than get fish because some guy told me what fly to use, corrected my cast, told me where to cast, and then even netted the fish for me.

No thanks. Some might ask, "Why in the hell wouldn't you take expert help?" I guess I would if my goal was only fish, but my goal is my unique experience of the fishing, flawed as it may be.

I don't go to the river for fish (hell I could go to the super market for that and probably cheaper with less time put in)... I go to the river for the experience.

Same with woodworking… though I will post a forum question here and there, but only when the idea to ask a question comes to me and I have decided that some mentoring is a genuine and needed part of my journey.

So true…That s why I drove truck…I wanted my projects free from pressure…No need to make me money, no need to please a client, no time constraints…no reason other than that sounds like a fun idea, lets give it a try…Nobody can do it like you, even if they make the same thing…No one else can see through your eyes…

- mtnwild
 

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Speaking about the river…I've always traveled rivers and streams…There are always trails along them, made mostly by fishermen…I started fishing as a youth, but soon found exploring the river and surroundings more fun…

The Northwest has some great rivers and streams…

But getting to my point, is that the wood piles at the bends of the streams and rivers are a great source of interesting wood…The wood is kind of like driftwood but different…It's pretty much sand blasted by the winter storms , so the hard wood is just left, often in amazing shapes…Don't just ignore those piles, look closely if you don't already…

I learned from a craftswoman, to wash those good looking pieces in phels naptha soap, removing the dirt and loose pieces, let dry, then take an antler tip and rub to shiny hard…no finish needed…just a beautiful natural piece…a natural sculpture…She said not make anything out of them, leave as is in itself…One of those, you never know what you're going to get…I have a few of those…That's where my knuckelhead came from…I'll have to take some photos of the few I have left, they are real popular,

Just rambling…Cool man…
 

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i love rambling,a good tip and interesting story.been over 20 years since i last fly fished though.
 

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I love stream fishing as well, the more isolated the better. Just being outdoors in the wilderness is 99% of the joy.

"You can give a man a fish and he'll eat for the day. Teach a man to fish and he'll spend all day in a boat drinking beer."
 

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I love stream fishing as well, the more isolated the better. Just being outdoors in the wilderness is 99% of the joy.

"You can give a man a fish and he ll eat for the day. Teach a man to fish and he ll spend all day in a boat drinking beer."

- splintergroup
lol,aint that the truth !!!!
 

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I don't know much about drying flat green wood. I know with my bowls, I'll rough them to about an inch. Put Anchor Seal on the ends so the don't try to fast and crack. Then I wait any where from 1 month to 3 months. Depends on the species. I've noticed the walnut (so far) tasks the longest to dry. Then turn to form. I would think you'll get some warping… but you could probably just plane them down after they dry?
 

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The only thing I have to say is - that's a darn nice clock and it should look great in a cabin setting
 

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Thank you!

The only thing I have to say is - that s a darn nice clock and it should look great in a cabin setting

- recycle1943
 

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Great clock. Also soaking up the back and forth with people that build things with a natural style is pretty awesome for me.
 
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