Spoons are bending after carving

[jon r]

I carve a spoon to perfection. Straight as i can get it, but sometimes when it dries it goes bent. If i decide to Oil it in the oven it makes the bend more severe! Why would this be?

The spoons are sycamore, maybe sycamore has this problem?

I dont get it. Please help!uppy_dog

Many thanks

Jon

 

[xylaria]

you think thats bad look at this
http://www.peakphotos.co.uk/chesterfields_crooked_spire.htm

 

[JonnyP]

Have to say, I love the wood bending.. Trees are not straight so in my mind, some things made from wood should not be perfect symmetry.....Hmmm is that me saying I cannot carve a symmetrical object, I wonder....
You could try roughing out the item to be carved, then let it dry fully before carving it straight and true, or heat the wood and bend back into the shape you want it...

 

[BorderReiver]

If the spoon is for display it might be a problem but if it's for eating with,what's a small bend matter?

 

[rancid badger]

are you splitting your billet of wood to start with? or just setting away from the round?

if you split the wood with an axe or froe, most of the natural tendency to split and twist is dissipated.

I've carved literally hundreds of spoons from all sorts of timber and many of them have twisted regardless! but splitting the billet first seems to limit this.

if, when you split the wood, it has a natural twist to the grain, then your like to get a bit of twisting as the spoon dries out anyway.

kind regards

R.B.

 

[jojo]

It's probably because the bit of wood you used had some "pent up" stresses still in it, due to it's original position in the tree.

Let's say an horizontal branch: the stresses on the top of the branch are different from the stresses on the bottom of the branch: tension on the top, compression on the bottom of it

I cut a 4ft plank on the bandsaw the other day and by the time I got near the end of the cut I could stick my finger in the gap at the start of the cut

Or the tree's spirit decided to play tricks on you.

 

[jon r]

the smaller spoon was for my own use so it doesnt matter too much. However the long stiring spoon was to be sold as part of a set for £40 so it needed to right! I just carved another one though and that was fine.

When making a spoon i just get a straight batten of wood with as few knotts in as possible and split it down the middle with my axe. If there are any bends in the grain i just carve the wood straight, when the wood dries i guess it wants to go back again.

Thanks for the advice!

Jon

 

[fredcraft]

Perhaps I'm completely wrong, but would it work to straighten it like it is done with bent wooden arrow shafts (considering it seems a round handle) ?

 

[Eric_Methven]

The bending of the wood is through tangential shrinkage. In all honesty, I'd say don't worry about it. Straight symetrical spoons are boring. If I want a straight symetrical spoon, I'll go to IKEA and pick one up for tuppence that was made on a nice scandinavian mass production machine. If you want to produce consistently straight wooden spoons, then you are going to have to work dry seasoned wood with agressive tools as the wood will have done all the shrinking and twisting it needed to during the drying. The down side will be how tough and hard it has become in the process. Just remember that when you carve a spoon from green wood, it isn't twisting or bending, it's developing character.

Eric

 

[JonnyP]

Just remember that when you carve a spoon from green wood, it isn't twisting or bending, it's developing character.

Eric

Thats got to be the sentence of the week for me....Nice one Eric....

 

[Mirius]

If there are any bends in the grain i just carve the wood straight,

Therein lies the problem I think. When green wood dries it has a tendency to warp along the grain. If you've crossed the grain then it will curve accordingly.

Woodturners seem to address this problem by rough cutting and then microwaving - effectively kiln drying on steriods I guess, before finishing.

 

[Northern Giant UK]

I'd just say that Uri Geller popped by and was thinking about getting into BushCraft

I can't see anything wrong with naturally dried, handcrafted spoons that have gone a bit runciple. . .adds character.

Kev

 

[Dougster]

Thats got to be the sentence of the week for me....Nice one Eric....

Me too, but if we ran a competition, Eric would almost always win anyway.

 

[Stan Pinn]

Your problem is a common one throughout the wood industry. The problem comes from the way the wood grows. As wood grows it creates growth rings which are like elastic. When you cut the wood its like letting a elastic band release from being pulled. The apossing pressures are released and the wood relaxes causing it to twist. The way to get round this is to allow the wood to dry and twist before you carve. Leaving a piece of wood for 6 months in a warm dry place may sound extreme but the results will be much better. Try making some cuts of wood ready to carve allowing for the twist before you carve. Then put it in the airing cuboard for 6 months then start your spoon.
Stan

 

[Eric_Methven]

Your problem is a common one throughout the wood industry. The problem comes from the way the wood grows. As wood grows it creates growth rings which are like elastic. When you cut the wood its like letting a elastic band release from being pulled. The apossing pressures are released and the wood relaxes causing it to twist. The way to get round this is to allow the wood to dry and twist before you carve. Leaving a piece of wood for 6 months in a warm dry place may sound extreme but the results will be much better. Try making some cuts of wood ready to carve allowing for the twist before you carve. Then put it in the airing cuboard for 6 months then start your spoon.
Stan

That's OK for making decorative spoons, but no good for bushcraft spoons which should be worked green, ideally in the woods, or if not, before the wood dries out.

Eric

 

[jon r]

i think i'll work with green wood still rather thank waiting 6 months! im patient but not that patient!

 

[Stan Pinn]

i think i'll work with green wood still rather thank waiting 6 months! im patient but not that patient!

Well your question was how to stop them from bending, its fine to have a spoon that you made in the woods but if you want one to keep and show off your skills then the six months will give the best results. Due to the nature of wood it will always twist when wet.
Stan

 

[jon r]

thanks for all the advice guys!