# Drying wood



## Amihai (Aug 3, 2022)

Hello,
I bought wooden turning blanks for segmenting. Apparently, some of them aren't dry but rather coated in some sort of wax (in the picture - coated Gabon Ebony).

I'm afraid that:
1. It won't glue well when segmenting.
2. It won't finish well with CA, living moisture marks.

Are my fears justified? If so, how would you dry the wood? (I don't have a year to wait!).
Thank you very much!


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## egnald (Aug 3, 2022)

Ebony is by its nature very prone to cracking if it drys too fast. The solution for most suppliers is to coat the wood in paraffin wax to slow the drying process. When I buy ebony, since I usually do not know how long it has been drying in storage,  I leave the wax on it and keep it in my shop for about 3 months, then I use a scraper to remove most of the wax from the sides, leaving the ends coated and go another 6-12 months. Then I use a moisture tester to check - just to make sure that it measures less than 10%.  Ebony is just one of those woods that is best purchased and then stored away for a special project. It is risky to buy it and use it right away. 

In your case, perhaps you can ask the supplier if they can provide the moisture level or if they can tell you how long it has been in storage and what the storage conditions were.

Regards,
Dave


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## jcm71 (Aug 5, 2022)

Use African Blackwood.  Much more forgiving.  One of my first pens was a Cigar turned in ebony.  Both barrels cracked.  I keep it around as a reminder to never use ebony again.


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## Amihai (Aug 5, 2022)

BURLMAN said:


> Use African Blackwood.  Much more forgiving.  One of my first pens was a Cigar turned in ebony.  Both barrels cracked.  I keep it around as a reminder to never use ebony again.


Unfortunately for me, You can't export African Blackwood out of the states...


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## PatrickR (Aug 6, 2022)

First, I assume that any waxed wood is green and treat it that way. it is risky to use ebony that has not been seasoned (preferably years). Your best option is to find a substitute. Black plastic will look very similar to pure black ebony that has a CA finish. in the picture there appears to be an end check. if so chances are that it will continue. That’s one reason to season, s that you can see what the piece does over time and weed out the ones prone to cracking.


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