Tim Baker's drying technique

[Dictionary]

On p. 41 of TTBB Vol.1 it describes tim baker roughing peices of wood out to bow shape and determines the wood is sufficiently dry after it has stopped losing weight for a week or 2 straight. It says, the drying takes two to four weeks. I don't believe it takes two to four weeks to sufficiently dry the wood. More like 6-8 in reality.

I have a few questions concerning his method.

1.What could be used to weigh the wood? A bathroom scale wont work since the wood weight should be in grams or ounces or something.

2. Am i missing something when some people actually have luck drying wood in as little as 2-4 weeks? Any peice of wood i've used in less than 4 weeks takes enormous set.  It mentions he keeps it in a warm environment but from my experience, Roughed out green peices of wood put in a heated room=severe warping.

[George Tsoukalas]

It depends on where you live and Tim lives in a dry climate. If you lived in FL it may never dry to 10% without a drying box. Jawge

[Bevan R.]

If you rough it out, strap it down to a board, put it under your bed, it could be dry. depends on the wood, the relative humidity of the area you are in. I live in a normally very dry environment. I can see it working.

As for weighing, my kitchen scale goes to 11 pounds, in grams or lbs/oz. got it cheep from amazon.

[Badger]

  Roughed out to bow demensions and kept in a warm dry place I would say most woods no more than a month, many woods 2 weeks.

[osage outlaw]

I've tried this before.  I used a digital kitchen scale from walmart ($15).  I weighed a roughed out hickory bow all last summer.  I kept it in my workshop.  It would gradually lose weight when the weather was dry.  If it rained for a day or two, it would gain weight.  If I kept it in my car on a sunny day, it would loose weight a lot faster.  It sure wasn't dry in 4 weeks.  I put the bow under my bed last fall.  It's still there.  Maybe I'll get it out tomorrow and see what it weighs.

[soy]

Got my scale from the post office LOVE it ...and i have had luck but i use the dry box around 80°and50-60% humidity about 2-3 weeks

[Brock]

yep..in Vol 1 or maybe it is 4 they say no need to weigh stave for first week or two as it is dumping lots of moisture out every day....then after it starts slowing down weigh it on a scale that goes to 5lbs or so.....as it is going to be ounces that are lost once it gets close to RH.

I am about to build another drying box but noticing RH of my home where my current 60% complete stave is hanging has me thinking I might be able to just work it and keep it in my office in between a little more scraping and then tillering.

good luck with the bow...

[PatM]

It still comes down to the drying versus curing argument.
 I've used both methods and quick drying does work pretty well but wood shrinks over time and becomes relatively denser.
 The difference between a quick dried piece of wood after a few weeks and an air cured piece after a year is very obvious.

[toomanyknots]

It still comes down to the drying versus curing argument.
 I've used both methods and quick drying does work pretty well but wood shrinks over time and becomes relatively denser.
 The difference between a quick dried piece of wood after a few weeks and an air cured piece after a year is very obvious.

It's said that a guitar or any stringed instrument's wood will age and sound better as it gets older. The wood used to make the guitar is typically kiln dried, so I would think it was dry to begin with. It would be hard to tell if this is true, as a guitar will sound better just by being played alot, so it could be that the wood fibers are being loosened up by the vibration allowing the instrument to resonant more.

[PatM]

I'd be skeptical that vibration loosens up the wood in a guitar. I think you need to flex wood more than that to get that effect.
 A lot of guys who ride steel road bikes are convinced that the vibration "work hardens" the steel and deadens the ride over time. This has been proven to be false for a similar reason.
 It is interesting that he two materials spark different beliefs even though the materials are undergoing similar stress..

[M-P]

Howdy,  I believe Tim has a point.   I live not too far away from him and can certainly say that the climate here is warm, sunny and rain free from May through Oct. and wood does seem to dry fast.  I worry more about wood drying too fast.  I tend to seal backs and bellies  as well as the ends of wood collected during the summer.   I'm not normally in a hurry so haven't actually put it to the test.    Ron

[mikekeswick]

I have to agree completely as it has worked for me in 2 weeks.
The relationship between relative humidity / temperature are all that matters.
If it's too cold - it won't be dry in time
If it's too humid - it won't be dry in time.
If your wood is too thick - it won't dry in time.
That's it end of story!
It all common sense and pyhsics really.
From a bow making point of view once the woods m.c is down below 12% if will make a low set bow. All this about wood 'curing' I just don't hold with (from a bow making point of veiw). Sure it WILL take years if your wood is inches thick but not if it's thin enough. Most people who do this sort of thing don't reduce the stave enough in thickness imo. It should be well on it's way to bracing height thickness - it can be hard to judge the tiller when only bending it a small amount but it comes with practise. I find I can floor tiller staves to the point where it's ready for a low brace without bending it much past 3 - 4 inches. Doing this is critical if you want it to dry quickly.

[coaster500]

I would think that the wood density would be a factor in drying time also. I would think that Osage would take longer to dry than ERC or Hackberry wouldn't it?

[DarkSoul]

Wood drying is quite a science in itself. While it is true that wood density is important when considering drying characteristics, the actual speed a wood species dries is not extremely dependent on the density of the wood. Because of heavy hardwood's (such as osage) denser and more complex structure, its permeability is much less than that of ERC or hackberry, making it more difficult to dry without checks and distortion of the wood. The permeability of high density woods is lower, which means the moisture will migrate towards the surface of the wood for evaporation more slowly. Yes, a dense wood generally dries slower than a lighter wood. However, dense woods can also be speed dried, BUT that is asually at the cost of wood quality. A denser wood is usually difficult to dry and tends to check and warp more easily due to higher internal moisture content differences as the wood dries.

I'm personally not a huge fan of two week speed drying. The moisture content of the wood may appear ideal (say 10%), but due to permeability of the wood and the migration of the water towards the drier parts of the wood, I personally think there is not an even distribution of moisture within the wood. The outside may contain 8% of moisture, while the core is still wet with 13% moisture. Over time, this moisture may distribute to an even 10% throughout the wood, but speed drying allows the surface of the wood to dry quickly, while the migration of water may not keep up with it.

[Dictionary]

so his method is mostly practical in his own living conditions. But of course wood worked close to bow shape will dry in much less time, just not Tim Baker's time. And a weighing scale from the post office will work eh? Didn't know they made bathroom scales in grams that go up to 11 pounds either. Thx for the info.