Root stand process

[LemonBonsai]

I fell in love with root stands when I saw them so I wanted to try and make one. Came back from a local park with a few logs and this is the process I have made so far.

I wish I took a picture of it when I first started but basically had a whole other equally sized branch coming out of the left side of the one sticking up.

So this is the first picture I took of it. After stripping the bark and removing the second trunk.

And a little more chiseling and some starting holes drilled this is it now. Have about 5 hours into it already.

 

[sorce]

5 hours

That's like 20 non-Covid hours! Lol!

Nice.

Sorce

 

[LemonBonsai]

Update: belt sanded bottom and top to make things more level, took alot of the middle portion off and drilled many many holes..


And a picture for size comparison

 

[Pitoon]

Looks good so far. People just don't realize how much time it takes to make a stand.

 

[leatherback]

looking forward to the progress!

 

[TomB]

Are those freshly cut logs, or is the wood completely dry?
If it’s not dried, be aware that it’s likely to crack. I know from personal experience that’s pretty gutting when you’ve put many hours into a finished piece.

 

[LemonBonsai]

Looks good so far. People just don't realize how much time it takes to make a stand.

Thanks! Yes i imagine this will take around 20 hours or more by the way its been going

 

[LemonBonsai]

Are those freshly cut logs, or is the wood completely dry?
If it’s not dried, be aware that it’s likely to crack. I know from personal experience that’s pretty gutting when you’ve put many hours into a finished piece.

They were virtually fresh but yes it is cracking a bit as it dries. Hopefully nothing to detrimental that cant be fixed or filled.

 

[Balbs]

They were virtually fresh but yes it is cracking a bit as it dries. Hopefully nothing to detrimental that cant be fixed or filled.

I used to turn bowls quite a bit with green wood. A method I used to slow down the drying process so that the wood wouldn’t crack was putting the bowl into a large brown paper bag and filling it with wood chips. The method wasn’t perfect but it helped with cracking and distortion.

 

[LemonBonsai]

I used to turn bowls quite a bit with green wood. A method I used to slow down the drying process so that the wood wouldn’t crack was putting the bowl into a large brown paper bag and filling it with wood chips. The method wasn’t perfect but it helped with cracking and distortion.

Oh interesting I actually have all the chips i have taken off of it already in a big paper bag so I can just put it in there while im not working on it. Thanks for the tip!

 

[Pitoon]

One way to dry it out extremely fast is to submerge it in alcohol for about a week. Then take it out and air dry, it should be full dry within a month.

 

[LemonBonsai]

One way to dry it out extremely fast is to submerge it in alcohol for about a week. Then take it out and air dry, it should be full dry within a month.

Once I stain and clear coat it will it dry out further? Or will that stop the drying process?

 

[Pitoon]

Once I stain and clear coat it will it dry out further? Or will that stop the drying process?

The wet wood will accept the stain but not the clear.....the wood will shrink as it dries.

 

[LemonBonsai]

The wet wood will accept the stain but not the clear.....the wood will shrink as it dries.

Ah so basically I need to let it dry out either way to finish it

 

[Pitoon]

Ah so basically I need to let it dry out either way to finish it

See if you can find some uncut firewood somewhere, that should be dry enough to work with.

 

[LemonBonsai]

See if you can find some uncut firewood somewhere, that should be dry enough to work with.

Sounds good for my next project

 

[LemonBonsai]

Got alot of smoothing done to the flare of the standas well as starting to smooth around the base a bit. I used an aluminum die grinder bit on my air tool. Worked great for carving out the shape of the flare however doesnt work well for reaming out the holes. I will need to find another tool for this


And this is the crack that has formed not the only one but the one I am most concerned about. I will defintly use firewood next time I do a stand but im not one to give up on my current projects even if I make mistakes. So I will let it run its course and hopefully still make it work with the finished product.

 

[Pitoon]

Looks good. I just hope the wood doesn't split in two after all the work you have put into it.

 

[LemonBonsai]

Looks good. I just hope the wood doesn't split in two after all the work you have put into it.

Also hoping that haha. Hopefully it either stops and adds a bit of character to the stand or is small enough that I can fill it. Next one will hopefully cause me less issues when I use a dry piece of wood.

 

[leatherback]

you really need to keep that wood wrapped so it dries slowly. ELse it will keep cracking.