Yew box.

This yew wood came from a tree that had died during the previous summer. Recently cut down the wood was wet but not as wet as a live tree freshly cut. Other turners got to the tree first so I am left with smaller limbs to work with. A box was hollowed from a limb section.

The top portion roughed out to 1/4" wall thickness. The inside is rounded to a center thickness of approximately 3/8. The bottom portion roughed out to 5/16" thickness. The inside rounded to a center thickness of approximately ½".

The pieces soaked in alcohol overnight for my convenience. An hour or two in the alcohol would have probably been sufficient.

After removing from the container the two pieces were butted end to end with the box interior exposed on each end.

This procedure for wrapping boxes was instigated by Ron Sardo, or was it Phil Duffy, shortly after I published the alcohol drying procedure in November of 2004.

Wraped and on the drying rack.

11/20 - 1000 - 126
11/21 - 0830 - 111
11/22 - 0700 - 109
11/24 - 2130 - 108
11/25 - 1230 - 108
11/25 - 2100 - 108
11/26 - 1300 - 108

At 10:00AM November 20th the box weighed 126g. Four and a half days later it weighed 108g. By the 26h it hadn’t lost anymore weight so I finished turned the box.

No degradation and very little warping.

In retrospect I should have turned the sap wood away when rough turning to reveal the rich colored heartwood. I will do that with the next box I turn from a yew limb.