Question about turning wet wood

[sniper]

I'm turning a pepper mill out of some wet Walnut from a tree my neighbor had cut down. I have always made my pepper/salt mills out of glued-up dry lumber, so I've got a couple of questions:

1) Do I turn it to finished shape/size and then let it sit to dry?

2) If not, how should I go about this? I got 2 blanks out of 1 half of the log section I cut up (hoping to turn a bowl out of the other half).

I've turned down 1 blank to almost the diameter to start shaping the mill. Thought I'd stop and ask before I commit myself any further.

Thanks.

Steve

[Arlin Eastman]

Steve

Me personally I would rough turn it with quite abit left and drill out the inside smaller.  I think one part is 1 1/16 and would only go 5/8" so it has some room to move which should not be a lot but it does relieve some stress from cracking the center and the small end of the top just 1/4" bit or so and the very top not drill at all nor put any tennon on either since they will warp also.

So maybe turn the whole thing and leave in one piece and just drill inside to the very minimum to the cap area.

[crokett™]

Drill it with holes smaller than finished size and turn it close to finished size but allow for shrinking. After it dries finish the drilling and turning.

[sniper]

Thanks for the suggestions. I may play with the first blank and leave the second to dry for a few years or put it in a friends kiln before I use it.

[crokett™]

Thanks for the suggestions.  I may play with the first blank and leave the second to dry for a few years or put it in a friends kiln before I use it.

From experience, the wood will shrink as it dries.  If you turn it wet and assemble the peppermill wet, at best it will shrink and probably warp out of round.  At worst it will spit because it's trying to shrink around the pepper mill, but it can't.