Which moisture meter are you guys using? I have an older Lignomat now but I don’t care for it much. It is complicated and hard to use.
Moisture meter?
- Thread starter Burnett Custom Cues
- Start date
I feel your pain.
Use a postively ancient (40 yrs?) mini Lignomat.
Pins are a nuisance for cues, checking in spots that will be covered, cut out, or otherwise not exposed in the finish product.
The pinless types have come a long way, but i would only buy one from someone who has been in the biz for a long time and understands the issues. The big problem with pinless types is that they are not accurate on small pieces, nor on round pieces. So useful when buying planks, to scan them quickly. Not reliably accurate for cut blanks in-process.
Once committed to pins for accuracy/reliability, not sure anyone else gives much advantage over Lignomat, Wagner, Delmhorst?
smt
Use a postively ancient (40 yrs?) mini Lignomat.
Pins are a nuisance for cues, checking in spots that will be covered, cut out, or otherwise not exposed in the finish product.
The pinless types have come a long way, but i would only buy one from someone who has been in the biz for a long time and understands the issues. The big problem with pinless types is that they are not accurate on small pieces, nor on round pieces. So useful when buying planks, to scan them quickly. Not reliably accurate for cut blanks in-process.
Once committed to pins for accuracy/reliability, not sure anyone else gives much advantage over Lignomat, Wagner, Delmhorst?
smt
I feel your pain.
Use a postively ancient (40 yrs?) mini Lignomat.
Pins are a nuisance for cues, checking in spots that will be covered, cut out, or otherwise not exposed in the finish product.
The pinless types have come a long way, but i would only buy one from someone who has been in the biz for a long time and understands the issues. The big problem with pinless types is that they are not accurate on small pieces, nor on round pieces. So useful when buying planks, to scan them quickly. Not reliably accurate for cut blanks in-process.
Once committed to pins for accuracy/reliability, not sure anyone else gives much advantage over Lignomat, Wagner, Delmhorst?
smt
If you don't mind me asking, how do you measure moisture content on shafts that are near their final taper? Or do you just make sure you are fine with the MC before getting that far?
Yes!
I would not even begin to machine a square until it was in the ball park of 8%
Also buy almost all wood as "lumber" (not turning squares) so it comes in under 8% as received.
I have bought some ebony squares to save the big planks here for millwork use. But squares can take years to dry in some cases unless bought from other woodworkers old stock.
Also years ago used to buy 8/4 cocobola lumber wet. Some (15-20 yrs later :^) ) it's about dry....
OTOH, I'm a mostly a hobby cue maker.
Sell cues from time to time, after they are made, but there is no production schedule here & way too many other interests to focus.
All that said, you can usually poke the end of the butt or the butt end of a shaft as it nears completion for a closer guess. Once close, count on the fact that you keep your shop at a given Relative Humidity & extrapolate from charts. Everyone who works wood does, right???
There is also the oven-dry standard benchmark for establishing MC from cut-offs or scrap, but i have to admit i've never used it. Except once for a government job that required sourcing ebony fast, and it was wet. I cut the pieces (hundreds of inlays) close, and alternated between careful micro-waving of batches, with days of rest and ventilation, etc. Occasionally checking samples right down to oven dry. Did lose a lot to cracks, but for the purpose, most could not be seen once in place.
smt
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to me, after using meters, and them only testing the surface as they do....I now weigh every piece and mark the date and weight....and set aside. About every few months, depending on the wood species, Weigh and, mark again. When the weight stays pretty much the same for 3-4 measurements( more than a year)....it's go time as that means it has stabilized, for my area. After turning round, Then weigh and date again and do it for a few periods.....just to make sure.
Dave
Dave