I cut some Cherry about 2 weeks ago & thought I would make some Swedish Candles from the pieces for next year but... The rounds are 6” - 8” dia. 2 are round, 2 are oblong. 15-1/2” - 17” long. I drilled a 3/4” dia. hole, 2” shy of going all the way thru the length, Then I debarked them, I had a draw shave on order but it was “moving within the USPS system” so I used a flat spade to debark. Naturally my draw shave showed up today Then I put the 4 pieces in the “kiln” for 16 hrs @ 180*. Some might call it an oven but it’s just semantics. I may have dried them a bit too long see the pic with the large cracks in 2 of the pieces. I was hoping to be home sooner but I got hung up @ the ethanol plant unloading this morning. Now I just need to cut my X in them. I will burn one tonight to complete & report back on the experiment. YES!!! Boredom struck me, it’s just a bit of propane to dry them. It’s cheap $.98 gal. couldn’t of used much. I won’t “kiln” dry anymore unless I make a solar kiln to put them in. I am hoping that they have a nice aroma. Plus Cherry trees from 6” - 12” dia. are a dime/dozen around here.
I gave 2 of the 4 to a friend, gave the pictured one to my mother & kept one to burn. The pictured one I cut too low, usually try to stay 2” from the bottom on my slice cuts. It was starting to rain & I was rushing a bit to get the last one cut. The ends show some pretty good checking from drying. When I put the X-cuts in there was a bit of what appeared to be steam coming off of them. After drilling 5 of them out, I have a nice bowl of fragrant chips/shavings. I gave those to mother also. Also pictured is the weapon of choice for drilling the center hole. I knew Dad had an extended bit but didn’t realize it was 28” long but it works & beggars can’t be choosers.
If I was oven kilning, I might consider cutting the X and hole drilling before baking. Just a thought.
I drilled the hole prior to baking but made the X-cuts after. I have made other Swedish Candles & x-cut them green, they warp & pinch closed or too far open & break. I used a large screwdriver to open them up & put little rocks in them to hold them open. The candle I saved for myself, when I x-cut it I hit a check & almost broke it in half. I was concerned about them getting too dry and/or warping & breaking in half or maybe pieces breaking off if I x-cut them prior to drying. That’s why I drilled, heated then x-cut. Also I thought the hole down the center would help with drying also.
Welp, I believe my initial experiment is a bust. Initial lighting looked good, 30 min. in looked good, 1 hour not much in the way of flames. There was about a 5mph breeze when I lit it, then the breeze gradually petered out. I am thinking that the wood was not dry enough, there was no sizzle but just not sure of the moisture content. I suppose the only way to get an accurate measurement would be bake one, let it cool sufficiently, split in quarters & check it with a moisture meter. I fanned my hat on the candle & it flamed right back up. I need to do more research. There was a pleasant aroma when it was burning good.
Probably still green in the middle. Some things take time. The ones in the store have probably been baked to a standard that kills bugs and finish seasoning 'on the shelf '. Probably doesn't take too long with the cuts exposing the center to the elements. Might be interesting to weigh them over time to estimate/calculate moisture content.
I have made dozens of them and have settled on the bore cut method that leaves a square hole down the middle with a bore cut at the base to let the air in and cut of the square slug to remove out of the center. I've never made any out of green wood and let them dry. I have always used standing dead trees to make them. some pix of them in this thread: Making candles again They are a lot of fun and I hope you get your process worked out so they're easy to make and get started.
I scratched that itch last year. Was cutting up a just felled dead pine and decided to crudely sink the bar in it and make a rocket stove. Worked well. I can’t remember if I allowed it any drying time at all. Knowing me I probably didn’t. I like to make my experiments as difficult as possible to begin with. Also lack patience once I’ve decided to steer a course Did you cut an intersecting crossway air hole at the bottom? You might try that and only cut the crosses down half way. It’ll create a chimney effect to feed the fire on top. By the time the crosses burn the hole in the middle will be large enough to create its own flame show. Mine was a rocket stove designed more for cooking than flame. You might start with some softer wood like pine and work your way up to harder woods. I just made the one to satisfy the itch. I couldn’t even get the full plug out of the log. It split inside at an angle. Lit it up anyway. You can hear it burning inside even tho it’s just smoking at first.
I thought about weighing & measuring for moisture content & shrinkage last night after the fizzle out. I should of done that before sticking them in the oven.
I was making them out of standing dead Elm & they burned great unless the Elm wasn’t dry enough then the sizzled, seeped water around the base & didn’t burn all the way down. I am probably trying to reinvent the wheel by using Cherry.
^^^^ This is what prompted me to oven dry my rounds in the oven & try to rush things along. Did you cut an intersecting crossway air hole at the bottom? You might try that and only cut the crosses down half way. It’ll create a chimney effect to feed the fire on top. By the time the crosses burn the hole in the middle will be large enough to create its own flame show. Mine was a rocket stove designed more for cooking than flame. You might start with some softer wood like pine and work your way up to harder woods. I just made the one to satisfy the itch. I couldn’t even get the full plug out of the log. It split inside at an angle. Lit it up anyway. You can hear it burning inside even tho it’s just smoking at first. [/QUOTE] I considered the rocket stove but being that I am stubborn, obstinate & impatient I stayed my coarse with my initial plan. I have made them out of 40 y/o hedge posts ( Osage ), not going to get much harder than that. I have some Silver Maple rounds that I going to work on also. I may just have to resort back to Elm, they are easier, no bark to peel away. If I hadn’t tried the Cherry it would there constantly be nagging thought in my head about using them for the fragrant smell. I will keep tinkering & as patiently as possible wait for some Cherry rounds to air dry.
Thanks to all who have given me some input on the process. I will continue to try & reinvent the wheel & report back.
