Woodturning
Shrink Boxes on the Lathe
Course Overview
A shrink box is a container made from green wood—its bottom is a dry disk of wood that fits into a groove in the base of the box. The green wood box shrinks as it dries, locking the bottom in place. Working with green wood and managing the drying process presents challenges in any form, but the shrink box makes ingenious use of this feature of freshly-felled wood, resulting in a very tight container. Traditionally hand carved, in this class we will turn shrink boxes on the lathe. Students will focus on techniques for turning the groove to fit the dry bottom into as well as turning a tight fitting lid that will dry with the base of the box to a good fit. While this course is appropriate for beginning turners, it is not recommended for those who have never used a lathe before.
Required Tools
- Pencil