First Post Vine Wood

Today I start a challenge to post for 30 days. I plan to post on tools, wood, processes, education, religion and other stuff. I hope you enjoy this experiment. I am currently working to fill orders made over the weekend. I am working on mezuzot. The mezuzah is a Jewish religious symbol. It is a container to hold a scroll with the Shma, a holy prayer. I am using vine wood. I should have taken more pictures during the work, but starting in the middle works for this first post. Vine wood is what I call very old wild grape (muscadine or scuppernong) vines. I don't usually cut live wood, but as these vines kill trees, I cut some of the bigger ones from time to time. Vine wood is full of fluid. When cut, the vine will pour sap like a faucet. The problem with using vine wood is that the moisture level is so high that then vine wood nearly always cracks or splits. The coolest thing about vine wood is it often takes on a wine colored tinge as it ages. In an attempt to stop the uneven moisture release, I drilled the required hole just after cutting the pieces. Then I wrapped the pieces in cloth. Now I am removing them to allow them to dry more. After the pieces dry for a few more days I will sand one side and burn a letter on the other.

The top picture is a finished mezuzah. The other two pictures are of drying pieces. Troy