Shipping a project from Arkansas to Arizona

[Denette]

So I have an uncle in Phoenix who wants a small bandsaw box in the shape of a snail.  I'm planning on making it about 10" long, 6" tall, and 3" wide, with the snail's body carved from either leopard wood or lacewood, although I haven't decided on what wood the shell part should be made from.  The drawers will be in the shell.  

 

What concerns me is that I live in Arkansas.  The summers here are so humid that one fears pneumonia just from breathing outside for ten minutes.  Arizona is the dry heat by which all other dry heats are measured.

 

Are there any precautions I need to take with a project this size?  Would leopard wood or lacewood be a good pick for the project?  What might you suggest for the shell part, from which the drawers will be cut?

 

Thanks for any help, guys!

[Llama]

Lacewood is notorious for splitting and cracking even optimal conditions. Just can't trust the stuff...

 

It might not happen today, or two years from now, but it will split. 

[wtnhighlander]

Give Marc a call, maybe he can make one already acclimated th Phoenix for you!

[Eric.]

I haven't had the same experience with lacewood as Mel.  It's just like any other species...depends on how it was cut, how it was dried, what the moisture content is now in relation to the moisture content of your environment, and how you treat the wood from this point forward.  Lacewood is in the oak family so I suppose it could be susceptible to case hardening the same way white oak is...but once you have intact, dried lumber in your shop, it's up to you to keep it that way.

 

It's such a small piece that I doubt you'll have any serious issues aside from perhaps a too-tight or too-sloppy fitting lid once it arrives in AZ and does some shrinking (depends on the construction whether things get too tight or too loose).  You might wait until January or February when the midwest has gone through its driest time of the year, which would minimize the shock of its journey to the desert.  Or you could leave the parts in your house (where humidity is slightly lower) before and during working on your project (aside from actual shop time...return your parts to the house each evening).

 

Or, design your piece with the expectation of significant movement...if you can avoid cross-grain situations, most movement will be moot since it will all shrink at the same rate, preventing the possibility of sticky or loose-fitting parts.