My first step always is to thoroughly coat the exposed end grain with a sealer (I use Anchorseal) to minimize end cracking.  If you want to dry smaller cross section spindle blanks, you can split or rip saw the 18" section into smaller diameter blanks.  Splitting is ideal, because the splits will follow the grain, while sawing may not.  Blanks you wish to dry should be stacked with air able to reach all surfaces.  I like to label spindle blanks with the wood, in your case sugar maple, and the date either the whole pieces were obtained or when blanks were split or sawn.  If you wish to use dry blanks, a kitchen scale that measures to the nearest gram is sufficiently accurate.  Weigh a few blanks weekly and record the weight.  When the weight does not change, the blanks are "air dried" to about 10-12% moisture content.

james bowman wrote on Dec 31^st, 2023 at 9:02pm:


The sooner the better

After coating the ends with Anchorseal, I leave the wood outside as I think it will lose moisture more quickly in a heated environment.  Nonetheless I try to cut turning blanks, and turn, within a few days as the wood will lose moisture through the bark, eventually developing shrinkage cracks under the bark.  In the hot summer I may cover with shavings, but for more than a few days because mold/fungus grows quickly.