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Wonderful wood from a worthless tree..

Started by tyb525, August 18, 2010, 02:21:07 PM

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tyb525

A few years ago a tree fell across one of our woods trails. It was a twisted, ugly ohio buckeye (Aesculus glabra), with a fork at about chest height. Being buckeye, I knew it's best use was feeding the worms, seeing how it is terrible to split, burns like paper, and rots in the blink of an eye. Not to mention they take over like weeds. So I just cut out the section blocking the trail and left it.

Anyways, a few months later I had just gotten my lathe, and I was looking for bowl blanks. I picked up a chunk of that buckeye cause I figured in would be easy to turn. I cut it into a blank but never got to it until now.

I don't think my timing could have been any better. I had no idea until I turned it...









Surprisingly, there are no punky spots. I applied a coat of tung oil and 2 coats of Watco butcher block oil on top of that, and it just soaked it all right up. So it has a very satin but very smooth finish, and I think that is how I will leave it. You can't really tell it has finish on it, but it helped to bring the colors out.

The pictures don't do all the spalting justice, it is truly a beautiful work by nature. 8)
LT10G10, Stihl 038 Magnum, many woodworking tools. Currently a farm service applicator, trying to find time to saw!

DanG

Wow, that's a beaut!  You'll never look at Buckeye the same as before, will you? 8) :D
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Don K

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Magicman

What an eye popper  :o  that is.  You just never know what beauty is hiding inside of a block/log.  Thanks for sharing.
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Roxie

Say when

Tom

That's pretty. 

It's amazing what those little biological boogers will do to a piece of wood.  Turn them into gold if we have the patience to look, eh?

Radar67

Ah, the joy of finding treasures in turning wood. Great job Ty. :)
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tyb525

Thank mother nature ;D. While my turning skills have improved since then, I think that is one of my more stunning works due to the wood, not my skills (or lack of). :)
LT10G10, Stihl 038 Magnum, many woodworking tools. Currently a farm service applicator, trying to find time to saw!

fishpharmer

Ty, thank you for showing us.  You've
done a tremendous job of unlocking natures
beauty with your skills. Bravo.
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woodsteach

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metalspinner

Buckeye is awsome that way.   8) 8)

Go back and look for the root wad if it pulled out of the ground. That's where the really, really good stuff is waiting for you.
I do what the little voices in my wife's head tell me to do.

WDH

Nothing like serendipity  :D.  That bowl is exceptionally beautiful!
Woodmizer LT40HDD35, John Deere 2155, Kubota M5-111, Kubota L2501, Nyle L53 Dehumidification Kiln, and a passion for all things with leafs, twigs, and bark.  hamsleyhardwood.com

JV

Beautiful piece Ty.  I had a small piece of buckeye still green with me at a demonstration I was doing with a foot powered lathe.  I tried to turn a small ornament but would have had as much success with a wet noodle.  Had to turn that into a "what not to do" demonstration.   :D  I may have to try to spalt some. Keep up the good work.
John

'05 Wood-mizer LT40HDG28-RA, Lucas 613 Swing Mill, Stihl 170, 260 Pro, 660, 084 w/56" Alaskan Mill, 041 w/Lewis Winch, Case 970 w/Farmi Winch, Case 850 Crawler Loader, Case 90XT Skidloader, Logrite tools

tyb525

Yeah, Green it is about like turning wet sawdust packed together :D

Metalspinner, it didn't pull the root ball up, it just broke about 2 feet off the ground, it wasn't hollow or rotten. I'll take a look tomorrow maybe and see what it look like.

And thank you guys :)
LT10G10, Stihl 038 Magnum, many woodworking tools. Currently a farm service applicator, trying to find time to saw!

SwampDonkey

That's a dandy bowl. With all the spalt figure, I can't tell whether I'm looking at the inside or out. It's an "inside out bowl". There now, that's marketing for ya. ;D
"No amount of belief makes something a fact." James Randi

1 Thessalonians 5:21

2020 Polaris Ranger 570 to forward firewood, Husqvarna 555 XT Pro, Stihl FS560 clearing saw and continuously thinning my ground, on the side. Grow them trees. (((o)))

tyb525

I call it the "Ice Cream" bowl. IMO, it looks like vanilla icecream with chocolate swirls :)
LT10G10, Stihl 038 Magnum, many woodworking tools. Currently a farm service applicator, trying to find time to saw!

Fla._Deadheader

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   First, it is ridiculed;
   Second, it is violently opposed; and
   Third, it is accepted as self-evident.

-- Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860)

woodbowl

That is very nice. We don't have Buckeye in these parts that I know of, but it reminds me of spalted sycamore.
Full time custom sawing at the customers site since 1995.  WoodMizer LT40 Super Hyd.

pigman

Nice bowl Ty, and from almost rotten wood.
woodbowl, you don't have any buckeye because you live too far from Ohio.
Things turn out best for people who make the best of how things turn out.

Burlkraft

Hey Ty
Nice job on the bowl 8)

That's some awesome Buckeye. The stuff I had reminded me of Boxelder.
Chris is right ya gotta get that root ball
Why not just 1 pain free day?

Lud

Great looking bowl.  You might have buffed some beeswax in along with the oil after the initial oil coats.  I find that helps seal the bowl and adds to the shine.

My neighbor has a Buckeye that I keep watching .  Only one near by.....and me here in Ohio too! 8)
Simplicity mill, Ford 1957 Golden Jubilee 841 Powermaster, 40x60 bankbarn, left-handed

Patty

Great job with the bowl Ty, you had a piece of wood to work with, and you turned it into a thing of beauty.
Women are Angels.
And when someone breaks our wings....
We simply continue to fly ........
on a broomstick.....
We are flexible like that.

Warbird


WDH

Olen, there are some buckeyes down your way, but they are more shrubs than trees.  You have to venture to the North Georgia mountains to find the species that make real trees.
Woodmizer LT40HDD35, John Deere 2155, Kubota M5-111, Kubota L2501, Nyle L53 Dehumidification Kiln, and a passion for all things with leafs, twigs, and bark.  hamsleyhardwood.com

Phorester

Here's another worthless tree project.  The VDOF is trying to generate markets for Ailanthus, an invasive tree that currently has no commercial markets.  Also worthless for wildlife.  Our Utilization forester at our State HQ had a bunch of ailanthus sawn and kiln dried, then given to woodworkers to make something out of it and report back their opinions of the wood.  It looks similiar to ash.



Although a magnificant job with this table, the local woodworker reported a lot of wasted wood,
splintering, hard to finish.  But once an object is made from it, the object itself seems pretty stable. I've had this table in my office for about a year with no warping, cracking, separating of parts, etc. There is an ailanthus bench in the lobby of our State HQ made several years ago.  Same thing - no problems.

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