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docusk
7th March 2007, 10:38 AM
I have a friend down under (cheers all round eh?) and just been chatting on Skype and she tells me she has a POHUTAKAWA tree which she's just about to prune and should she send me some?
Any of you familiar with this tree and it's characteristics for turning?
I know I'm always moaning on about what super woods you guys have and why can't we get them. Well, next week I'm going to look at a wood yard where there all kinds of exotic woods. I have told my chauffeuse (granddaughter) to keep the padlock on my hip pocket But I shall allow myself a suitable sum to spend widely. Letcher know what happens when I get back.

docusk

TassieKiwi
7th March 2007, 11:09 AM
Google Pohutukawa (note spelling) , tuning.

Terry B
7th March 2007, 11:15 AM
From http://www.treeworkx.co.nz/timber.htm


Pohutukawa
Ancient Christmas Tree

Dimensions height... 40 feet diameter...5 feet
The New Zealand Pohutukawa tree is truly a remarkable living creature. As a coastal dwelling tree it has an excellent salt tolerance and will grow on shear rock outcops.
The Pohutukawa is closely related to the Olive and looks very similar, both in leaf and especially its gnarly structure. It is extremely unusual to find a straight millable stem and indeed was used extensively by the pioneering sailors to fashion ship members, with thousands of elbows being harvested for their naturally curved shapes.
Nowadays the beautiful crimson flowers herald the beginnings of Christmas and the Summer Holidays and have become a environmental symbol in our nation. Consequently, the obtaining of woodturning materials is almost impossible. However the occasional tree collapses of old age or is devastated in a storm and suitable materials are harvested.
The timber is always swirly grained and very dense. Colour ranges from soft pinks through to rich reds with black streaks. The most attractive grain appears when spalting [yellow decay] takes place and exhibition pieces often feature this defect. Pohutukawa is available in round blocks and platter material. There are invariably bark inclusions and other interesting features which make this a special timber.

TTIT
7th March 2007, 12:37 PM
.....................
The timber is always swirly grained and very dense. Colour ranges from soft pinks through to rich reds with black streaks. The most attractive grain appears when spalting [yellow decay] takes place and exhibition pieces often feature this defect. Pohutukawa is available in round blocks and platter material. There are invariably bark inclusions and other interesting features which make this a special timber.Sounds yummy !!!:2tsup:

hughie
7th March 2007, 12:43 PM
I
have a friend down under (cheers all round eh?) and just been chatting on Skype and she tells me she has a POHUTAKAWA tree which she's just about to prune and should she send me some? She lives in Gisborne NZ.

Docusk.
It depends on the age of the tree, generally speaking the tree will have a light sap wood and a dark centre. The dark centre can very dramatic and make darn fine looking bowls or anything for that matter. A favourite for boat builders as its strong and durable. It was used allot for knees in centre board yacht construction.

Not easy to get hold off as its protected species in NZ. Most garden stuff is around 8-15'' in dia if its and old tree I have seen them well over a metre in dia.

Try and get crotches or chunks of the biggest dia she has this way you will get the most dramatic looking timber.

If you do a search of NZ turners there is usually a few bowls or platters of pohutukawa to give you an idea.

In short if you can get some go for it you wont regret it. I tried last year when I was over in NZ, no luck, everything but pohutukawa.

Ianab
7th March 2007, 01:22 PM
If you can get some go for it.

You cant buy it commercially, and although the tree is protected, in some places it grows like a weed. Around New Plymouth it springs up from every roadside bank or crack in the footpath :rolleyes: It's common as a street tree here because it can handle salt spray and wind better than most trees.

It seldom grows a straight trunk, usually multibranched and leaning in all directions, but that can be an advantage when you want turning wood.

This is a large tree in central NP, it's over 100 years old one of the bigger ones I've seen. If it ever falls over I am going to be first there with a chainsaw. :D

Cheers

Ian

TTIT
7th March 2007, 03:35 PM
....... If it ever falls over I am going to be first there with a chainsaw. :D

Cheers

IanDon't forget your Aussie mates..........................Maaaate!:U

TassieKiwi
7th March 2007, 04:09 PM
Here's one in flower in Tassie. One of the projects I was on chipped about 20-30m3, as we couldn't find anyone interested in taking it offsite. 100yr old buggers, too.:(

rsser
7th March 2007, 05:43 PM
Ouch!

Yeah, some Tassie towns have them as street plantings.

[Edit: btw, as you might have concluded from the posts so far, the stuff is hard. There's an account on a NZ site of someone trying out the original Munro hollower on it. Do a Google.]