Thread: Jarrah bowl restoration

It looks you found something worth saving - a Jarrah burl bowl. I am not a wood turner so I am not sure what they would have used, though a kind forum member turned some pens for me and he finished them with a U-Beaut product called ultrashine from memory.

However, my advice is that, like all wooden objects it will respond well to a clean up and wax. Wipe it over with soapy water (damp cloth, not sopping) and dry well with old towels or similar. That will clean off the grime. Then you could probably wax it with a good furniture wax with a high Carnauba wax content. Choose a dark coloured wax as the light colours would show in the voids in the timber. Use only a smear of wax on the cloth to avoid leaving lumps behind in the void, and follow the instructions for which-ever wax you buy, but be sure to buff it off well by hand to leave a sheen. Antique shops sell the dark furniture waxes for brown furniture. Avoid bees wax as it is too light in colour and can leave a sticky residue.

The bowl probably doesn't need to be refinished but if you want to do so I would recommend that you stay away from any of the plastic (polyurethane etc.) finishes for an item like that. I use a dark coloured shellac for dark timbers.

It might be worthwhile asking one of the woodturning shops too.

Good luck.

David

Thanks David, really appreciate it. Can one buy this type of wax etc. at Bunnings? I have no idea where an antique shop or a wood turning shop is in Perth.

Yes, some people at work were cleaning out some old furniture and they thought this bowl was cracked and old and were going to chuck it. I wanted to find out what it's worth but had no clue really how to go about that, it doesn't really matter though as I thought it was just an interesting piece.

Hello again,

I do not know if Bunnies have anything suitable. A Google search for antique shops in Perth shows quite a few, but I don't know if they are close to you.
U-Beaut Enterprises are in Melbourne and have quite a few waxes. I have not bought waxes from them as I have local suppliers here in Brisbane but I believe they will mail their products to you. There are links to U-Beaut in the forums (as they own the forums) or Google U-Beaut polish. They may also have a Perth distributor if you contact them - email address and phone numbers on their website.

Good luck,

David

I'd advise that you don't wax it as the wax will build up in the voids and cracks and look terrible/horrible/unsightly.

After cleaning I'd use an oil, probably a danish oil

but don't do anything yet as I'll post a link on the turners part of the forum and someone there will have a better idea than me. I'm only used to new stuff.

here's a link to that post

Ubeaut's Polish reviver

Thanks for the advice so far, I'm a ways off actually doing anything. I want to give it to my in laws this Christmas - so I've plenty of time to figure out the best thing to do (with your help and advice of course!).

It would be interesting to see if a WA turner could identify the maker of the bowl. It looks to be a nice piece of jarrah burl, is quite well made and is also sizeable so I reckon whoever made it would have been known for their skill. The bowl jaws recess on the foot of the bowl indicates I would say that it is definitely made after the mid 1980's. Shame it was on its way to the tip as bowls / platters that size fetch a tidy sum.

Hi there, yes I put a post in the general forum with the signature that is on the back (it is tricky to make out though), I am definitely interested in having some history on it, it would be excellent to know where the wood came from and how it was made etc.

From what I gather it was purchased locally after the company started up in the mid 90's.

What would be perfect would be to find the person who made it and perhaps they will also agree to restore it for me!

Maybe since its found, you could re-turn it.

Hahaha