Thread: Oregon/ Dougless Fir?

No trick Cedar. It's hard timber to turn well because of the diff densities in the growth rings. You've done well to get any kind of result.

Originally Posted by rsser

No trick Cedar. It's hard timber to turn well because of the diff densities in the growth rings. You've done well to get any kind of result.

Better stick to what I know- Rosewood, Camphor and Silky Oak!! Oh and Red Ash! But I'm open to suggestions!

I've turned tonnes of the wood (well maybe not that much but a real shyte load). With grain like that (bit coarse) it won't lend itself well to complex shapes or thin walls. Keep the tools real sharp (honing or buffing will help) and scraping should be avoided. I liked it as a cabinet wood when rift sawn or for legs and posts... but not as a bowl wood.

Originally Posted by Toolin Around

I've turned tonnes of the wood (well maybe not that much but a real shyte load). With grain like that (bit coarse) it won't lend itself well to complex shapes or thin walls. Keep the tools real sharp (honing or buffing will help) and scraping should be avoided. I liked it as a cabinet wood when rift sawn or for legs and posts... but not as a bowl wood.

Can you enlighten me on the term "rift sawn"??:confused:

I've made some pieces from Oregon, nothing flash but I was (and still am) quite proud of the final results.

As has been said, there's no real trick to it, beyond a lot of care. Sharp tools, a minimum of scraping and avoid sanpaper unless you're specifically after the "ridged" effect.

One thing I have found though, is there's little lateral strength. What this means is, if you turn your bowls thin enough then they'll tend to fracture easily at the slightest knock. The pictured bowl's about 2yo and 3-4mm thick and was broken just recently when someone carelessly picked up a piece next to it. [sigh] Just as well I never got around to finishing it, eh?

On the other hand, it works really, really well for "chunky" bowls, the grain is well suited to that sort of thing.

Hmmmmm - interesting! I thought 'oregon' was red. I was doubting my old-man's memory when he handed me a lump of red, heavily 'ringed' wood he called "red-pine". I said "oregon" . He said "red-pine" :mad:. I left it at that but it's dark red and has very defined growth rings. Horrible to turn if you don't get the slice with the skew right first shot! Anyone know if they're 2 different timbers????:confused:

one might be oregon and the othe radiata but i wouldn't place bets on it. the scent of the wood ought to give it away.

Originally Posted by tashammer

one might be oregon and the othe radiata but i wouldn't place bets on it. the scent of the wood ought to give it away.

Definately not Radiata- Know Radiata well. I even know the history of the tight grained one. It came out of an old "buttery" in Nimbin. Odly a lot of the original Nimbin shop buildings had Oregon in the roof sections. The garage had long roof trusses made of Oregon. I presume the timber was a "backload" when the steamers took wool or whatever OS.

We see a lot of 'red pine' down here in domestic doors and linings dating back to the 20s and 30s. Some folk mistake it for red cedar. It's very much darker in colour than oregon.

Yeah, old oregon from Canada has much tighter growth rings and is better to work for furniture.

Originally Posted by cedar n silky

Can you enlighten me on the term "rift sawn"??:confused:

http://www.hardwoodinfo.com/display_article.asp?ID=357

Cheers,

P

Thanks Bitmidge!

Originally Posted by rsser

We see a lot of 'red pine' down here in domestic doors and linings dating back to the 20s and 30s. Some folk mistake it for red cedar. It's very much darker in colour than oregon.

That sounds like the stuff Ern - 5x2's with about 30 layers of paint from some old building in Vic'. I'll have to apoligize to the old bugger now .

Just lookin' at the bowls, the one on the left looks like the wood my shed doors are made from... Douglas Fir, former MKT Boxcar flooring. The bowl on the right looks a lot like Ash, to me. Or, it could be what we might refer to as Yellow Pine. Don't know... just lookin'. )
BTW, you've done yourself proud... nice job on hard wood to turn!

There is a fair amount of confusion about Douglas Fir.

First, it is not a fir at all but a mock Hemlock. The term Oregon is not generally used in North America. I understand it to be a marketing term used by US exporters of a sub-species of Douglas fir that grows in coastal regions of Washington State and northern Oregon.

True Douglas Fir grows extensively along the southern British Columbia coast and on Vancouver Island. It is named after the Scottish Botanist, David Douglas.

It's timber characteristics are described as: hard, dense, stiff, strong and durable. It's primary use has been for structural applications, i.e. decking, bridges, docks, trestles, etc.

Douglas Fir that grows along the coastal fringes of the Canadian coastal rain forest tends to have widely separated growth rings due to the rapid growth caused by high annual rain falls up to 100" (2,500mm) per year. An "interior" species which grows inland in the drier regions where the rainfall can be as low as 15" (380mm) per year have smaller growth rings. The coastal timber is softer because of this which reflects its structural benefit of being more flexible, less brittle and more likely to flex under stress. The harder, more brittle interior timber is subject to splitting and less suitable for structural applications.

Generally, Douglas Fir is not the first choice of North American cabinet makers who prefer some of the common eastern hardwoods like Oak. However, some Canadian west coast artisans have specialised in Douglas Fir, but they are very selective of the timber they use preferring some of the slower growth, tight ringed interior species.