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dai sensei
22nd April 2005, 06:35 PM
I'm a relatively newby to the forum but not to woodwoorking. I have just finished rebuilding my back yard workshop after I lost my last one in a fire last year (welding spark - new I should have stuck to wood). Pity I didn't find this forum until after I rebuilt and restocked (using insurance), with all the information I've now found reading all the threads (well a lot of them anyway), I would have done it differently - especially the DC system.

Anyway, I was given this burl last Xmas from a friend. It is probably red gum but I'm not sure until I start cutting. I was hoping to turn it into some sort of bowl and use the leftovers for pens etc. I knew it had a rotten centre, but I have just dug it out only to find it went almost all they way to the bottom.

What's left is 50mm to 200mm dia by 150 high, with walls varying from 50mm to around 5mm. As you can see from the photos, its not round and doesn't lend itself to turning too well.

I would appreciate any ideas on what I can do with it, apart from cutting it into little pieces and making a segmental bowl?

Thanks

Christopha
22nd April 2005, 06:51 PM
Ever heard of an Arbortech mate? Don't turn, CARVE! Make a helmet for yourself and then cover it with foil.....

ozwinner
22nd April 2005, 07:34 PM
A foilmet??

Al :D

Toymaker Len
22nd April 2005, 08:08 PM
Grow an orchid in it. I saw one like this at a friends place last summer and it looked great.

Dave in Malanda
22nd April 2005, 11:45 PM
Neil , that second image has a remarkable similarity to something left behind .....

I've had a few blackbutt burls with the hollow like this one and I went the way of the arbortech as Christopha suggested . I wasn't all that impressed with the results and you'll probably find this is better used for smaller things like pens , bottle stoppers or even for accent details on a larger piece .

Then again , it would look pretty cool with a nice plant in it , maybe suspended on chains .

Dave

E. maculata
22nd April 2005, 11:59 PM
I reckon its' begging to be sliced at around 50mm have the hole filled with a contrasting coloured timber, cleaned up and a clock mechanism fitted. thats what I see in the shape, but I'm an avid non-turner of timber (not that there's anything wrong with being that way inclined :p )

vsquizz
23rd April 2005, 01:05 AM
Hide your keys in it (like those rock thingys)

Paper weight

Base for a lamp, or turn it into a lamp shade...well???

Stubby Holder

Should burn good:D

Start your own white ant farm

What Bruce said


Cheers

Rowan
23rd April 2005, 09:22 AM
wrap it in bubble wrap, then put it in a box and address the box to me, I can solve all those problems for u

Ozartisan
23rd April 2005, 06:03 PM
Bring it on down to sunny Sydney - I'll show you a trick or 2 using resin & burls like that. Looks like an ideal candidate for a technique I have used with great success & lift the value of the finished piece beyond that of a "good" piece of timber.
PM me for more details if interested
Happy Turnin
Peter
Happyinsydney (for a little while anyway!)

adrian
24th April 2005, 10:56 AM
It looks good the way it is. Just hollow it out and make a stand for it to sit in. Or buy one of those small three legged potplant stands.

Ozartisan
24th April 2005, 04:47 PM
Here is one I did some time ago using resin. Pic showing raw red mallee burl, turned base & finished with resin window & inclusions.
Brown mallee is the first one I tried with the resin.
The red mallee was snapped up by a guy for his wife for chrissy

dai sensei
24th April 2005, 05:29 PM
Thanks for all the ideas guys.

I don't have an arbortech, but perhaps this is a good excuse to buy one, just got to justify the $'s.

The plant pot is a good idea, but I'm afraid I don't have a green thumb, nor green anything. So the plant would die, the wood would rot, and I would probably throw in in the fire - hmm, someone else had that idea already.

Peter, your idea of resin filling interests me. I've used resin before for an old piece of banksia firewood, see attached pic, but I'll PM you to get more details on your "technique".

Thanks again.