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whitewood
23rd April 2007, 08:20 AM
In July 2005 there was a posting seeking comment on Paulownia as a timber suitable for turning. I only recently joined the forum and I am not a turner. However as I grow and mill Paulownia I followed the responses. I was disappointed at the lack of knowledge about the species. Anyone who says the grain is boring must be looking at different timber to mine. The colour is light but if you want dark colours then use a different timber. There are many web sites that provide in depth detail about Paulownia. The WA Department of Agriculture provided the following comments about Paulownia on its site. --

“Pale yellow to pale red, odourless, with straight grain and an attractive finish. - Air dries quickly, but is susceptible to sap staining moulds while drying. - High strength to weight ratio. - Low shrinkage coefficient. - Rarely warps, cracks or deforms. - Easy to work, but soft and easily dented and marked. - Good thermal and electrical insulation.”

What they doesn’t say is that it glues and takes stains very easily as the timber has almost no natural oils. From my experience Paulownia works well if the tools are sharp so tearing should not be a problem and because it is a soft timber the tools stay sharp for a much longer period. Sap stain is the saw millers problem not yours if you buy dried timber. It can add interest to the timber if present. Don’t condemn what you don’t understand

bitingmidge
23rd April 2007, 09:13 AM
Whitewood,

Almost everything you say is correct, all my experience with Paulownia has been happy in terms of it's workability. I'm fairly sure that it's not bad for carving either.

I'm not so sure about the beauty though. I've never seen any pale yellow to pale red. The stuff I've got now is sort of dull green-grey although I'm assured that with a bit of varnish it will look like Tassie Ash! It is really easy to mill and cut, but wouldn't describe it as pretty.

As you say it does take stain well, and after all the Japanese and Chinese have been using it for millenia in their furniture.

If you have some pretty(ish) stuff, what's the chance of a pic or two? Just sanded and wet to bring out the colour should do it.

Watch for a canoe paddle how-to in the future...:rolleyes:

Cheers,

P:D

whitewood
23rd April 2007, 02:30 PM
Photography and computers are not my stong points and I feel any photo I tried to put on the forum would not show the timber to its full advantage. You seem very interested in Paulownia. I was going to post you a sample until I discovered that postage would be $10.00 for some very small peices. However I have spare pieces with tapered widths, 25mm thick and up to 2 metres long. I would be prepared to send you a few lengths if you were interested and was prepared to meet the courier cost of $11.00, assuming you live on the Sunshine Coast of Qld.
If this interests you e-mail me your telephone no and I could phone you and work some thing out.

bitingmidge
23rd April 2007, 02:57 PM
Email sent!

I'll happily pay the freight and have a play with the camera! I am actually presently considering Paulownia for pipes in a small organ that's on the books.
(Don't worry chaps, it's AFTER the dust extraction.) :D

Cheers,

P
:D :D

tashammer
23rd April 2007, 04:26 PM
you fall on your feet, don't you Midge ? lolololololol

bitingmidge
23rd April 2007, 04:30 PM
Someone has to stand up for truth, justice, and Paulownia!

:D :D :D
P

bitingmidge
2nd June 2007, 06:56 PM
To my great dismay it's been six weeks or so since that parcel arrived from Whitewood!

Today I finally cleaned it up and have to say for a bunch of scraps it's a lovely little pile of wood.

The bits John sent were as he described, the end flitches, and to give a bit of scale to them, I resawed them to a constant 150 width or at least as constant as the runout of the flitch allowed!

It's a lovely almost white colour, not as yellow as the pictures show, more like fresh balsa in the hobby shop. This is much more attractive timber than the imported Kiri I've been using for other bits.

I'm not sure what I'll make of it yet, but I noticed the large artists cavas I'm working on at the moment is stretched on a paulownia frame, so I'll certainly be milling a few stretchers in the future and using the Domi ( :D ) for loose tenons!

I'm looking forward to finding an excuse to use it now!

And for those going to Ruffly Rustic's place on Saturday, there's another bundle in the mail! :2tsup:


Cheers. (and thanks John!)
P
:D :D :D

reeves
2nd June 2007, 07:03 PM
yeah I have turned some of it, its good, not too good for small stuff as its very light but a vase came out fine, bit of weight in it. The grain really come sup when polished with laquer or oil,,,the log has a wierd hole running through it, some adaption what part you use is needed but yeah go for it, would probably be really good for big stuff, its strong and light like a cross between balsa and maple or whatever..

RufflyRustic
3rd June 2007, 08:20 AM
That Paulownia certainly has a lovely presence. I think it needs to be matched with some contrasting timber though, I'm thinking purpleheart maybe?

:)

whitewood
5th June 2007, 08:29 PM
Thanks bitingmidge for dressing the timber and putting the result on the forum. You really earned the final result. I tried to put a new thread in smalling milling to day but failed to pass the photo test, again.

Anybody interested in a sample/s of Paulownia similar to that I sent to bitingmidge can purchase a plank/s about the same size as those shown for $5.00 per piece plus transport costs. (No packing or handling charges.) Freight is a complicated matter and is to difficult to include in this tread. I would rather deal with it on an individual basis.

If you are interested e-mail me direct at [email protected] or visit my web sit at www.paulownia-timber-sales.com.au (http://www.paulownia-timber-sales.com.au) to find out more about me. A web browser will be the better way to find my site.