Huon PIne

[raltenhofen]

G'Day!

It's me again. The desert rat who turns wood with another question that can only be answered them's that's been there.

There I was rummaging once again through the turning blocks at my favorite wood shop when I picked up a plain-looking yellowish block 12x12x4 (inches. Sorry I don't do metrics well.) Then I spied the label: huon pine. I knew I had to have it after reading so much about how rare and precious it is.

Now you might recall, the last time I poked into this forum was with a tasmanian myrtle question. Seems the stuff was developing cracks before I had a chance to turn it. You folks came up with the right answer and I was able to finish that turning successfully.

So I call on you again, oh Wise Ones. How does one successfully turn huon pine? what are the pitfalls and how do I avoid them? What's a good finish?

Thanks in advance for the wisdom you are about to impart!

Richard in AZ

[DarrylF]

Huon pine is wonderful stuff :) I haven't turned it yet, but I've recently made a couple of dovetailed boxes with it. Still have an 8" cube of the stuff sitting on the shelf waiting for the perfect project.

The most amazing thing to me is how fine the grain is - it gives a sanded finish better than anything else I've seen, feels like silk sanded to 320 so I imagine sanded finer on the lathe it would be incredible. Slightly brittle (sharp edges can chip easily), but easy to manage will sharp tools. With a nice sharp chisel I was shaving transparent slivers off the tails on the last box.

I did the shellac & wax thing on the boxes and it came up nice, so I imagine Shellawax would work great - though I'm planning on trying Danish oil & wax on my next box. You can get a really nice range of honey tones.

Keep in mind that Huon Pine is incredibly slow growing and now very rare - so don't screw it up :) It's an amazing timber that deserves every bit of it's fine reputation IMHO.

[raltenhofen]

Thanks for the advice. It is exactly because of huon pine's rarity that I seek advice from this Forum.

Since the piece I got is so large, I thought I might cut it into pieces that I can hollow into vessels.

Richard in AZ

[DarrylF]

I'd be tempted to turn a piece like that into a nice simple fruit bowl - something that would sit right on the kitchen bench being seen & used every day. There would (if you're careful on the bandsaw) be enough left from the corners for small boxes, finials, eggcups maybe?

[jhunt_2000]

Raltenhofen, If you are tempted to turn a wood as rare as huon pine into a largish bowl you may want to do a search for what from memory are called 'bowl savers'. Tools designed to take the centre piece of a bowl out with minimal damage in one piece. That way you can end up with several bowls made from the same piece of wood, in descending sizes. Or if you are poor like me you can cut in from the top along the inside edge of your proposed bowl with a parting tool, shove a prybar in the cut and pry the inside piece out. If the wood seperates easily it'll work, or it wont, or you'll pry the base of your bowl out (darnit!) That didn't happen to me but I guess it could. Mine didn't move at all so I cut from the centre down to the cut I had already made and managed to save a largish ring of, in my case Jacaranda, which I'm planning on using as the outside ring on a wall clock face. There are ways around everything if you dont want to waste a really nice piece of wood.

[raltenhofen]

Now that's a good idea.

The primary reason I was thinking of cutting the block into smaller pieces was twofold: my lathe capacity (It's a Mercury) and the desire to maximize use of such a rare wood. However I would like get the biggest finished piece I can. A nice large fruitbowl would be really neat.

However, my primary concern has to do with the wood's potential for cracking. Do I have to season this wood using any of the vaired methods (microwaving, freezing, wrap in shavings, etc.)??

My internet research suggests that huon pine may not be prone to cracking. But I am not sure and I'm still hoping someone on this forum has had experience in this area.

[DarrylF]

The bowl saver idea is a good one - but practice on a more common timber :)

I've never seen Huon Pine that wasn't fully dry. Everything we see around here is either OLD stock, recycled or at least properly seasoned. I'd bet money that you won't have moisture problems.

Please don't microwave it either way :) It's an extremely well behaved timber.

[arose62]

I've also seen a book ("Making bowls with a router and scrollsaw" ??) that described the technique of cutting slanted rings from a piece of wood, then pulling them up like those collapsible beakers and gluing them in place.

You could then turn/sand/shape/carve to final shape.

This is a variant of the bowl-saver technique, just cutting right through the blank.

Cheers,
Andrew

[minis4meau]

Richard,
Don't waste one little scrap!! I use it for turning miniature (as in less than 1/2" tall) goblets, and rolling pins with tiny handles and it is a dream. Strong and great definition. Can I be put on your list for the bits that hit the floor please?
Barbara

[raltenhofen]

You guys (and gals, if I may be so familiar) are Great!

Thanks for all the advice. It will be a awhile before I get up enough nerve to actually put a chisel to my chunk of huon. I can see I need to plan this very carefully.

Barbara, I would gladly share the shavings. But it seems somewhat contrary to ship this block all the way to the US, then ship the shavings back to Oz. But if that's what you want, so be it. But seriously, I am getting a clear message on just how precious this wood is.

Think I'd better go back to my wood supplier and check every single block they have for more of this stuff!

Richard in AZ

[Baz]

Richard, check out this site www.huonpiner.com/ and you will appreciate why Huon Pine is so expensive .
Cheers
Barry

[andrewh]

I may be coming in a little late....

but I am not a very experienced turner, but being half(or more) tasmanian I have turned a bit of Huon Pine....

its pretty easy, with few pitfalls.

my only comment is that it has a very high content of oil in it, with a beautiful fragrence.

I would say the fragrence is my favourite part of this timber.

- in that light, I would try and make sure whatever you use to finnish the houn pine will allow the natural fragrence to come through over time.

- i have seen people collect the shavings of Huon pine and put them into a cloth bag and use them like Pot Pourri....

catchya
Andrew