What can you make from a tapered slightly twisted board?

[BobL]

Back in Dec 2021 I started milling this Jarrah log on a big bandsaw mill.

After turning the log into a 3 sided cant (we still haven't milled the cant) we ended up with 3 largish face cut slabs, like the one on the forks of the loader in this picture.
Ordinarily these are discarded (for firewood ) as they tend to warp like pretzels and the one shown is actually quite thin in the middle so extracting anything useful from it is problematic. Sometimes I give these to my carver mate or take some to my former mens shed and they extract useful craft level stuff out of them



However, I really want dto have a play myself with these so I put them aside and in Feb 2022 I use a smaller BS mill and cut them into a series of thinnish boards.
By then the slabs had bowed and cupped a little so extracting anything straight with an even thickness was tricky.

Usually I lay the slab cut side down on the mill and if it's bent or twisted I shim it up and clamp it down so it doesn't move and then make the cuts
I managed to get several full size 25mm thick boards out of the slabs ( these are current drying) and a series of shorter 1/2-1/4 size boards which may come in useful for something.

One of the last boards was about 1.5m long and came out tapered (22m mm at one end and about 12mm in thickness the other). I was also slightly twisted so by the time it was thicknessed there would be nothing left of it.

So I put it aside in my shed (I do a lot of that and as a result the place is cluttered like a Steptoe TV set) and a couple of months later I found it and came up with this idea.
Rawboard.jpg
I’m going to give it to my brother as a cartoucherie board as he's been asking me for one for years

Being leaf shaped means the small amount of twist and uneven thickness can just be part of the leaf shape design.
I cut it out on my bandsaw and at this point it was pristine ie no cracks, but I decide to let it dry out a bit a bit more so again, I set it aside.

A couple of weeks back I started shaping the sides using spokeshaves and a block plane.
Planing it was impossible as it was not flat but the bandsaw tooth marks were easily removed with a belt sander with 120g belt.
Then I use an ROS 180 and then 240.
At this point I could see some short hairline cracks which I filled with epoxy.

Last week I was handling some nitric acid in the shed and I had gloves on, but as I walked past the almost completely sanded board I touched it with a glove and there must have been a tiny drop of acid on the glove because a match head sized black spot quickly developed. I raced over to the sink and grabbed the emergency bucket of water I keep partially filled and used the water to dilute the acid. At first this spread the black spot even further but it stopped at about the size of a 5c piece and later when the board had dried it more or less sanded out but ( but I can still see it!)- the two people I have shown the board to have not been able to find it.

So far it's had one coat of Liberon oil which when dry was cut back with a used 240g ROS pad, and then another coat of oil.
I'm really pleased with the way the Liberon has not at all darkened the timber colour.
I'm not going to do more than another couple of coats as I don't especially want it to be super glossy and neither do I want it to be super pristine .
It is after all, just a sort of a large "cutting board".
FIrstcoat.jpg

For a quirky feature I have left the end of the leaf stem untouched so it shows the chainsaw marks and white latex paint use to seal the end of the log.
Stem.jpg

I've given it some "feet" turned out of some of the waste timber from around the leaf shape.
This will make it easier to pick up and carry.
Underside.jpg

Here's a grain close up.
The acid spot is still visible DANG! I hate that.
Closeup.jpg

I could be making a few more of these.

[rod1949]

Absolutely brilliant Bob

[Tonyz]

love your attention to detail, that is impressive.

[AndrewPatrol]

Love that first picture

[AndrewPatrol]

Love that first picture

[Bushmiller]

Bob

That is the most amazing recovery from what would have been rubbish or as you mentioned firewood. I can see a part time industry there for you if you cab keep the acid test away from the finished products.

I was initially struggling as to what a "cartoucherie" board was, but I have presumed it is either similar to or the same as a "charcuterie" board. Whatever we call it, that is a magnificent outcome. Let me know if you ever need to adopt any more brothers as I would like to put my hand up.

Regards
Paul

[BobL]

Bob
That is the most amazing recovery from what would have been rubbish or as you mentioned firewood. I can see a part time industry there for you if you cab keep the acid test away from the finished products. l

Thanks Paul, the tree lopper who owns the bandsaw mills was also impressed and also mentioned selling these boards for that purpose. I don't know about that - as I've said before I'm not that good at "selling". I've given a couple of those cupped boards to my ex-mens shed who break them up an make really good use of them for smaller projects, boxes, turning, cutting boars etc.

I was initially struggling as to what a "cartoucherie" board was, but I have presumed it is either similar to or the same as a "charcuterie" board. Whatever we call it, that is a magnificent outcome. Let me know if you ever need to adopt any more brothers as I would like to put my hand up.

I have 4 brothers and 4 BILs which keeps me busy as they are very generous with their time and good etc so can barely keep up with them as it is. The brother im giving the board to gave me a near new 50cc Homelite chainsaw a few years ago - he wasn't using it and he got it for nothing and wasn't interest in selling it.

RE: charcuterie: Yes charcuterie is what I meant, "cartoucherie" actually means "cartridge

According to an on line dictionary, charcuterie has 3 meanings

1. Sausages, ham, pâtés, and other cooked or processed meat foods.
2. A delicatessen specializing in such foods.
3. The occupation ot a pork-butcher.

[BobL]

And finally my bro came and picked it up and they used it for a family gathering (we were not there) this afternoon.

Loaded.jpg

[Bushmiller]

Bob

That is just fabulous, particularly with the associated provenance.

Regards
Paul

PS: I am still available for adoption if there is any room in the tribe and I could contribute an old Solo 690 chainsaw (defunct with blown up piston).

[BobL]

Thanks Paul, my (4) brothers and SILS can always be counted on serving up tasty treats for our regular family Sunday arvo teas.

RE: Tribal adoption.
There is a test - it involves eating huge amounts of food.