Thread: Sourcing Basswood

You may have far better luck finding Australian equivalents -

Hard milkwood, hard alstonia - Alstonia spectabilis (and A. macrophylla)


Milky pine; milkwood - Alstonia scholaris; A. actinophylla;

Thanks for the reply, my only worry is that they don't carve with as much ease as Basswood

I've tried Jelutong and it still doesn't really match Basswood, and I found it was quite prone to splintering

I'll look up the above mentioned species though thank you

Another local species much favoured by carvers is 'white beech' (Gmelina sp.)
Cheers,

Originally Posted by 12berr

Thanks for the reply, my only worry is that they don't carve with as much ease as Basswood

I've tried Jelutong and it still doesn't really match Basswood, and I found it was quite prone to splintering

I'll look up the above mentioned species though thank you

Both have been popular with pattern and hat block makers in the past.

Originally Posted by 12berr

Hi,
I'm a beginner to the woodcarving world and was wondering if you guys had any tips regarding sourcing the cheapest Basswood. ...

No doubt the carvers will jump on me quickly if I get this wrong, but my understanding is:

• The timber is known as basswood in america,
• The same timber is known as lime wood in the UK, and
• The timber is rarely available commercially in Australia, but the tree from which it comes is called linden and is reasonably common in the older suburbs.

Perhaps you could ask an arborist to save some timber next time he "modifies" a linden tree?

Failing that, have you considered and tried powlonia?

Thanks Graeme,
No I haven't, how would you rate powlonia in comparison to basswood?

Yes, that might be a good idea actually to contact an arborist

Thank you

Originally Posted by 12berr

Thanks Graeme,
No I haven't, how would you rate powlonia in comparison to basswood?

Yes, that might be a good idea actually to contact an arborist

Thank you

I cannot answer that question as I am not a carver.

However, I was in Japan before lockdown and watched a highly skilled turner making the "cores" for laquerware bowls. He was turning powlonia down to a thickness of 2 mm. My guess is that if it turns so well, then it should be good for carving ... but I haven't done it!

Hi, I have searched for Basswood in Aus several times over the years and not found a genuine supplier, some advertise they stock and sell but after contacting them I find they do not stock the timber at all so why they advertise they do defeats me. However you can buy it from Amazon as I have recently but it is a bit pricey and the range of sizes is limited. But they may have what you need.
It is very easy to work with, I do a lot of Chip Carving and find it really good for for small items but would not want to make anything such as boxes. Good luck with your searching and carving Brian.