Thread: Turning Banksia Cones.

Yep, real messy stuff. I have heard that some guys soak them in water for a few days, let them drain a bit then turn them, not great for your lathe. I just put the fan on high and vacuum up when I am finished. To keep the original bits together after turning, I run diluted sanding sealer into them and finish with Danish Oil.
Rgds,
Crocy.

Depending on how fresh they are they could be filled with all kinds of bugs. They're filled with voids so make sure your chisels are sharp and watch your technique as the cone can catch easily. But like old croc says, they are dusty and make an absolute mess

I have only done a couple but like the others say sharp tools and go easy. I first roughed to round to see just what there is to work with before deciding on the shape. I used danish oil as a finish. As to mess mine were dry so not any messier than turning burl. In a lot of ways it is a bit like working with burl.
Regards
John

Dust from turning could be carcinogenic ,take all precautions.I have some Bull Banksias growing on my on my property they are all around this area I give the Banksia nuts to the local turners here.Some slice them thinly & make drink coasters out of them

This is link to David's website; included only to show the work he does.
The pointer: Per David, run some thin CA glue around the solid part of the eye to keep it from separating from the rest of the pod. It also fill in any small cracks around it and helps keep it from chipping. CA should be added just before the last couple of cuts; you want the bulk and the red fluff gone before using the CA. I haven't had any more "eyes" chipping since using the CA.

Hollow form Banksia seed pod vessels. — David Datwyler

Thank you all for your replies. I have to let them dry before they will be used.
Will be interesting how it will turn out. Cheers Gary

s with anything -dry is good. will follow your exploits as have a number of banksia grandis cones. Only tried to turn one as a kind of tube format for the top -vent for a light. It broke away from the lathe part way through the hollowing out. Had some substance to it but was still furry about the mouths (think big bad banksia men) Not necessarily a bad thing. Coasters is probably the most PRACTICAL thing. Find something more interesting ideally.