Thread: suitable timbers

Welcome to the site Andy,
I have never heard of Kurrajong wood but all the rest will turn. In fact most timbers will turn just some are easier than others. Members on here have turned just about all there is. Grab a few bits of whatever you can get and give it a go. That is the best way to develop a feel for what you like to work with. Plenty of tips and help on here for the asking.

Regards
John

Ironbark is veeeeeeerrry hard and you'll have difficulty turning it unless you tools are good quality and razor sharp

I can only offer advice on the Kurrajong as I haven't (yet!) tried any of the others for turning. Check out the Kurrajong here.

Personally, I've yet to find any wood that isn't worthwhile turning... it may be beyond my skills to successfully make something from it, but it's all still good practice. (And before the smart-arsed pedants get started: I'm talking about species of wood here... not individual pieces. )

thanks for the link, Kurrajongs seem to thrive when the rest of the bush is struggling to survive,

nice bowl too!

andy

Originally Posted by TTIT

I can only offer advice on the Kurrajong as I haven't (yet!) tried any of the others for turning. Check out the Kurrajong here.

Kurrajong is a Brachychyton and therefore the first cousin to the Illawarra Flame Tree and the Qeensland Lacebark. I've found both these woods to be soft, fibrous and prone to mold. I haven"t yet turned any but the lumps sitting around here may soon end up on the faceplate. I"m guessing super sharp tools and gentle cuts will be in order.

Since I have just bought a new lathe I am trying to recover the modest turning skills I used to have, playiing around with timber lying around the house, some of it dead trees that were pushed over to make room for the new shed.

I found the ironbark quite reasonable even if it is quite hard. When the roughing gouge was at the right angle it took wood off really well. A short piece of log made a very nice mallet for a froe.

Grey gum was also good. This was harder to turn than the ironbark but it had a very nice figure. My practice piece became a handsome new chisel handle. The timber after finishing looks a little like blue gum (eucalypus tereticornis, aka forest red gum) with coarser but straighter grain.

Originally Posted by Skew ChiDAMN!!

Personally, I've yet to find any wood that isn't worthwhile turning... it may be beyond my skills to successfully make something from it, but it's all still good practice. (And before the smart-arsed pedants get started: I'm talking about species of wood here... not individual pieces. )

Want me to send you some of this for some serious practice Skew!!!

Sorry for the hijack Andy - couldn't resist

Actually, that's exactly the sort of thing I had in mind when I posted.

Can you visualise that turned into a spherical hollow form just under the full diameter, sitting on an ebonised mount? It'd be absolutely if someone could pull it off... which I doubt I'd manage but it wouldn't be from lack of trying.

Originally Posted by Skew ChiDAMN!!

...........Can you visualise that turned into a spherical hollow form just under the full diameter, sitting on an ebonised mount? .........

That's roughly what I thought when I first saw it but I don't think I can afford enough epoxy to fill it - it's only been cut 10 days so it's got a whole lot of shrinkin' to do yet

I wouldn't use epoxy, but I'd go through several rolls of duct tape. I reckon it'd look fantastic with the voids left open and a candle inside.

Only 10 days? Yikes! You'll probably come back in another fortnight to discover just a bark tube containing a pile of splinters... Any idea of what timber it is?

(Oh... and a sorry from me too, Andy. I'll disappear back into the woodwork for now... )

Originally Posted by Skew ChiDAMN!!

.......................Only 10 days? Yikes! You'll probably come back in another fortnight to discover just a bark tube containing a pile of splinters... Any idea of what timber it is?..........

Our beloved local Bottle tree (brachychiton rupestris). Won't even be splinters left Skew - just pulp unfortunately I've seen huge trees weighing probably 4 or 5 tons 'melt' into a pile of mush in just a couple of months once they die.

when I did a search for timber on the internet I found my post on this forum, the second one on the attached page,
now for you internet techies- where did the words "andybluemtns has a brilliant future" come from. they are not in the posts as far as I can see - not that I am denying the comment though !

Originally Posted by andybluemtns

when I did a search for timber on the internet I found my post on this forum, the second one on the attached page,
now for you internet techies- where did the words "andybluemtns has a brilliant future" come from. they are not in the posts as far as I can see - not that I am denying the comment though !

Hold your cursor over the green 'reputation' marks under your name on each post.