Ailanthus and dogwood

[Jim Kountz]

Hey guys I have a chance to get some ailanthus and some dogwood logs. I dont know squat about the ailanthus and dont even know if it would be suitable or not. The logs are about 20-24" in diameter though. The dogwood is smaller of course but again I dont know if thats a decent turning wood or not. Im getting these logs from an arborist I know and the trees are not harvested for lumber but rather had to come down for one reason or another. Anyone use either of these before??

Thanks!

Jim

[Steve Schlumpf]

Jim - a quick search found these:

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=96677&highlight=Ailanthus
http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=91134&highlight=Ailanthus

[charlie knighton]

i have never turned ailanthus, but have turned 1 piece of dogwood.

some dogwood have been dying recently from drought, i did a small bowl maybe 3-4" across, very tight grained, sort of pinkish brown, no spalting in the piece i had

i have heard that depending on the soil that dogwood has streaks of color, the piece i turned was uniform in color

piece was done in 06

[Jeff Nicol]

Jim, If you are anything like me and a lot of others here at SMC, a good deal on wood is hard to pass up! If it is free don't hesitate and take it all!! I have a buddy who owns a tree removal service and I get all the wood that I can handle and then some! I have a 33" at the base and 9' long butternut log waiting for me in my poleshed from him!! I think some big platters are in order for me!!

WOOD IS WOOD AND TURNING WOOD IS WHAT WE DO!!

Have a Happy New Year!!

Jeff

[Gary Herrmann]

Dogwood is nice to turn. I have a few pieces left from a tree that I harvested that are a very pretty pinkish color. I posted a pic of a chisel handle I turned recently out of dogwood on the neander forum, if you want to see. It is quite hard when it's dry.

[Mat Ashton]

If its anything like the dogwood grown in British Columbia its great turning wood. I regret getting rid of my stash when I moved to Australia - didn't want to risk the customs here.

[Jim Kountz]

Jim - a quick search found these:

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=96677&highlight=Ailanthus
http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=91134&highlight=Ailanthus

AH shoot Steve sorry about that but I threw this post up before I even thought of doing a search myself. Right after I posted this I did a search and found Leo's ailanthus bowls. I jumped the gun here sorry!! But thanks for the reply!!

Jim

[Hilel Salomon]

Hi,

Leo turns Ailanthus and I've always marveled at that. Here in the VA mountains, the tree is a pest that defies killing. It smells horribly and if you get it on your hands you regret it so..... Dogwood turns very nicely indeed. Having said what I said about ailanthus , I wouldn't pass it up and would ask Leo how he does it.
Regards
Hilel

[charlie knighton]

i was not familar with ailanthus and it was not listed in my tree book (an instant guide to trees) but searched wikipeidia:



Ailanthus (derived from ailanto, an Ambonese (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ambonese) word probably meaning "tree of the gods" or "tree of heaven") is a genus of trees (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tree) belonging to the family Simaroubaceae (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simaroubaceae), in the order Sapindales (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sapindales) (formerly Rutales (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rutales) or Geraniales (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geraniales)). The genus is native from east Asia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asia) south to northern Australasia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australasia).
They are fast-growing deciduous (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deciduous) trees growing to 25-45 m tall, with spreading branches and large (40-100 cm) pinnate leaves with 15-41 long pointed leaflets, the terminal leaflet normally present, and the basal pairs of leaflets often lobed at their bases. The small yellow to greenish flowers (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flower) are borne on branched panicles they turn reddish later in the year and eventually brown they stay on the tree for a long time; the male flowers have a strong odour. The odour tends to resemble the smell of strong cat urine or the spray of a male cat. Also, touching the leaves leaves an unpleasant smell on the hands. The fruit (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fruit) is a samara (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samara_(fruit)) drawn out into a long wing with the seed in the middle. The wood is fine grained and satiny.

[Dusty Fuller]

I turned a couple of mallets (one for me, one for my dad) out of dogwood that I rescued from the dead-and-removed tree pile here at the park. I am quite fond of the color and the "substance" of the wood. Heavy but not too heavy.

[Bernie Weishapl]

Jim dogwood is excellent to turn and if it is free grab a bunch. The other I have not turned. I had a friend tell me the same thing Hilel said. It smells pretty bad and you don't want it on your hands. Never did ask him why.

[Bob Hamilton]

Lee Valley sells (or used to sell) dogwood shuttle blanks that they found in a warehouse somewhere. They were originally intended to make shuttles for looms. I have purchased quite a few of the larger size for making tool handles and I really like the wood for that purpose. I have never had any of a dimension suitable for anything but spindles.

A fellow I work with had an ailanthus come down in his back yard last June during a storm. I got a few log sections and roughed out a bunch of bowls and over the last couple of months have finish turned most of them. I can't recall the odor being particularly offensive, but that may just be me. :) The wood is not all that hard compared to ash, oak, or hard maple but is harder than poplar or soft maple. As with most woods with a bold, open grain tear out can be an issue.

A few samples:
http://www.bobhamswwing.com/justpics/new%20pics/ailanthus1.jpg

http://www.bobhamswwing.com/justpics/new%20pics/ailanthus3.jpg

http://www.bobhamswwing.com/justpics/images3/100_8656-1.jpg

http://www.bobhamswwing.com/justpics/images3/ailanthus%20bowl.jpg

Good Luck!
Bob