Catalpa wood

[Tom Lewis]

Has anyone had any experience with Catalpa wood? Is it worth turning?

[John Timberlake]

I have only turned one piece, but it was nice to turn. Easy to cut and had really nice grain. Looks similar to ash, but finer grain.

[Terry Quiram]

I turned about a 12 inch bowl today. Catalpa is a soft wood that scratches and dents easily. It will tear at the drop of a hat. If you keep sharp tools and do not get into a hurry it is worth the effort. Turned green it can be left on the bench to dry without warping or splitting.

Terry

[Bernie Weishapl]

I turned one bowl out of it. Like Terry said rough it, sit it aside and it will dry without warping. The one I did I couldn't hardly tell it had moved at all.

[Gary Herrmann]

The upside is that it smells like cotton candy when you turn it.

[Leo Van Der Loo]

Just what was said, soft but turns OK, bullet proof for drying, has a nice sheen to it, and a funny smell I think, not a bad smell, here's a picture of one of my turnings (about 14"D)

[Ron Fleice]

I have turned a few pieces of Catalpa like everyone said very soft but it sands and finishes nicely
First one was a funeral urn for an employees Mom
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y290/Ronluc/CremationUrn3-2.jpg

2nd one is a hollow form

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y290/Ronluc/hollowform11.jpg

Ron

[Jeff Nicol]

Catalpa is a very stable and extrmely light weight wood. As Leo said it has a certain smell to it. It kind of reminds me of a more subtle scent of a humidor and the spanish cedar used in those. It has some nice curl in it also around the limbs etc. It is pretty porous wood but sands and finishes wonderfully!

Jeff

[Burt Alcantara]

How timely. I just got a small log and it's sitting on the wood pile waiting for me to do something. This is an unusual log in that the main truck grew around a sucker. In other words, it looks like a trunk that grew around a post. The sucker is too symmetrical for my taste but I'll give it a shot anyway.

BTW, did you turn face or end?

Burt

[Tom Lewis]

Thanks everyone, I just got a pickup load of it and appreciate you sharing your experiences.

[Jim Glock]

Catalpa was/is a big wood for the woodcarvers in South Texas. It does have a unique smell! I taught HS/MS woodshop for 29 years and it was the only wood that I had any type of allergic reaction to. We were bandsawing some bowl blanks and I went into a sneezing frenzy...I've never sneezed so many times and fast in my life! The students got a real kick out of it..lol. jg

[Bob Hamilton]

Funny you should say that, Jim. I bought a catalpa bowl blank at a wood show and turned a bowl from it. When it was done I brought it in the house and handed it to my wife to look at. It had the same finish on it that I use for most of my bowls, a beeswax/mineral oil blend. About 5 minutes after my wife had handled it her hands started tingling and she broke out in a rash. She had never had any reaction to any other woods that I have turned. It seemed a little strange.

Take care
Bob