madrone burl

[gary butcher]

I bought a small chunk of flame madrone burl for a new set of headphone cups and the stuff is incredibly pale once the reddish outer was whittled away, looks almost like maple. Any idea if it'll darken after some time or is it likely to stay really pale?

I used some watco cherry danish oil as an initial coat to try to get the figure out followed by Tru-oil but it's still very blond.

[Montgomery Scott]

Yes, it does darken over time. I turned a large piece of madrone burl several years ago. I used some tung oil to darken it up and it worked fairly well. I think it has darkened up some over time, but only perhaps two shades.
http://c2.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/images01/6/l_d176d535e4631f4bc4da2811c2f71879.jpg

[David E Keller]

It should darken some over time... I've turned a lot of pens out of it, and it does darken with time. It looks pretty good with the finish on it right now.

[Steve Schlumpf]

No experience with Madrone but it sure made for a nice headset cup!

[Bernie Weishapl]

Never turned it but sure is pretty. Nice looking turning.

[gary butcher]

Thanks,
yes the stuff is really nice to turn. Good tight grain, light and smooths very well. It was a lot more pinky red when I bought it the other day so I'm hoping it'll regain some of that color with exposure to the air and light. Sadly the grain only really comes through when wet so I may go to Behlens stringed instrument lacquer for a really deep shine.

Thankfully it's easy enough to strip off if it doesn't look right. I want the grain to show well as it's incredibly finely detailed and wavy. Much moreso than any other wood I've used to date.

[Reed Gray]

Madrone comes in a lot of different colors, from pale pink through the reds and purples to black. It will age a bit similar to cherry, but not as much. finish will make it a bit darker.

robo hippy

[Norm Zax]

The cups came out beautifully. Not a size C but still.
Im envious of you guys investing in headphone looks. My two daughters will demolish any set I buy within three or four months so I can either buy my private set and hide it or wait another few years and buy those in the low range, which I am.

[gary butcher]

heh, well I try to make them easy to repair so any damage doesn't end up terminal.

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=142171&d=1266274218