Wood ID

[Mike Cruz]

After spending a day with fellow Creeker Dan Hintz and myself, my nephew (who really enjoyed the experience of cutting up logs into slabs, cutting slabs into blanks, and then sealing the blanks) called me from his friends house. Apparently, a tree was taken down in his friends front yard, and my nephew wanted to know if I wanted any of it for turning.... DUH. Well, send me some pics, I said. And after one look at the pics, I answered, uh, yeah, I'll be over tomorrow.

Long story short, here are some pics of it cut up on the front lawn. And a close up of the bark. And a shot of a leaf.

I will post another set of pics of a bowl I've roughed out of one of the blanks in just a minute.

[Mike Cruz]

Here are the pics of the roughed out bowl that I am turning for my nephew's friend's mother for letting me have the wood.

[Roger Chandler]

looks like it is in the maple family from the leaf picture.

[charlie knighton]

i agree with Roger, sugar maple, the leaf really helps

btw, be very carefull turning that bowl, use some duct tape, be sure to use face sheild, you might want to wear a couple of heavy coats or catchers vest

[Jim Burr]

Well...it's from a tree...and it was big. I'm on the maple wagon.

[Jeff Nicol]

Mike, The leaf tells me Sugar maple also, could be a Norway Maple but I don't think the leaf has enough lobes. It looks like the base was pretty dark and starting to get some rot in it. The bowl looks wild with all the holes and things.

Great haul, Jeff
PS I got the box yesterday.

[Jon Lanier]

Yep, Leaf says maple all the way.

[Mike Cruz]

OMG, sooooo sorry. I was rushed to "send" the thread and didn't really finish writing it. What I meant to add to the OP was that I thought it was a maple, or maybe elm. That some of you have said sugar maple is helpful. Thanks. What is interesting is that the odor is quite strong. Stronger than the maple I'm used to turning. Also, if it helps, the tree was quite large in diameter (3 feet), but it was pretty squat. It grew in a neighborhood, with little to no competition for sunlight, so it didn't need to grow tall. It was interfering with power/phone lines and that is why it was taken down.

I have to say that turning it (through that split) was a bear! My gouge was jumping all over the place.

[Steve Vaughan]

I was thinking maple too. It'll look like that when it starts going bad. That crack will probably open up quite a bit as it dries. Once absolutely dry, it might look really cool to fill it with key shavings and CA. Can't wait to see the finished product.

[Baxter Smith]

Check with your nephew to see if the leaves always turned yellow in the fall. Another indicator for Norway Maple. Wild looking wood! Hope the crack doesn't open up too much. Might be a candidate for a decorative staple or stitching. Hope you can cut some blanks without the challenges of a crack before you start!

[Ken Fitzgerald]

The leaf looks like maple to me. My neighbor has a maple just across the fence. It shades my shop in the mornings. It's a good 3' in diameter.

[Bill Bulloch]

It will be interesting to see if that one makes it through the drying stage intact. Good luck.

[Bernie Weishapl]

I would say maple because it isn't Elm.

[Mike Cruz]

I'll try to keep ya'll updated. But, we decided to seal it with AnchorSeal and wait 6 months for it to dry. So, Feb 1st, I'll be back at it to finish it up. We turned a platter for my nephew and might turn one for his friend, too. That one is sitting in the DNA now. Not enough room in there for the platter AND the bowl. Mom'll have to wait...

Baxter, my nephew remembering what color a tree's leaves turn is like asking him to wake himself up before NOON!!!!!!!!! Neither one are going to happen...Good try though...

[Mike Cruz]

Oh, I also forgot to tell ya'll that we cut up some slabs yesterday, and when we went to turn some/seal some, some of them had cracked to the point of uselessness. But the cracks weren't stemming from the pith...they were wind shake cracks. Not all the pieces, but some. Kinda glad I didn't seal or rough turn them to find the wind shake later. The ones that stayed out overnight that didnt' crack "made the grade"... :)

[Shannon Humelsine]

By looking at the leaf it is similar to maple, but it looks more like sugar gum to me.

[Jon Nuckles]

"Character" wood for sure. Whatever survives will make some interesting pieces. Good luck with it.

[Mike Cruz]

Jon, just about every piece has had some sort of bark inclusion or something.

Shannon, my nephew says it doesn't look like gum...it looks like wood. Anyway... does sugar gum have a more pungeant odor than maple? Because this stuff certainly is, um, fragrant...

[Tony De Masi]

Thanks for the invite Mike.

[Shannon Humelsine]

Jon, just about every piece has had some sort of bark inclusion or something. Shannon, my nephew says it doesn't look like gum...it looks like wood. Anyway... does sugar gum have a more pungeant odor than maple? Because this stuff certainly is, um, fragrant...I'm not sure about the smell, but the leaf and bark of gum is very similar to maple. The way the bottom of the leaf is shaped looks like a gum tree to me. Living down south we have plenty of them. But then again, I'm no botanist.

[Mike Cruz]

Shannon, maybe I'll do a little research into it, thanks.

Tony, don't worry...I'll be bringing a little something with me on Sunday... Make sure your equipment is up to par. :)

[Faust M. Ruggiero]

Mike,
Sweetgum leaves resemble maple. The bark you show is too coarse for Norway Maple and not flaky enough for Sugar Maple. Sweet gum bark looks like your Pix. The real give away would be if you can find the remnants of golf ball sized spiny fruit. That would make sweet gum a positive ID.
faust

[Dan Hintz]

Tony, don't worry...I'll be bringing a little something with me on Sunday... Make sure your equipment is up to par. :)
I don't know, Mike... do you think Tony's itty bitty lathe can handle it? ;)

[Prashun Patel]

The leaf is definitely maple - and not sweetgum, but the bark looks more like sweetgum than maple. Sugar and silver maples have a more papery bark than in the picture.

Norway maple does have a bark like this. I'm gonna go with that.

[Jon Nuckles]

Prashun is right about the leaf, here is a sweet gum leaf:

203726

[Mike Cruz]

Okay, I think the sweet gum is out. That almost looks like a slice of okra!

So, is the concensus that it is Norway Maple?

[Mike Cruz]

Yeeeeeaaaaah, I think it can handle it...

[Brian Tymchak]

I'm not sure about the smell, but the leaf and bark of gum is very similar to maple. The way the bottom of the leaf is shaped looks like a gum tree to me. Living down south we have plenty of them. But then again, I'm no botanist.

Gum definitely has a pungent odor. When I trim my sweetgum (aka redgum) tree in front of my house, it reminds me of terpentine.

[Shannon Humelsine]

This is also a gum leaf.
203733

[Harvey Ghesser]

There is a new (to me) iPhone app called Leafsnap. It will identify the tree. All you do is take a picture of the leaf on a white background then hit submit and in seconds you have a name. It's a free app.

[Mike Cruz]

Ahhhh, a free app. But I'd need to spend $200 for the phone, and $180 a year for the data plan...on top of my calling plan. Free for some doesn't mean free for me. :) Thanks, Harvey. Didn't mean to slam you. I just don't (sob, sob) have an iPhone...

[Mike Cruz]

Okay, I did a little research. By the pics that people have provided, I'd have to rule sweet gum out. The reason is because the leaf (as evident in both sets of pics) has no little lower point.

Both Norwegian Maple and Sugar Maple have that little point at the bottom of the leaf. Norwegian Maple has one "barb" in each on each lobe whereas Sugar Maple has multiple barbs on each lobe. This tree (or at least this leaf) only has one barb.

But I must admit that the bark of the Sugar Maple looks more accurate...

[Rick Markham]

Let me know when you find a giant Norwegian Maple or Sugar Maple Burl... You can send it to me for "Analysis"... I won't even charge ya ;)

[Mike Cruz]

Wow, Rick. That's quite a generous offer. Not sure what the shipping costs would be on a 20" blank. I ended up with two. But one cracked quite a bit before I could even seal it.