Tree of heaven shapplow bowl

[Bill Bolen]

Leo ID'd this wood for me as tree of heaven. I did not care for it turning green. Kind of stringy and had a medicinal smell while wet. Dry it was a totally different story. Turns very well and sands nice too. 10x2 with 3 coats of satin poly. Thanks again for the ID Leo! I would have had to label it dunno wood without your help.

[Toney Robertson]

Th pronounced grain makes this one a real looker. The edge treatment is cool.

A winning bowl.

[Roger Chandler]

I think it's real name is "Ailanthus" or something similar [what is referred to as "tree of heaven" around our parts]...........one of our club members has turned some very nice things from that wood.

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-nx-fdZocumA/SWDuk7gw4MI/AAAAAAAABhc/tGO5Qjo4uKE/s800/jan%252520029.jpg

Your wood seems to have more grain in it than the bowl my friend is holding...........this grain reminds me a bit of ash, but I will accept Leo's claim..........he knows more about wood than I.

[Bill Bolen]

I've turned a ton of Ash over the years and this is not Ash...Bill...

[Roger Chandler]

Bill,

All I meant was that to me, it reminds me of the grain in ash.........not that it is ash. Did you get a chance to click on the link in my post.........that bowl from "tree of heaven" [Ailanthus] has a less pronounced grain......of course Don's finish is lighter more clear finish as well, and does not show the grain as much as yours.................also............

I think there are times when the same species can vary in grain from tree to tree. I have seen some other turnings Don has done from Ailanthus that did have similar grain to your bowl..........I just find it interesting.

[Bill Bolen]

Roger, I wasn't at all offended....sorry if the reply sounded that way. While finishing I kept thinking this sure looks like Ash but that smell when wet and the way it sanded let me know it was something else. Once I started adding the wop the darker grain lines started jumping out.

[John Keeton]

Bill, I really like the rim treatment on this one!! There is some Tree of Heaven on our place, but none that are very large. As is the case most places in the US, it is invasive. I haven't noticed it spreading too badly here, though I will bushhog it if I can get to it.

[charlie knighton]

very nice Bill, pretty wood, nice orientation

[Paulo Marin]

Man... love the ingenuity of the levels on the rim..Fantastic!
Paulo Marin

[Bernie Weishapl]

Really nice Bill. The grain just makes that thing stand out.

[Mark Hix]

I like what you did with the rim. It looks like a stack of bowls!

[Jon Nuckles]

Bill, I like the shape and the rim. Glad to see someone do nice things with this invasive species. They are everywhere here. Maybe it will become a popular wood for turners and we can get rid of some of them and leave room for the native trees.

[Baxter Smith]

Very pretty wood Bill and I like the rim. It appears to have some dark marks stains in it. Was that in the wood or something that appeared while drying? I roughed out a couple of green oak bowls earlier this summer that developed some black spots soon after coating them with anchor seal. I am curious to see if I will end up with something similar when done.

[Jim Burr]

Great attention to detail Bill! Sounds dorkie...but the detail you put into the foot is really great, something I'm going to start working on!

[Marty Eargle]

Mike Smith gave me a chunk of Tree of Life last time I went out to visit him. I had never heard of it and can't tell anything about the wood from spalting on the outside...so this bowl gets me kind of excited to turn it. The detail around the rim is great! :)

[Luc Vincent]

I fight a stand of Tree of Heaven in my backyard all the time. It's extremely invasive and can grow 6 ft in just a couple of months. It's also known as "Chinese Sumac", although it's not poisonous like other sumac, I still don't think I'd use it as a bowl to eat anything from. I've never seen any growing that would be thick enough to turn a bowl from though. I would definitely think the wood be somewhat soft and green to work with.

[Bill Bolen]

Thanks all...Baxter those dark smudge like spots formed while in a brown paper bag drying. I think they must be mildew of some sort. The paper bag got so wet it was falling apart after just a few days. Changed the bag twice in 3 months getting it dried out. Even left a wet dark ring on my table saw out feed table.

[Steve Kubien]

That rim treatment is wonderful!