"Minor" Gloat

[George Guadiane]

OK, it's a MAJOR gloat:
I've been back from my working vacation in Hawaii for a while now. While there, I attended the Honolulu Woodturners club meeting. There I picked up a nice piece of Neem (medicine tree) complete with a nice crotch.
AFTER the meeting, I met up with Craig Swedberg who I met at the meeting. I met him at his wood yard. Talk about HEAVEN! He had a large variety of local woods. He was generous in that he let me buy a GORGEOUS big piece of Eucalyptus Robusta burl, a big piece of pheasant wood and a BIG mango crotch. I also got a couple of good sized pieces of Milo and a piece of Ohai (monkeypod). Included was a hunk of BLACK wood, looks like Blackwood/ebony, but it was growing in Hawaii. I have already roughed out a bark edge bowl... Wish I had taken the larger piece when he offered it to me.

The mango is at the bottom of the rounds pile in the truck picture. It started out about 15 1/2 inches in diameter but I moved the center to get the prettiest piece.
The HF is 13 inches in diameter by 7 1/2 inches high and Kukui nut oil sanded to 600 then microcrystaline wax was burnished to a low shine.

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[Dennis Ford]

It is certainly a beautiful wood. You did a great job showing it off.

[Bill Bolen]

I've always admired your forms George and these are beauts. What luck.....a working vacation in Hawaii! WTG!

[Bernie Weishapl]

George that is a beauty. I really like the form and the wood.

[Jon Nuckles]

Gorgeous wood and shown off beautifully. The way the two colors at the top come together, it looks like a lava flow. Appropriate for Hawaii.

[Thomas Canfield]

Nicdely done. The woods of Hawaii are incredible, and most of the turners are also super nice. It is well worth a trip. I have really enjoyed the woodturning show held in March on the Big Island and the local turners on that island.

[charlie knighton]

very nice, thanks for letting us in on your enjoyment

[Kathy Marshall]

Nice gloat George! Beautiful form and the wood is gorgeous!

[Baxter Smith]

Quite the gloat! My wood expeditions pale in comparison! Great forms too George!

[George Guadiane]

First of all, thank you to everyone for your kind comments.

Quite the gloat! My wood expeditions pale in comparison! Great forms too George!

I have to say, that after 6 or 7 years of learning and asking and asking and asking, I am SO BLESSED with an abundance of good fortune. Not just in Hawaii, but in my home area too. I have much more wood than I know what to do with, so I am A) embarrassed with my riches and B) and a little uncomfortable bragging about it.

I did a rotation on finding premium wood at our last AWA Totally Turning symposium and I've done a couple of the same(ish) demos at local club meetings. I belong to and/or attend a number of meetings in my area which have helped me figure out how to get the good stuff.

Its out there if you want it.

In Hawaii, I plan my trips around the bi-monthly Honolulu Woodturners' meeting, because it has proved to be an excellent point of contact. I mentioned Craig in the original post and, as far as I know, he'd be interested in cutting and shipping wood (and he is FAR from the only one there with an excess of turning stock).
G