Live Oak Anyone?

[Tom Winship]

Has anyone turned live oak? Is so what are your comments?
I've done a little flatwork with it and know it is hard and dense.
A neighbor has a tree that they have cut for a easement right of way project and says it is about 20" dia. Will get it tomorrow.

[Jamie Donaldson]

Talk about wood that as hard as a rock when dry, be sure to turn it while there's still some juice left! It often draws up silica and will dull tools quickly, but sometimes has unique oaky grain patterns.

[Eric Holmquist]

I've turned a bit of Coastal Live Oak from California and it can look quite lovely. The stuff from my aunt's yard looks like a cross between Sycamore and White Oak when turned.

[Bernie Weishapl]

Tom I have turned some and it gets hard when dry. I would rough out your project while green. Also I had to clean my lathe bed with WD40 after turning green as it turned the ways blackish.

[Alan Trout]

I use a lot of it as accent pieces in my Acorn cap pieces and it is lovely wood. A bit hard but really interesting patterns to the grain and lovely coloration's from dark browns to golden tans.

Alan

[Thomas Canfield]

Tom,

I rough turned some last year in the spring and had to toss 5 large (19"D x 8"D) bowls due to cracks and checking. Live Oak will turn your hands (wear latex gloves), lathe, and anything else the sap touches black and cause you grief. It will warp really be a mess and extremely hard when dry, but the grain can provide some interesting final work. I probably should have done a better job sealing and then packing with chips and wrapping with paper to really slow down the drying. Wood cut now, especially in Texas, will likely not have a lot of sap and may not have the cracking and checking problem as bad. All that said, I suggest you try some.

[Pete Copeland]

206686

This is a small natural edge bowl I made from the limb of a live oak that was trimmed in my neighbor's backyard.

[Tom Winship]

I turned a piece this morning. Am ready to reverse it into the chuck. Had to interrupt my day and so I wrapped it in Cling Wrap and Saran Wrap and brought it inside. will open tomorrow to see if it has cracked.
I do like turning it tho and it has some pretty grain.