Russian Olive Burl HF

[Nate Davey]

A buddy of mine sent me a box of wood in a trade. In it was this piece of Russian Olive Burl that was planted on the Los Alamos golf course 50 years ago and was taken down due to decease. This was one of the hardest pieces of wood I've turned but it sanded beautifully. Hand hollowed with my homemade Ellsworth style bars to about 3/8", sanded to 600 with Abranet and 4 coats of AO. 8" wide x 4" tall. I haven't decided if I want to do a finial for it or not yet. Comments and criticism appreciated.
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[Bernie Weishapl]

That is a great looking piece Nate. I like the form and wood. If it were me I wouldn't put a finial on it.

[David Dobbs]

nice piece I am with Bernie I like it as it is .............But I dont like the stick stuff anyway.

[Steve bellinger]

Nate i think this is a great piece. I like finials,so if it was me i would have to try one on this. Don't mean it has to stay, if you decide you don't like it.

[Roger Chandler]

Nice form Nate........you did good........killer olive burl!

[Bill Bolen]

Your buddy is sure a keeper! Great piece of wood and man you did a fine job with it. Agree with Steve. Turn a finial and if it doesn't work for you then it was good practice. A fine piece either way.

[David DeCristoforo]

Dude! That is one sweet hollow form! I really like the way you did the opening so, IMMHO, a finial would detract from rather than add to this.

[charlie knighton]

very nice....

[mike ash]

Nate!!! You did a great job with that beautiful piece of Russian Olive. I really like the 3rd photo....it looks like a waterfall is coming out of the hole.

Nice work, MIke Ash

[David E Keller]

Man, that is sweet! No finial for me... The detail around the opening is just right as is. Not sure what you sent your buddy, but I feel like you came out on the right end of this trade!

[Nate Davey]

Thanks everyone, I sent him some cherry, curly and ambrosia maple and some walnut...I definitely made out and haven't even touched the manzanita yet. Mike, this is my homage to Multnomah Falls :D . When are you coming out?

As to the opening....Two separate times my tool rest loosened why I was hollowing and the edge ran agains the form. This was my "save" for the little groove it put in. Happy accident!!!!

[Dan Forman]

Very cool piece. Standing on edge, with that side opening looking like a mouth (3rd pic), I could see a fish.

Dan

[John Keeton]

Superb piece, Nate!! Love the detailing on the mouth - even if it was a design opportunity! Not crazy on the filler with the crack - I think I would have preferred very dark.

No finial for me on this one!

[Michelle Rich]

It's stunning wood..love the neck..it's a super HF

[Jack Mincey]

Great looking form and wood. I like as is and wouldn't think that a finial can improve up on it. If I ever get that large a piece of olive wood to turn I thing that I will put all the shavings in a few cloth bags and hang them up in my shop to see how long the wonderful smell will last.
Jack

[Alan Trout]

Nate,

That is a really nice piece, This is a piece that may look good with the right finial but it really does not need one. I tend to agree with John that I would have done the filler a little darker but that is just me. Again, overall very nice.

Alan

[Hayes Rutherford]

A great piece Nate, and no need for a finial. You said it was a hard piece of wood to to turn and I was wondering if you meant the actual cutting?

[Nate Davey]

Hayes,

I resharpened my gouge more on this than anything else I've turned. The roughing out was the hardest part. Granted, I typically turn maple, cherry and walnut.

[Scott Hackler]

Nice work Nate. I also agree with the "no finial" for this one, crowd.

[Robert McGowen]

Very nice work, Nate. Glad you ended with a design opportunity instead of a bowl!

[Steve Schlumpf]

Very nice HF Nate! Beautiful wood and the detail work at the opening is just enough to draw attention without being overly done. If the piece did not have the detail lines... then I would consider a finial but because of the lines - a finial would detract instead of add to the piece. IMO.