Nice surprise while cutting out some bowl blanks today

[Sparky Paessler]

I had several chunks of logs from a large maple I had cut down several months ago sitting outside covered by a tarp that I had never gotten around to cutting into bowl blanks. Well today I decided to check the out expecting to find them all checked and cracked up. The seemed ok so I hauled out the chainsaw and started cutting them up. Here is what I got out of them. Lots of figured wood, lots of ambrosia markings, and some great spalting! Should turn into great bowls and vessels. :)

[Brian Kent]

Beautiful wood and nice chainsaw work.

[Thomas Canfield]

That looks like some good bandsaw work also. Lots of fun ahead and should be some really pretty pieces of all types.

[Sparky Paessler]

Beautiful wood and nice chainsaw work.

Thanks Brian! I chainsawed and then cut the rounds on the bandsaw which is why they are so smooth.

[Dennis Nagle]

Is all the spalting from then sitting under the tarp??? How long did it take to get them that way. Very nice haul.

[Bob Bergstrom]

Quite a nice late Christmas present. You have some rough turning to do. Enjoy

[Sparky Paessler]

Is all the spalting from then sitting under the tarp??? How long did it take to get them that way. Very nice haul.

Dennis

They were sitting on the bare dirt under the tarp and we have had a lot of rain this summer/fall. The tarp probably kept the tops from drying out too fast and cracking. Sitting on the wet dirt probably helped the molds grow that cause spalting. I cut these out from the log (5' diameter) in mid summer so they have been out there 5 or 6 months.

[Pat Scott]

We should all be so lucky! Beautiful pieces.

[Sparky Paessler]

Here are a couple of small turnings out of the wood I cut up yesterday. One on the right I finished turned and it ha a coat of finish on it. It is going to be my pencil cup for my desk. Experimenting to see if it will crack. The one on the left is just rough turned and I just took it out of the alcohol bath. Just a small vase.

[Allan Ferguson]

Man, that will be real eye catching stuff when finished. Allan

[Toby Bouder]

Great looking wood Sparky. You gotta be happy with that.

[David DeCristoforo]

Woah. That's too bad. Must have been a huge disappointment to cut into what you thought were nice pieces of maple only to find all that weird looking stuff!

[Jon Lanier]

Always like those kind of surprises.

[steven carter]

Nice haul, cutting into wood is like a box of chocolates?.