Visit from SMCer from Austrailia, and Guess the Wood

[John K Jordan]

A gentleman brought me this piece of wood today, about 4" in diameter, 4" high, heavy. Can you guess what it is?

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=370694&d=1509502917

Hint: this ain't yer average chunk of TN wood.

Hint: the bark is hairy. Very hairy.

Hint: it has "oak" in the name but it's not an oak.

Hint: SMC member Richard Casey from the Australian tropics cut it, turned it round to reduce the weight, and carried it all the way from Australia in his suitcase.

Answer: Hairy Oak, allocasuarina inophloia, also known as woolly oak and stringybark she-oak, related to silky oak. http://www.hobbithouseinc.com/personal/woodpics/hairy%20oak.htm

I had a great visit today from Richard as he drove around the US, stopping where he found interesting. He finds wood interesting. And drag racing. Maybe llamas. Richard lives about 1300 miles north of Sydney - Australia is HUGE.

370696

He packed this stash in his suitcase and must have forgotten to take it when he left:

370697

These are some incredible pieces of wood, some highly figured. From the left, three pieces of MSW (Maple Silk Wood), the Hairy Oak, a piece of ROS (Rose She-Oak), and one of QMP (Queensland Maple). I see some lidded boxes hiding in some of these!

Thank you Richard!

JKJ

[Leo Van Der Loo]

Silky Oak, or Australian lacewood, Grevillea robusta, oh hairy silky oak, just a bit different. I was too quick on the trigger Haha.

[John Keeton]

Congrats on the visit, John! I bet you both had a great time and you obviously ended up with some neat wood.

[daryl moses]

Nice score on the wood John. Sounds like you had a great visit.

[John K Jordan]

Nice score on the wood John. Sounds like you had a great visit.

I love shop and farm visitors (and visiting!) Hey, don't you live just a bit down the road? Need any turning wood? Maybe I'll invite myself to your place. :)

JKJ

[David Delo]

Great story John.

[daryl moses]

I love shop and farm visitors (and visiting!) Hey, don't you live just a bit down the road? Need any turning wood? Maybe I'll invite myself to your place. :)

JKJ
We probably live about an hour apart. Thanks for the wood offer but i'm pretty much covered up with it.
Your welcome here anytime, just give me a shout sometime. Unfortunately I don't have any dried wood but can sure load you up with green.

[david privett]

that goes for me to John , Daryl lives north of me not to far .

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Congrats on an international Creeker visit!

[John K Jordan]

We probably live about an hour apart. Thanks for the wood offer but i'm pretty much covered up with it.
Your welcome here anytime, just give me a shout sometime. Unfortunately I don't have any dried wood but can sure load you up with green.

All mine is dry or drying. Surely you could use a piece of ebony for a finial or something?! Dogwood, persimmon, holly, sassafras, ...? Even the other John Jordan, the "never turn dry wood" John, took a piece when he visited here recently!

It looks like a road trip to Moses and Privett country is in order! I used to drive down that way a lot for whitewater kayaking.

Frank Penta just talked me into going to the NC symposium this week end. (I think he's just looking for a relief demonstrator in the vendor area. :)) Anyone reading this going?

JKJ

[Sid Matheny]

Some great looking wood and no it is not anything I have ever seen here in Tennessee. Richard thought he might be able to swing down to see me but couldn't on this trip. Maybe next time.

[Dick Strauss]

The first piece is what the locals call "dead finish" because the critters that eat it end up dead!

[Richard Casey]

Well presented JKJ, had a lovely day with you and your family.
Sid, I hope to come your way next trip, it would be nice to catch up.
Dick, that timber is definatly not Dead Finish, DF is an Acacia, Hairy Oak is a She-Oak.
The photo gives the impression that it is porous, but it is totally solid.
Kindest regards everyone,
Richard.

[Thomas Canfield]

Congratulations on the visit and "found" wood. A word of caution that the silky oak can cause a reaction similar to poison ivy for some - DAMHIK. The piece did look like some type of oak.

[robert baccus]

I remember a report of two fellows in Calif. --one killed and one hospitalized several years ago. They had purchased a log of silky oak or she oak?? and had severe reactions to it. Is my memory leaving as well? Any comments?

[John K Jordan]

I remember a report of two fellows in Calif. --one killed and one hospitalized several years ago. They had purchased a log of silky oak or she oak?? and had severe reactions to it. Is my memory leaving as well? Any comments?

Comment: Know your allergies. Some people have a deathly allergy to peanuts.

From the Wood Database article on Silky Oak: Allergies/Toxicity: Although severe reactions are quite uncommon, Southern Silky Oak has been reported to cause eye and skin irritation. See the articles Wood Allergies and Toxicity and Wood Dust Safety for more information.

However, although I read that Hairy Oak is related to Silky Oak, Silky Oak appears to be an entirely different species, Grevillea robusta instead of allocasuarina inophloia. Hairy Oak is apparently a type of Sheoak (Allocasuarina spp.). The Wood Database has this to say about that: Allergies/Toxicity: Besides the standard health risks associated with any type of wood dust, no further health reactions have been associated with Sheoak. See the articles Wood Allergies and Toxicity and Wood Dust Safety for more information.

I'll certainly be careful when working it. Of course, I run the cyclone DC and wear an industrial respirator when working walnut, cedar, and anything else when making dust at the lathe.

BTW. one way to test sensitivity to a new wood is to put a little pinch of the sawdust under a bandaid against the tender skin on the forearm. If sensitive, itching and a rash will let you know.

JKJ

[Dick Strauss]

John, I'm glad you had a good time with the visit. I really enjoyed turning a similar piece of oak. It takes on a scalloped pattern.

Richard, thanks for the correction. I got the information second hand and assumed it was true. I was given a piece of the same oak several years ago from someone that got it from someone else from Australia. I know it is convoluted...

[Alan Arnup]

Hi Dick,
One of our top woodturners in Australia, Hughie Mackay, who is also a contributor to Sawmill Creek gave this description of "Dead Finish" to this forum in 2012. "Here it is a desert species that you may not see much of. It is not a common turning wood here either unless you have the right contacts. Dead Finish or Archidendropsis Basaltica is a desert timber from the Central Highlands of Queensland semi arid desert country. The name derives from a Pidgin English description given to the early settlers "when this tree die, this country him dead finish". (end of quote).
Note: This description by the aboriginals to the early settlers appears to be accepted by the woodturning fraternity here in Australia.

[Dick Strauss]

OT- Alan thanks for the scientific name of dead finish. What I have is definitely not dead finish. It looks similar to our manzanita.