Cherry and Maple Burls

[Garry Smith]

I am going to get back into turning after quite some time away from the pleasure. I have never turned any burls but have a chance to pick some up in the near future. Some are large(Maple) and others are 16 inches or less.
1. How many of you are turning maple or cherry burls?
2. How are you cutting the large ones to get the best pieces?
3. What are the cautions I should beware of?
4. How are you buying theses burls (by the pound or by the size)?

All help would be greatly appreciated.
Garry

[Jim Becker]

Burls are wonderful. Most of my work with burl is for hollow forms and the trick is to play with things between centers until you get the "right" orientation for what you intend to turn. If I were going to do bowls and open hollow forms, I'd certainly consider coring to avoid losing a lot of valuable material. Some of my burl stock is "found", but it's one of the few turning materials that I'll actually put out money for.

[Garry Smith]

Some of my burl stock is "found", but it's one of the few turning materials that I'll actually put out money for.

Thanks for replying Jim,
What method is used to determine the price when you buy them?
I have a loger that wants to sell me some burls but does not know how to price them and I have never bought them before.
Garry

[Bob Opsitos]

From the lumber supplier (hearne's hardwood) I use, they are priced by the pound. I've never bought any but from the looks of what they offer they aren't dried, so you pay for the wood and water.

HTH
Bob

[John Hart]

I generally don't buy local domestic burls cuz I kinda run into them laying around. As far as some of the other ones that don't grow naturally in this area, I'm finding myself paying $3-$3.50 a pound for myrtle, eucalyptus, etc....But I suspect it should be lower for the domestic stuff like cherry or maple. Just guessin'.:)

[Bill Grumbine]

Thanks for replying Jim,
What method is used to determine the price when you buy them?
I have a loger that wants to sell me some burls but does not know how to price them and I have never bought them before.
Garry

Hi Garry

I turn a fair amount of burl, but I have a real problem paying for it. Now, that is not to say that I will not compensate the owner, but I like to give them a piece in return. The reason I do this is that sometimes a lump of wood is a burl, and sometimes it isn't. And, when it is, sometimes it is full of voids and rot. A number of years ago I approached a tree service owner about burls on a tree he was cutting down. The rotten so and so promised me the trunk, and then carted it off to the dump. By way of compensation for his promise he bagan to literally hound me, trying to sell me worthless bits of wood that were most often scabs grown over dead limbs. I finally ran him off with promises of bad intent if he did not leave me alone.

But in another couple of cases, I was offered a huge white oak burl for $5.00. I refused, telling the owner that I would much rather turn them a bowl from the core, which would be worth a whole lot more. In the other case, I have a steady supplier, who gets the joy of seeing the things I make (his words, not mine) plus pieces for his own collection from time to time.

If I were in your shoes, I would offer to turn a piece or two for the guy who owns them. Either that, or offer him a cut of the sales if you end up selling them.

Bill

[Garry Smith]

Thanks everyone for the replies.
I will just wait and see what he thinks he needs to get for what ever he brings.
He alraedy knows that some of them will be of use and others won't be. My main reason to keep him comming back is for the odd ball pieces that he may run accross while logging. I am always looking for good crotch pieces and such.
Garry