Silver Poplar HF (#2)

[Mark Cothren]

More of the same wood that I posted not too long ago. Another vase-type form, about 8-1/2" tall and about 7" wide. There is all kinds of burl-like figure going on in this piece, and some remarkable curl that the camera just wouldn't show very well. Sanded thru 600 and Watco natural w/ a coat of gel poly on top.

Any and all comments/opinions/feedback/suggestions appreciated.

[Scott Donley]

Mark, That is just real PURTY. Great form and great piece of wood.

[Travis Stinson]

Man, that's some super wild wood! It looks great Mark, love the natural collar.
I sure am glad someone showed you what was inside that wood, before you threw it away.;)

[Ernie Nyvall]

Sheez Mark, if the pic is not showing everything, I just can't imagine. It's a beautiful piece.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Beautiful wood Mark and I really like that form! I,too, like the natural collar.

[Dennis Peacock]

Very pretty Mark.....but THAT looks nothing like a baby cradle. :p :D

[Robert Mickley]

Thats PURTY!!! Sigh, I really got to find time to seee if the lathe even runs anymore :( Poor thing hasn't been turned on in ages.

[Bernie Weishapl]

Mark that is a beauty. The wood is wild and I like the form a lot. Nice job.

[David Klug]

Itl's beautiful Mark!!!!!!!! Out of cusriosity how thick are the walls?
DK

[Jim Dunn]

Itl's beautiful Mark!!!!!!!! Out of cusriosity how thick are the walls?
DK

Hey Mark, you gonna cut the thing in half and check wall thickness:rolleyes: That's real pretty. Nice form.

[Mark Cothren]

Itl's beautiful Mark!!!!!!!! Out of cusriosity how thick are the walls?
DK

Wall thickness is ~1/4" - the bottom is a little thicker - about 3/8" - to give it a little more stability.

[Keith Burns]

Mark, this is one spectacular piece. I have seen this one in person (during my recent raid) and couldn't stop looking at it. The wood is amazing, and the photo does not do it justice. You definately have done yourself proud:) :) :)

[Andy Hoyt]

Very pretty Mark.....but THAT looks nothing like a baby cradle. :p :D I agree Dennis. That boy better get it done, but quick.

And........ How come the chunk of silver poplar you gave me last June doesn't look like that. I wanna do over!:D

Oh yeah - nice one Buford!

[Bruce Shiverdecker]

Super job, Mark.

Bruce

[Gilbert Vega]

There is all kinds of burl-like figure going on in this piece, and some remarkable curl that the camera just wouldn't show very well.
Mark, that is absolutely gorgeous! I had no idea that Poplar could look like THAT. Form is a beaut.

[Dick Strauss]

Mark,
I couldn't agree with the others more. Your piece is so beautiful that I'll never look at a poplar tree the same way again!

[Mark Cothren]

This was/is my first experience with Silver Poplar, but I can't imagine this was a typical specimen. The tree was old and huge. A friend of mine was removing it to add on to his house. There was no sign of a burl on the tree. The bark was very thick at the point where this wood was taken - maybe a few inches. Underneath the bark the wood had all these sharp pointed warts - that's where the eyes you see in there came from. The heartwood has an orange/yellow color to it. It also has a very unique, distinct smell - almost like soured fruit (apples or pears maybe). It was as wet as any wood I've worked with so far. The first pieces I worked with turned out good, but then everything started showing ringshake so I just put all the wood to the side and forgot about it. I was cutting up the big pieces to make them more manageable and started seeing all this wild grain and figure. I sent a chunk to Travis and y'all saw what he turned out of it. That inspired me to have another go at it. It was worth the effort.

Rumor has it another SMC member has a nice chunk of this waiting to finish turn...:confused:

Here's a picture of what the wood looked like under the bark.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v684/markfromark/Poplar01.jpg