Mortar and Pestle

[Roy Scudamore]

Hi Everyone,
Signed up a while back but first time on the site.
I would like to know if I could use pine to make a mortar and pestle? I have read that olive wood is the best but not too many olive trees here in Fla.
I also heard that oak works ok.
Any help would be appreciated

Thanks

Roy

[Joe. Rivera]

That project needs a very hard wood.
other wise when you grind something in it, it will also grind the wood, adding wood dust to the food.

Olive can be ordered from a supplier, dont choke on the price.

[mike holden]

I happen to collect mortar and pestles, but I only have two wooden ones, most are stone, glass, or metal. In a wood one you will be grinding on end grain so a very tight grain would be advantageous.
You should ask this in the turning forum for your best chance of a definitive answer.
Mike

[Doug Hepler]

Roy,

Welcome to the creek. Do you mean to use this mortar or is it decorative? If you mean to use it, what will you grind with it? As Mike Holden said, mortars are usually hard -- glass, ceramic or metal. For food, I think a glass set would be best. As Joe said, you need a hard wood. Pine is soft and may contribute odor to whatever you grind. It might look OK for a decorative item. Olive is a great choice. Walnut burl would be cheaper and very attractive if you like a dark wood. Some exotic woods are allergenic and should not be used for food prep. Your query will get more responses in the Turners' Forum

Doug

Doug

[Michael Costa]

I'm a pharmacist and I've made a ton of these things and never from the same species. Mesquite, Spalted acacia, Rosewood, Morado, desert ironwood, pecan, etc.The desert ironwood is great if you want dense wood. The grain is so tight that you don't even need to put a finish on it to get an amazing shine.

Any wood mortar and pestle should be fine for grinding dried herbs and flowers. However, many of the ones I make go to fellow pharmacists and they are instructed to NEVER crush medication tablets in a wooden mortar. It's ceramic. Ceramic is used for crushing (solids), glass is used for crushing with a liquid involved.

[Michael Costa]

Ps... desert ironwood is expensive. And as for olive, it's a very common allegen. Decorative. ..nice. Functional... iffy. Wear a respirator when turning that.

[Vince Shriver]

If it has to be wood, I think maple would be a better choice; tight grain, non-toxic.

[Earl McLain]

Desert ironwood came to mind pretty quickly for me. Most ebony also--but talk about choking on price!! Texas Ebony would be a possibility as well, I think I paid about $50 each plus shipping for the last 2 log chunks I bought--each about 6" x 6" x 12". I've got some very old rosewood that would be stunning--though some people find rosewoods/cocobolo to be allergenic as well. Domestic--hard maple and walnut. I wouldn't try to stabilize most pines or firs, but stabilized buckeye burl or spalted anything--especially pecan--would be beautiful.
earl

[Roy Scudamore]

Thanks to all.. Am still trying to figure out how to use this site.. Not very techy and old to boot

[John K Jordan]

Hi Everyone,
Signed up a while back but first time on the site.
I would like to know if I could use pine to make a mortar and pestle? I have read that olive wood is the best but not too many olive trees here in Fla.
I also heard that oak works ok.
Any help would be appreciated

I read some discuss on this not long ago. You might search to see if it was in this forum.

I use glass for animal meds. I'd probably use lignum vitae if making one from wood.

JKJ