I got into some red maple burl that came from a neighbors tree......adventures abound with this particular tree. It split in a storm and had to come down due to lack of structural integrity. Just looking at the wood, one would have thought it should go to the landfill or be part of the burn pile for firewood. I noticed some burl figure in the bottom pieces, and decided to try and see what I could save.
I got a bit of a surprise when my chainsaw found this
IMG_1279.jpg I was aggravated, but persevered! With the rot, I managed to either saw it out or turn it off once mounted on the lathe........it had some awesome spalting and burl grain.
I have made two completed bowls out of the wood to date and have one large 15.5" roughout almost ready to finish turn after drying in a bag since last September.
This is the calabash bowl........I worked diligently to get the nuances of the form correct, and actually acquired the out of print classic book "The Hawaiian Calabash" by author Irving Jenkins back a few months ago.
IMG_calabash1323.jpg and here is the inside IMG_calabash1324.jpg
I managed to get the rotten out, and got the perfect combination of spalted figure without having punky areas! That is why it is called "just in time."
I posted it in the pics on the GGMG yesterday and on WoW. It got the nod for the cover honors on that website today. I was surprised when I logged in and found my bowl on the cover.
Just goes to show that sometimes what appears to be beyond salvaging can at times work out well. We've no doubt all heard that saying "life is too short to turn crappy wood" but sometimes the effort is well worth the perseverance......ruined chains and all!The other side of this crotch piece yeilded a shallow bowl of about 11" diameter, which sold the first two days I had it at the gallery. I hope this one does as well. Both came from a crotch in the tree, and that all-thread bolt had been totally grown over, and one could not see it at any point until the chainsaw hit it! I have a metal detector, but had no idea I might need it! Live and learn, eh?
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