First crack at greenwood

Linden - bass, in North America - wouldn't be my choice for a turning to sell, though I've done it. If ever there was plain vanilla in wood, it's bass. Color and figure are normally as unremarkable as can be, and it's soft and a touch fuzzy. About the only thing I use it for is icecicles on dark Christmas ornaments.

Great practice wood, though, You can make a lot of discoveries with it.

Am I missing something or did it just

Ok, you missed the important point. How far can you shoot the shavings with the gouge? I can hit 20 feet from the lathe on a good day. It's fun! Just turn the log all the way down to the pith, give the shavings to someone's pet rodent, and move on.

FYI many of my green turnings feel fuzzy. I let them dry a while then turn them to the final shape; dry wood leaves a smoother finish sometimes. Try cherry next time, or hard (sugar) maple.

But yeah, if you don't like the wood, use it for experimenting (and playing). One thing you've GOT to do is turn a chunk of branch into a baseball bad, like the Bugs Bunny cartoon. At least once ;-)

Might be. Cherry is SWEET to turn green, see if you can find someone to give you a chunk of that to play with.

I believe that is a great carving wood. You may want to consider cutting it up and drying it to sell as carving blanks, then spending the money on something better to turn.

I had a similar experience with Poplar. There's many planted in Alberta because they grow fast for windbreaks and for neighbourhood enhancement. Unfortunately, after growing 75 feet high and two feet in diameter after 20 or 30 years, they start to cause you to enhance your foundation walls and sewer piping, so many mature trees get cut down.

There was so much water coming off the 8 inch branch that I needed wipers on my face shield. The finished product, vaguely a goblet, looked and felt like it was injection molded styrofoam, except fuzzier. After a couple of more tries, the balance of my "free" supply went to the dump at the next opportunity.

A friend's apple tree which had died over the winter proved to be much more delight and I learned just how far my shavings could go across the shop. The shavings seem to blend perfectly with lawn clippings for the composter. Currently I'm out of apple and shavings but still have lots of lawn left. Apple is by far a nicer wood to turn, even if it does crack easily (ergo boiling, LDD, magic pyramids, etc).

Stephen

----- Original Message ----- From: "Bart V" Newsgroups: rec.crafts.woodturning Sent: Tuesday, August 31, 2004 11:11 PM Subject: First crack at greenwood

Get some leaning poplar and learn to love it. Lots of curl and shimmer in many Populus sp. and they can be coaxed so thin they transmit light, which is a neat bowl to put near a window and watch as the sun transits.

Or lime in the UK

One of my favourite timbers, but then I am close to the world's best area for growing it. I make tansu linings and sword furniture out of it, not to mention anything that needs carving. I've a friend who makes conga drums from it - takes the pith out of the log by burning, then shapes the outside with a drawknife..

Amen to that.

One of the best "insides and unders" woods going, IMO. Tulip-poplar doesn't grow around here, so it's my substitute. Trouble is, most commercial mills won't saw it, the demand is so low. Mostly seen in pallets, brown from being in the log too long.

The thing with tansu linings is that they're supposed to be paulownia (which I can't get) and waterproof. If you soak them, it should swell up and seal the joints of the drawer. For sword furniture you need a timber that dries well, and stays dry even in changing humidity. Lime is a pretty good substitute for both cases.

Ummm, what is "leaning poplar"?

Based on my experience with the green-bark, white wood poplar, perhaps similar to an aspen, no thanks. Quite unremarkable wood.

Tulip poplar, rather yellow-brownish-greenish wood I have used in my woodturning class, and it is cheap and cuts well, at least when it is dry.

One which leans, producing curly figure. Most remarkable.