palm tree wood??

"Wizard" wrote: (clip) Is it any good for turning?? (clip) ^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Probably not, but I would try a piece. Friends of mine have turned palm, and I am told that there are several that are no good, and one that is.

Hmmmm Not sure about what you have but I've turned "Red Palm" and "Black Palm" before. Really interesting stuff! I have no idea if it's actually palm or where it's from. It may be something from Australia or something? Give it a whirl, be safe, but have at it and see what happens.

- Andrew

Yes that is very true. I have turned some black palm blanks for pens before. It produces a very interesting grain pattern as George describes above. I found it has a tendency to easily tear the grain, so very sharp tools are an absolute must when working with this type of material.

-- Regards,

Dean Bielanowski Editor, Online Tool Reviews

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Living in Hawaii, it's not hard to get around here. There are quite a number of species, and each tends to have it's own character. Most of it looks like a bunch of thin wooden straws tied together with something that approaches the texture of soft pith. If you're going to turn it, you need to do so while it's wet, because it gets pretty soft in the center as it dries. Turn about 50% over finish thickness, then let it dry and finish turn it. It WILL warp as it dries, and you need to use sharp tools, but I think it is worth the effort.

It is a soft pithy like wood, with harder sections where the pores are... Sanding can be "interesting" due to the differences in density, and if you gouge or tear it, you will be sanding awhile to get it out...

Good Luck!

--Rick

Wizard wrote:

I saw a very interesting platter on line made from a slice with the tops of the roots still around the edge. Very nice.