Anyone have much experience turning Spanish cedar?
I've got to turn up some spindles for the porch railing at the lake. They are 2-3/4 square at the ends, so I'll have to start with 12/4 stock. They will be painted but will be beaten up pretty badly by the weather, so I'll want something durable. Spanish cedar and African mahogany come to mind. Honduras / South American mahogany would also work, but it's starting to get awfully pricey.
I've worked quite a bit with Spanish cedar but only tried turning a piece yesterday. It was somewhat fuzzy - as is a lot of it that I've used - but I was able to get it fairly smooth. I'm not crazy about doing a whole lot of sanding on it - that dust is no fun.
So, has anyone done much with it? Is it hard to consistently get a good surface? Any other suggestions?
John Martin