Mark J Posted February 9, 2018 Report Share Posted February 9, 2018 @phinds I was tooling around your website and I realized that besides being addicted to end grain you are quite the bowl turner (very nice work). So I figured I would not only call your attention to this question, but post it in this section. I am wondering what is the best wood for turning bowls. I have spun walnut, maple, sycamore and several exotics, but tulip poplar seems to take the cake. As long as you keep your eyes closed, 'cause that stuff is butt ugly at least as far as these eyes behold it. I am not talking about rainbow poplar, but the cream colored stuff with the big fat green band on one side. I haven't gotten into segmented work (yet) so I am turning large one piece blocks. The properties of poplar are excellent for this. What would be the next best thing that would be attractive, or is there a source for non-ugly poplar in a large block (e.g. 8x8x4)? Here are some pictures of a walnut bowl I turned to give you an idea of what I'm doing. Bringing the tip to a point was a good design, but was not the original intent. Unfortunately the walnut had a tendency to chip and break along the growth ring planes. That could be my technique, but either way the poplar is more forgiving. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phinds Posted February 9, 2018 Report Share Posted February 9, 2018 That's a very nice winged bowl. I've turned almost no bowls at all of solid wood, so really can't give you advice there. I've always heard that cherry is nice to turn and the bowls certainly turn out attractive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barron Posted February 9, 2018 Report Share Posted February 9, 2018 Cherry and maple are nice and can look good. Large blanks are expensive, so checking a wood recycling, tree service companies, etc might be good sources. Olive wood is expensive, but turns nicely and looks really good. Nice turning. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thatCharlieDude Posted February 23, 2018 Report Share Posted February 23, 2018 I've been turning a lot of red cedar and pecan bowls lately. Both are fun woods to work with but both have their own idiosyncrasies. The red cedar seems to have a lot of microscopic cracks (this may because of my source) but turns like butter and smells nice. The pecan is hard!!!! But turns well and doesn't seem to have little cracks like the cedar does. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bankstick Posted February 23, 2018 Report Share Posted February 23, 2018 I have a lot of pecan boards. Pecan is the first cousin of hickory and we know that hickory is good for hammer handles, sledge hammer handles, etc. I have turned pieces for custom pens. Finishes real nice. It's a light color and not a lot of grain pattern, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phinds Posted February 23, 2018 Report Share Posted February 23, 2018 56 minutes ago, thatCharlieDude said: I've been turning a lot of red cedar and pecan bowls lately. Both are fun woods to work with but both have their own idiosyncrasies. The red cedar seems to have a lot of microscopic cracks (this may because of my source) but turns like butter and smells nice. The pecan is hard!!!! But turns well and doesn't seem to have little cracks like the cedar does. Red cedar (Juniperus virginiana), when freshly cut, is one of the most beautiful woods in the world, I think, but sadly once it's been exposed for a while it turns dull and boring. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thatCharlieDude Posted February 24, 2018 Report Share Posted February 24, 2018 13 hours ago, phinds said: Red cedar (Juniperus virginiana), when freshly cut, is one of the most beautiful woods in the world, I think, but sadly once it's been exposed for a while it turns dull and boring. I have to disagree Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phinds Posted February 24, 2018 Report Share Posted February 24, 2018 so how long and in what way has that piece been exposed? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark J Posted February 24, 2018 Author Report Share Posted February 24, 2018 I am not done with it yet, but I'm working on a butternut project and the butternut is promising. It cuts very similar to poplar. The end grain can be a bit fuzzy, but I've only gotten through p100 grit so far. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhighlander Posted February 24, 2018 Report Share Posted February 24, 2018 3 hours ago, thatCharlieDude said: I have to disagree What finish keeps the fresh red color? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thatCharlieDude Posted February 24, 2018 Report Share Posted February 24, 2018 4 hours ago, wtnhighlander said: What finish keeps the fresh red color? That's GF salad bowl finish. This was a gift to a colleague so I haven't seen it in a few months. phinds is right it changes color and fades fast. This piece was purple when I turned it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thatCharlieDude Posted February 24, 2018 Report Share Posted February 24, 2018 7 hours ago, phinds said: so how long and in what way has that piece been exposed? That pic was a few weeks after I turned it with light UV exposure. I'll try to get a more recent picture from the owner for comparison purposes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phinds Posted February 24, 2018 Report Share Posted February 24, 2018 26 minutes ago, thatCharlieDude said: That pic was a few weeks after I turned it with light UV exposure. I'll try to get a more recent picture from the owner for comparison purposes. Ah. Well in a year or two it will be a dull tan (unless he puts it in a closet under a blanket) 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark J Posted February 24, 2018 Author Report Share Posted February 24, 2018 That is too dang bad, because the wood in the picture is beautiful. And the grain pattern could look great on some of the bowl shapes I've done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thatCharlieDude Posted February 25, 2018 Report Share Posted February 25, 2018 22 hours ago, phinds said: Ah. Well in a year or two it will be a dull tan (unless he puts it in a closet under a blanket) I sure hope they don't fade. Here's a bowl that I turned in Dec 2016. It's cedar. The second picture is of the same bowl as of today (2/2018). The finish is mineral oil and beeswax. I noticed today that's it's a little dry and needs more mineral oil. I don't notice much fading, there is some most noticable the color is less purple/red, but not bad for 14 months later. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phinds Posted February 25, 2018 Report Share Posted February 25, 2018 Some finishes seem, as in your case, to keep some of the darkness while the red/purple moves towards brown. Just over a year is not a long time. Give it a couple more years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thatCharlieDude Posted February 25, 2018 Report Share Posted February 25, 2018 I expect it to fade some more but that shouldn't affect the grain, should it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdwerker Posted February 26, 2018 Report Share Posted February 26, 2018 I've never noticed the grain changing but the colors darken and become more muted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phinds Posted February 26, 2018 Report Share Posted February 26, 2018 3 hours ago, thatCharlieDude said: I expect it to fade some more but that shouldn't affect the grain, should it? No, but when the color goes, the grain is considerably less sharply defined and less interesting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wouldwurker Posted April 2, 2018 Report Share Posted April 2, 2018 [mention=15772]phinds[/mention] I was tooling around your website and I realized that besides being addicted to end grain you are quite the bowl turner (very nice work). So I figured I would not only call your attention to this question, but post it in this section. I am wondering what is the best wood for turning bowls. I have spun walnut, maple, sycamore and several exotics, but tulip poplar seems to take the cake. As long as you keep your eyes closed, 'cause that stuff is butt ugly at least as far as these eyes behold it. I am not talking about rainbow poplar, but the cream colored stuff with the big fat green band on one side. I haven't gotten into segmented work (yet) so I am turning large one piece blocks. The properties of poplar are excellent for this. What would be the next best thing that would be attractive, or is there a source for non-ugly poplar in a large block (e.g. 8x8x4)? Here are some pictures of a walnut bowl I turned to give you an idea of what I'm doing. Bringing the tip to a point was a good design, but was not the original intent. Unfortunately the walnut had a tendency to chip and break along the growth ring planes. That could be my technique, but either way the poplar is more forgiving.Mark. I have big poplar and wormy soft maple bowl blanks if you want to pay for the shipping (unless you live close to ATL). Cut them into rounds and waxed them in the summer of 2016. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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