Burls vs bunions
- Thread starter DMc
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Dave Shepard
Square peg, round world.
I guess I should have worded that a bit differently. It had been sitting on the header for eight years. Sorry.
Al Smith
Mac Daddy
That's the difference in people .I could likely be able to set the gearing up for turning much easier than the manual manipulation of a hand held tool . Yes I do beileve it was Holtzapfel which I believe was German .However there was one made in NY City Ny ,perhaps the rose ,I forgot the actual name of it .Worth a kings fortune indeed .By the way,old machine tools are another of my many interests/hobbys .
gf beranek
Old Schooler
The birds-eye shows up well in that cherry. I going to have to take some pics of the redwood burl. The patterns in it will differ somewhat in the way it's cut. But too the grain and bud count varies naturally quite a bit.
The really amazing thing about redwood burl is that they are so big, that the grain figuring can get amazingly regular.
In a burl like the cherry burl above ( which by the way, would make a fantastic bowl) the grain runs helter skelter, in a large redwood burl it can get totally even over the whole piece of wood, gives a complete different surface.
In a burl like the cherry burl above ( which by the way, would make a fantastic bowl) the grain runs helter skelter, in a large redwood burl it can get totally even over the whole piece of wood, gives a complete different surface.
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SkwerI
Treehouser
I noticed this small burl starting on one of my oak trees last year. Maybe in 30 years it might be worth $20 to somebody. 
Al Smith
Mac Daddy
I did have some itty bitty burls about the size of a cantalope . They may be out in my shop with the rough sawn lumber or I could have burned them .Never thought about using them for a bowl or something ,duh .
CurSedVoyce
California Hillbilly
I am just going to put this out here. I have been finding Manzanita burls as I am brushing properties. They are small, about the size of a baseball, grapefruit or even a small melon, thus far. I think they would be pretty carved or even as inlay if you make veneer cuts. Heck even a clock.. LOL Anyway... If anyone (and jay also comes to mind) would like to try some. I will be happy to ship it to you for the cost of shipping. I will leave it on the branch and ship it green to you. I would also ask you to start a thread with what you do and how and how the product looks. Let me know in pm and I will get some to you. Just cut two today btw. The wood is hard wood and red in color when cut green ... Might fade a lil unless a finish is used toot sweet. Drys pretty fast.
MasterBlaster
Administrator Emeritus
Tre cool. 
CurSedVoyce
California Hillbilly
Well let me know Steve or anyone else and as I come across them I will send them out... I have about 5 more days or so on this one job and we work on it every year.. Some of the manzanita up here has been dated 250 - 350 year old. I am bound to find more.
Al Smith
Mac Daddy
Now that I know there is an interest in them,I'll cut em off and save them .Fact is I have dead white oak I'm going to drop this winter that has a couple .We shall see what we shall see .
Now tell me ,does a person paint them with anchor seal or just let them dry of their own accord ?
Now tell me ,does a person paint them with anchor seal or just let them dry of their own accord ?
It is a good idea to coat the cut side with anchorseal.
Real burl doesn't crack much when drying, because of the intertwined caracter of the grain, whereas nurl in some cases will become full of cracks and pretty much worthless when left to dry.
I just throw my burls in the "burlshed" and wait for a rainy day to put them on the lathe, and see what beautyful bowls hide inside them.
Real burl doesn't crack much when drying, because of the intertwined caracter of the grain, whereas nurl in some cases will become full of cracks and pretty much worthless when left to dry.
I just throw my burls in the "burlshed" and wait for a rainy day to put them on the lathe, and see what beautyful bowls hide inside them.
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MasterBlaster
Administrator Emeritus
Why, did you cut the cheese?
Really interesting thread.
Jerry, got those redwood pix yet ?
I'm still trying to figure out the diff ? Burl v. bunion
Also, I've heard you're not supposed to simply cut a burl off because the crazy grain goes all the way into / through the trunk wood ? Not so, Stig ? Your burl shed shows (mostly) cut-off burls ?
Awesome turning work. Whew !!! Wow.
Jerry, got those redwood pix yet ?
I'm still trying to figure out the diff ? Burl v. bunion
Also, I've heard you're not supposed to simply cut a burl off because the crazy grain goes all the way into / through the trunk wood ? Not so, Stig ? Your burl shed shows (mostly) cut-off burls ?
Awesome turning work. Whew !!! Wow.
If the burl has started from just one epicormic bud ( eye? what do you call them) it will start as a point somewhere and grow bigger spreading outwards. If you cut it through from the center of the tree out, it'll look like a conus. In that case, just cutting it off at the surface of the tree will leave a lot of good stuff ( good for woodturners!) behind.
If the burl is caused by a cellular disturbance ( cancer!!) it'll often be flat, and can just be cut off without wasting anything.
The real big burls in my shed are whole elm trees, wher the whole log is a burl. Those I cut into manageable pieces.
If the burl is caused by a cellular disturbance ( cancer!!) it'll often be flat, and can just be cut off without wasting anything.
The real big burls in my shed are whole elm trees, wher the whole log is a burl. Those I cut into manageable pieces.
The walnut burls here are caused by epicormic shoots put out of the black walnut root stock and are cut off every year. The farmer usually cuts them off every year. If they aren't removed when the shaker grabs the trunk of the tree it will shove the shoot into the bark and cause damage. If you don't keep cutting them off it just makes a knot.
