"whirled peas" wrote in message
...
Bill Noble wrote:
You have two approaches -
1. wash, wash wash (pressure washer helps), then dry it out, cut to some
reasonable shape with a saw and clippers, make a paper form and pour in
casting resin, then turn the mess

2. wash, cut off unintersting parts, mount remainder between centers and
turn it a bit to see what needs to come off - remove, cut it off, repeat.
In a limiting case, cut the roots off the ball and just use the solid
wood - you will get great grain. Like a crotch only better.

and yes, it will dull your tools - that's why you learn to sharpen (or
use carbide for the roughing)

you can hold the trunk end in a chuck for a small root ball, but
supporting with the tail stock is a good idea.

Thank you for your straight-forward answers to my questions. I learned
something. I'm going back to lurking now.

let me add one more thing

Once you get a modest level of skill - so you are good enough to usually
make something that is kind of like what you thought you were going to make,
you don't have serious tool trouble, and you don't inadvertently launch your
work piece too often, then try to find the worst looking gnarly, cracked
knotty piece of wood in your pile and make something with it- learn to see
what will work and what will not. I was just playing with some terminte
eaten mystery wood - not much could be saved, but I made a small really
attractive little box - the termintes and the rotting/spalting really make
the grain colorful and gave it nice features - if it had been fresh cut
there would have been nothing interesting to see when it was done.

I'm not denigrating beautiful rosewood, just pointing out that for "art"
damaged goods are your friend.