Greetings and Salutations...

On Wed, 28 Jan 2004 02:54:31 GMT, william kossack
wrote:

Where does everyone find these nice large pieces of wood to put on your
lathe? In Denver, it seems we are limited to what little woodcraft or
rocklers has on hand. All of these are generally 6x6x3 or maybe if lucky
8x8x3.

I've done a few of these and now I'm ready to move on. However, short of
getting a chainsaw and finding a scrape pile or visiting a neighbors
yard when they are away on holiday, there is little to be had that is
any good (unless you want cottonwood).

Do you find stuff on ebay? or are there suppliers that have larger than
normal chunks for turning?

Well, it helps to live in a state that has forests. The
Desert, while lovely in its own way, does not quite have the
proliferation of trees that make it easy to get stock for turning.
I will go out in my front yard and whack a limb off a tree, if
necessary, however, in the fall and such, the local tree-trimmers
are so snowed under with wood that they will almost buy YOU a
six pack to take it away. However, I live in East Tennessee.
Ebay is a source, but, it can be pricy. Actually, to
get anything sizable at all is going to cost, mainly because
of shipping. I have a chunk of maple on my back porch right
now, waiting to be turned. It is about 20" across and 8" thick
(in a rough octagon). I suspect it weighs at least 40 lbs even
after drying a while. That makes shipping a tad expensive.
Maybe you could make contact with some of the other
turning clubs out in the area, and see if it might be possible
to work out some sort of "care" package...or a field trip...
Beyond that, I would suggest that you explore the
exciting world of segmented turning. That allows you to use
many small pieces to create as big a blank as you want.
Regards
Dave Mundt