I had a minor rash on my arms a few weeks ago after turning some Macassar
Ebony. A couple of applications of 5% cortisone cream took care of it. I
cleaned up a bit in my shop Saturday, which included emptying my shop vac
(which still contained some of the dust and shavings). Well, guess what?
My rash is back. I was only out there a few minutes, was wearing a short
sleeve T-shirt. I had already had a shower that morning and didn't bother
to take another. I really didn't think I got that much dust on my arms. I
think skipping the shower may have been my undoing.

Barry


"rick pixley" wrote in message
. ..
Two members of our club in south florida have had extreme reactions to
silky
oak,,One,the most recent,developed allergies to all wood dust and had to
give up woodturning totally.The other,a close friend of mine, died as a
direct result from exposure to this dust.I wouldn't chance it..Rick
"Copernicus Skygazer" wrote in message
...
Greetings from a novice bowl turner,

I recently came into a lucky find. A friend wanted to cut down three
large trees in her front yard. I took a few logs to try out, until I
identified the wood. Silky oak (Grevilla robusta), a relative of
LACEWOOD!

Apparently these Australian trees are grown in Aridzona due to their
drought resistance, but either way, I grabbed them all.

I have since sealed the ends (either with the waxy anchor seal or thick
coating of outside latex paint), but not removed the bark yet. I've
gotten a variety of advice, including leave the bark on and store it in
my garage (as the summer heat will probably be a bad idea).

Also, there is some concern due to the phenolic compounds found in the
wood.

Any advice on how to properly store this, best way to work it, and will
the LDD technique work with it etc?

Thanks,
Phil