Fallen Poplar tree. Should I keep it ?
 

I'm new to woodturning ( my lathe should arrive in a week ) and just had
a large Poplar tree fall in my backyard from the last hurricane.
Is it worth my time to cut the tree up and keep pieces ? There are
several large limbs which would create some nice grain patterns at the
trunk. If this was a nice oak or maple, I would already be out there
cutting.

How does Poplar compare to other woods in regard to the beauty of the
finished product ?
If it isn't a preferred wood, I could use it for practice.

Also, I live in Smyrna, GA. If anyone nearby has a chainsaw and wants to
get some of this tree, send an email to wcurfman. My account is at yahoo.

If I don't keep it, I have to get a service to remove it. The city won't
remove the tree.

In article ,
Brad wrote:
How does Poplar compare to other woods in regard to the beauty of the
finished product ?

Well, Peter Bloch makes some lovely lampshades from poplar
(aspen/cottonwood/popple, not yellow/tulip).

--
Cats, coffee, chocolate...vices to live by

"Brad" wrote in message
...
I'm new to woodturning ( my lathe should arrive in a week ) and just had a
large Poplar tree fall in my backyard from the last hurricane.
Is it worth my time to cut the tree up and keep pieces ? There are several
large limbs which would create some nice grain patterns at the trunk. If
this was a nice oak or maple, I would already be out there cutting.

How does Poplar compare to other woods in regard to the beauty of the
finished product ?
If it isn't a preferred wood, I could use it for practice.


Depends on if it's a "poplar" as in tulip-poplar with lobed leaves -
actually a magnolia. I would expect, given your location, that this is the
case.

Makes it a practice wood of little character; soft without the disadvantage
of harder latewood to get in the way, as would be the case with a conifer.
Also means you won't have the interlocked grain that characterizes true
poplars. It's that which makes it possible to make hats and lampshades,
though why anyone would do so is beyond me. Of course, you don't have to
contend with the fuzz that interlocked grain gives you, either.

On Sat, 16 Jul 2005 10:41:00 -0400, Brad
wrote:

Hi Brad,

I'm new to woodturning ( my lathe should arrive in a week ) and just had
a large Poplar tree fall in my backyard from the last hurricane.
Is it worth my time to cut the tree up and keep pieces ?

Absolutely. Not only because it is the BEST kind of wood (free!) but
also because it is outstanding to practice on. Pretty much any green,
hardwood is excellent to practice with, because it cuts so nice and
you can spend more energy on learning technique, form and so on and
not have to worry about ruining a "nice" piece of dried hardwood.

How does Poplar compare to other woods in regard to the beauty of the
finished product ?

Plain old poplar is pretty bland stuff. Up here in the Northeast it
has almost no character at all, grain or figure. Finished it's okay,
but personally I would just cut it up to use for practice wood. (It
doesn't even burn all that great, smoldering when it's green and
burning up like a match when it's dry.)

If it isn't a preferred wood, I could use it for practice.

Absolutely. I would recommend, though, if you have the space, keep it
in as large chunks as you can manage, and paint the ends with anchor
seal, just to keep it from splitting up on you. Then, when it comes
time to use some, just hack off a hunk, re-seal the remainder with
anchor seal and have at it. That way you have fewer exposed ends to
worry about checking, and much less loss to cracks. Even though it's
practice wood, you still want it to be as check-free as possible.

Yeah, Brad, I'd say you had yourself a real windfall there...heheh




--
Chuck *#:^)
chaz3913(AT)yahoo(DOT)com
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September 11, 2001 - Never Forget

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Brad wrote:

Also, I live in Smyrna, GA. If anyone nearby has a chainsaw and wants to
get some of this tree, send an email to wcurfman. My account is at yahoo.



The tree is about 70' tall and ranges from about 25" to 10" in diameter.
So, if anyone in the Atlanta area is interested in getting some free
poplar, drop me an email at the account above.