I had had a pretty nice piece of highly figured maple in the shop for a
couple of years. I pulled it out last Saturday and mounted it on the lathe,
thinking there ought to be a nice hollow form tucked inside. Oh, did I
mention the blank had some superficial cracks (I thought) on the outside?
If they were more that skin deep a little CA ought to take care of them easy
enough.

I began to turn the blank round, Sure enough, the cracks were more than
superficial. I was able to round the blank without incident. As I began to
shape the outside of the hollow form, I lost a large chunk near where the
mouth of the vessel would have been. As I continued to shape the vessel, I
lost a large bark inclusion which sailed all the way across the shop.

As I continued to turn past the missing bark inclusion, the blank became
smaller and smaller. What would have been a 6" diameter by 8" tall hollow
form was reduced to a 6" diameter bowl about 4" tall. Disappointing to say
the lease. But, at least, it has some very nice figure.

Ever have a blank that seems to YEARN for the firewood box? Have I? Well,
yes. Yes, I have.

Barry

Ever have a blank that seems to YEARN for the firewood box? Have I? Well,
yes. Yes, I have.

Me too! I turn a fair amount of mesquite. One of the traits of the
wood is that it is almost impossible to find it without windshake or
borers. I am talking serious windshake... drop and piece and have it
break into pieces along the shake lines. BTW, these are what most
people see that are filled with colored epoxy. The windshake can cause
some really heartstopping results like causing the piece to leave your
lathe, or shoot a piece off quite unexpectedly.

However, one of the OTHER great traits of this wood is that every
little piece is great for BBQ and grilling. A Christmas ornament or
small box that doesn't make the grade sure flavors all manner of meats
quite well. Sometimes I hear the misbehaving little buggers screaming
when they see their final destination... but to no avail. Mmmmmm....
brisket.

Robert