I have about a ton of mulberry around after Charlie and Frances

I am new to turning. THought this might be free wood. Also alot of oak
mostly for turning. Can it be turned green. I would like to get me a
supply before it is removed from the roadsides.

On Wed, 15 Sep 2004 05:38:07 GMT, rllipham wrote:

I have about a ton of mulberry around after Charlie and Frances

I am new to turning. THought this might be free wood. Also alot of oak
mostly for turning. Can it be turned green. I would like to get me a
supply before it is removed from the roadsides.

I have turned alot of Mulberry. Great stuff, but it tend to crack more than most other woods I have used. That shouldn't disuade
you from trying it out, though. Keep in mind that the wood will darken to a russet brown with exposure to direct sunlight.

Peter Teubel
Milford, MA
http://www.revolutionary-turners.com

rllipham wrote:
I have about a ton of mulberry around after Charlie and Frances
I am new to turning. THought this might be free wood. Also alot of oak
mostly for turning. Can it be turned green. I would like to get me a
supply before it is removed from the roadsides.
Great wood for turning, easy and pretty. Get some end sealer
today nad use it liberally. You may need to cut back the ends so
the cracks are gone before you seal it. Green woods need to be
sealed immediately after cutting to let them dry properly, Don't
waste any time protecting the wood that you can get. Grab the
Rosewood and the Mahogany as well as the Norfolk Island Pine. ANY
free wood is good wood.

Dave in Fairfax
--
Dave Leader
reply-to doesn't work
use:
daveldr at att dot net
American Association of Woodturners
http://www.woodturner.org
Capital Area Woodturners
http://www.capwoodturners.org/

I have about a ton of mulberry around after Charlie and Frances

I am new to turning. THought this might be free wood. Also alot of oak
mostly for turning. Can it be turned green. I would like to get me a
supply before it is removed from the roadsides.
BRBR

Absolutely! Mulberry is very nice, and so is oak. Both can be turned green ( I
do it all the time). Mulberry requires a clean cut with a sharp tool or it will
get fuzzy. A clean cut in the right direction (small diameter to large diameter
on the outside, the opposite on the inside) by sharp tools will yield good
results. Mulberry will move after you turn it. If you turn it thin (1/4" or
less) and have even thickness throughout the piece it should not crack, but
will move instead. The bark may or may not stay on with mulberry, but will
probably stay on with oak, if you're doing natural edge stuff.
Oak can be easily ebonized by painting on a vinegar and steel wool mixture. Let
the steel wool soak in the vinegar until it looks like a murky mess. Paint it
on the wood and let it dry. The iron in the steel wool will react with the
tannins in the oak and turn it black--a neat effect. Make sure to leave the
pith out of the piece. If you do leave the pith in, soak it with thin CA glue
as soon as you're down to final thickness and you may stop cracking from
developing or continuing.
If you get whole logs, halve them lengthwise and seal them with Anchorseal
ASAP. Cut them at least 6" longer than they are wide so if the ends check you
can cut back to fresh wood for turning.
-Jim Gott-
San Jose, CA