Robust Lathe Review - More Woodturning

Why Wood Turners SHOULD Pick Up Wood by the Side of the Roadby Matthew StaleyA Question Is AskedI would pose the followingquestion to anyone reading this(yes, all two of you), regardlessof whether you are a wood turneror wood worker of any sort, skilllevel, or age: How many times doyou drive/bike/run/walk past logsor branches lying by the side ofthe road waiting to be land-filled,burned, or chipped? If your experienceis anything like mine, my betis that the answer is “frequently.”What I propose is that you stopmoving for a few seconds, just longenough to pick up some “trash”wood, throw it in your vehicle, andtake it home to see what it becomes.You might well be surprised.Buying Wood To TurnI know from experience thatit is very, VERY easy to spendlarge amounts of cash on exotichardwoods. In fact today I was ina local Woodcraft store to pick upa Tormek T-7 and I was congratulatingmyself on NOT picking upany wood there. They were sellingwood by the pound even andalso had an INCREDIBLE bin ofdomestic wood in sizes up to 8”round. But, tempted though I was,as I always am by beautiful hunksof wood crying for a good home, Ileft the store without any.The reason I didn’t purchaseany doesn’t have anything to dowith having “found,” or “trash”wood at home, even though I do, butit still illustrates the point that thereare many specialty retailers all toohappy to sell you a chunk of pinkivory or ebony, among countlessThe Author’s two bowls made from the found wood.other species. And make no mistake,I am a big fan of all of those woodsand more. But my latest work hadeverything to do with the luck ofthe found discarded wood intendedto be burned until rescued from thecold wet ground and shipped on along journey.Origins of the Writer/TurnerI grew up in the central partof California, a land of olive andorange trees along with just aboutany other agricultural product youcan think of. Understand that thisis NOT the California of oceans,movie stars, or amusement parks.There is little, to nothing, amusingabout this part of California whichis why you have never heard of it orvisited it if you are not from there.But because some friends and familystill live there, and because thereare some tastes, like MellowGoldGrapefruit, that I can’t get anywhereelse, I find myself returning at leastonce per year. Another flavor I can’tfind anywhere else is a specific brandof olives that are packed literally afew blocks up the road from whereI grew up.Origins of the WoodI was driving out to the olivefarm in fact when I drove past oneof the many, although diminishing,olive orchards that I grew upamongst. It was in the early part ofthe year and it was time for pruning,which in the case of olives, can includesome branches that are severalinches thick. The wood was piled upto be burned so I figured that no onewould mind if I purloined a piece ortwo. My Dad, and also my turninginstructor, wasn’t sure if anythingcould be made of these branches,but I shipped them home to myselfto someday find out. Yesterday wasthe day.Turning the “Trash” WoodSome time ago, the day I firstassembled and fired up my newbandsaw, I cut out rough dish blanksfrom the two branches. Yesterday,I loaded one on to my screw chuckand started working on it. The woodis fragrant, although I don’t knowPage 20 More Woodturning February 2010