August 30, 20169 yr Good Morning All, I like to work with Poplar, Walnut, Cherry and Oak when building new pieces. Keeping mind of the different grain figures in each species. What are your favorite woods to work with? Ralph "Sawdustr" Edited August 30, 20169 yr by Ralph Allen Jones
August 30, 20169 yr I'm right there with you Ralph. I like Walnut, Cherry, Maple, Oak(White and Red), Poplar and I have some Chestnut and Hickory. Well really I like most any wood that comes from trees!
August 30, 20169 yr My favorites are Cherry, Walnut, White Oak, and Maple, in that order, more or less. Glad to see you here, Ralph. Dave
August 30, 20169 yr 40 minutes ago, John Moody said: I'm right there with you Ralph. I like Walnut, Cherry, Maple, Oak(White and Red), Poplar and I have some Chestnut and Hickory. Well really I like most any wood that comes from trees! I'm totally w/ ya except for the Oak... and add aspen and birch most any Ambrosia woods and Hickory are my favorites... Blue pine and black myrtle for the really different... and I will make pain and suffering your new career if you paint my work... Edited August 30, 20169 yr by Stick486
August 30, 20169 yr Good question Ralph. Cherry is my very favorite primarily because of the smell. A close second are oak and walnut. I love the look of walnut but it is really dirty.
August 30, 20169 yr I like Maple, Cherry and Black Walnut. Being a turner I have found the harder the wood the better it sands. Seems the softer wood likes to show the scratches. Edited August 30, 20169 yr by HandyDan
August 30, 20169 yr depends entirely on the operation or purpose or some other detail. For example I hate sanding mahogany because it smells like dirty baby diapers, I like machining Elm because it works up so nicely. I like planing norway maple because it cuts so cleanly.
August 30, 20169 yr Depends on what I'm doing. I pretty much stay with domestic wood so for flat or case work, walnut by far and cherry would be second. For turning, which is what I mostly do these days, maple, after that would be spalted maple, and then maple a close third. Steve
August 30, 20169 yr I am partial to maple and oak, both red and white. I have a project in mind with cherry and maple - first one with cherry. I will probably build something small first with cherry to see how it goes working with it - getting my own experience with it.
August 30, 20169 yr Around here most folks like to see stuff done in red oak. I like the grain and color of walnut.
August 30, 20169 yr Ash, White Oak, Red Oak, Maple, Walnut, Clear Pine and Douglas Fir are my favorites.
August 30, 20169 yr 6 hours ago, Stick486 said: I'm totally w/ ya except for the Oak... and add aspen and birch most any Ambrosia woods and Hickory are my favorites... Blue pine and black myrtle for the really different... and I will make pain and suffering your new career if you paint my work... Stick I have never heard of Black Myrtle. Is it common way up there or do you have to order it. That stuff looks great. My favorite wood for flat and turning is cherry. Also like walnut and magnolia turns well . Try Red Top for a nice working wood with even grain and great color. Add on Pecan when you can find it the color alternates and as you turn you will discover hidden holes and color changes. Edited August 30, 20169 yr by Gerald
August 30, 20169 yr 19 minutes ago, Gerald said: Stick I have never heard of Black Myrtle. Is it common way up there or do you have to order it. That stuff looks great. My favorite wood for flat and turning is cherry. Also like walnut and magnolia turns well . Try Red Top for a nice working wood with even grain and great color. Add on Pecan when you can find it the color alternates and as you turn you will discover hidden holes and color changes. that's blue pine in the picture... the black myrtle is the writ on slab... center picture my post... both are available at the mill... are you aware that when you buy hickory you often get pecan ...
August 30, 20169 yr I forgot, Myrtlewood too. It is a really nice wood for clocks, turnings, and just about anything else.
August 31, 20169 yr I though I liked all woods, and favored the same ones as most guys. Then I went to the Amish lumber yard and looked thru their exotic woods. I saw a BEAUTIFUL white wood with bright red in it. I had to have it. As I reached for it there was a sign, "Caution, this wood is in the Summac family and can cause the same effects as poison ivy" I LEFT THE AREA
August 31, 20169 yr My all time favorite is FREE wood of any species, but seriously I have to say cherry.
August 31, 20169 yr I tend to use whatever would look good for the project. For the last couple of years, I've used, ash red oak white oak poplar SYP hard maple soft maple curly maple wormy soft maple cherry mahogany Kentucky coffee tree birch walnut
August 31, 20169 yr On 8/30/2016 at 7:49 AM, Ralph Allen Jones said: Good Morning All, I like to work with Poplar, Walnut, Cherry and Oak when building new pieces. Keeping mind of the different grain figures in each species. What are your favorite woods to work with? Ralph "Sawdustr" I guess my fav would be the one that's best for project at hand. In am partial to Cherry, though. Last few projects working with Walnut didn't produce good results. Lost lot of wood due to warping after material was cut to size... sigh. Tony
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.