Big Cherry Burl...... Now What?

Stuart Ablett

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OK, I have this big cherry burl, now what....?

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Looking at the bottom it looks fairly solid, it is HEAVY and I only found some bugs in one corner, that I got rid of already.

I'm thinking that I should mount this thing up on the lathe and core it, make a nice set of burl bowls out of it, but then I'm thinking that maybe I should slab it and make some nice platers and have some flat pieces for say a jewelry box that I'm about five years behind on making :rolleyes:

Maybe I'l just slab off one slice to see what I have?

It is about 19" x 18" and maybe a foot thick.

I've never had a burl this large and still dripping wet, I don't want to damage it.....

Suggestions?

Oh yeah, from the chunks that I cut off the burl I got these blanks....
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Some really cool pieces of wood there!
 
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WOW that's a big one! I think I would at least make one slabe out of it...there would still be lots left for bowls and platters.
 
I hate to see you wrestle with this kind of decision, Stu, so go ahead and just ship that bad boy to me and I'll figure out what to do with it. :thumb:

Offhand, I'm thinking a pair of hollow forms, but honestly, I'd have to look at the piece in person to offer any useful advice on what it should be made into. I'm sure you'll do it justice...whatever you make.
 
You know I was perfectly happy turning small things until Larry M and Paul G sent me that 70 pound crotch. Now when I see things like your burl I start drooling all over the floor. I hope/know that you will make something grand out of it and its pieces.

You mentioned "nervous." I know that the crotch made me nervous---The crotch moisture is stable now. I REALLY do not want to mess that beautiful piece of wood.

Have fun with the cherry Stu!

Enjoy,
JimB
 
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Down in the Dungeon

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To give you an idea of scale, that is a LN #62 in front and a #7 on top.

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So I decided to cut the burl into two, one larger piece that would fit through my saw, and one smaller.

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OK, if a burl is not a burl, what do you call it.....?

How about a wort? :doh:

Still there will be some curl in there and there should be some nice wood just the same, but it's not burl.

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I took one slab about an inch thick, might be able to make some nice veneer out of that, the rest I'm going to turn into some really nice bowls, maybe a hollow form or two. I guess hoping this was real burl was a bit much, oh well, still is pretty wood.

Cheers!
 
Stu as a matter of interest how much water came out of the "burl" when you cut it up? Just wondering given the other wood you cut. I think the other wet wood was a different type ifrcc.

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Stu as a matter of interest how much water came out of the "burl" when you cut it up? Just wondering given the other wood you cut. I think the other wet wood was a different type ifrcc.

Sent from my MB860 using Tapatalk 2

The burl or wart, is cherry, or Sakura, this is not the same cherry that you get in North America, it is certainly wet, but it did not leak all over the place like the Enoki (Japanese Hackberry) did.
 
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