I love pears...

Chris Barton

Member
Messages
294
Location
Brentwood, TN
Especially Bradford Pear, as in trees since they are:

1) nearly everywhere
2) prone to wind damage and are often then cut down
3) Nearly a perfect wood for green turnings

All of the BP I've turned has been a plesant experience. The wood responds well to tooling and cuts beautifully, is easy to sand while green, can have some interesting figure and, it doesn't seem to warp or distort nearly as much as other woods turned in a green state (and no, a "green state" is not a new political term). I had a nice BP in my front yard that had gotten about 20' tall this year and my wife said she didn't like it because it hid our house too much. So, I was more than willing to yank out the old Pouland Pro and solve that in short order. Here is a small NE bowl I made from a chunk of trunk (4" x 5"). I polished it a little with the Beal but, other than wax, it's nude. Thanks for looking and please feel free to critique.
 

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Nicely done, Chris. I think the wax finish looks great. I wish I had wood that nice in my front yard. ;)

I've not yet done a successful NE bowl. All the raw wood I've got has either too thick of bark, or it's too dry and the bark doesn't even survive the chainsaw.
 
Nice piece of Bradford pear Chris! I just finished turning my first BP piece. Turns nicely in my opinion. Good job on keeping the bark attached!
 
I'm not sure which I like better, the shape or the changing colours of the wood from bark to heart. - It's great!!
 
Thanks Fellas!

The walls on this piece are about 1/8" and held up nicely for the Beal and I too, was pleased that the bark remained attached. But, thats been the case for all my BP natural edges. The bark is very tenacious and this particular bowl even got "launched" and none really came off. I didn't launch it from my lathe but, with my big Jet long mandrel sander/buffer when I was polishing it. Funny how bark edges like to get caught in the fabric of the rapidly spinning buffer wheel...:rofl:

Thanks Again
 
Especially Bradford Pear, as in trees since they are:
1) nearly everywhere
2) prone to wind damage and are often then cut down
3) Nearly a perfect wood for green turnings

You missed this one:
4) it probably should be cut down anyway.


Seriously. I was looking into getting a tree -- not a pear -- for my lot and I stumbled upon a website that lists recommended trees for here in London, and the Bradford Pear is on the "Avoid" list.
"These are non-native species that have become problem weeds in southwestern Ontario. They grow fast and reproduce prolifically. When they escape into the wild they compete with native species and disrupt local ecosystems. They trees should not be planted under any circumstances and should be removed were possible to prevent further invasion."

And a note from Wiki as well.

Isn't it nice to be able to feel good about turning a tree in to lumber? :thumb:
 
Nice bowl there, Chris. I'm curious if you find it difficult to sand the ends/wings on a NE and also not sand too heavy into the bark? Do you sand those by hand?

One of the big challenges for me and NEs is to maintain a consistent wall thickness on the bark edge - especially on the wings. It isn't hard to end up with a thicker edge on the wingtips since you're cutting more air than wood out there. Do you find that a challenge as well?

I'm a big fan of swept wings like you have put on this bowl. Very nice, in my opinion. I like the bowl, but the foot seems too big for it. Again, just my own personal taste and opinion.

Bradford Pear is one of those woods that will spoil you with how easy and clean it cuts. I wish I had a truckload of it.
 
So Chris, just wondering, did you cut the whole tree down yet? See, I would probably be in trouble with the wife, but would cut one large limb off, then head to the shop to seal and turn some wood. When I run out or anticipate a good weekend of turning, go back out and cut another large limb off. Thus, a constant supply without the storage issues!!!!!!:rofl::rofl:
 
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