My grandfather recently gave me a log from his old plum tree. I have no experience whatsoever whith any but the most comon of species, so any tips on how to make the best out of its dense, figured wood and rich, unique colour would be very appreciated.
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Replies
Plum
Some kind of plum canker disease came through our town here in northern Virginia ten or fifteen years ago and everyone lost their ornamental plum trees. I made all kinds of kitchen utensils out of what I salvaged, mixing spoons, salad tongs, a huge chili spoon, two paddle spoons of my own design for mixing bread dough. I even turned a little mallet used for beating Raman packages to break up the noodles. All were finished at first with mineral oil. They have been wet and mistreated all this time and all look beautiful still. I never put them in the dishwasher though. That is my only experience with this beautiful wood, hope it helps a little.
Now I have at least some idea of what to do and how to do it, thank you!
Beautiful wood
Plum is usually really vibrant wood, but tough to deal with. It loves to split. When you cut it, take care to seal the ends, and dry it slowly. If you cloose to make treenware make them thin, to avoid the splitting. I am a woodturner as well as a cabinet maker, and love plum, but my best pieces have been the result of patience. Good Luck
Vern
Seems promising
Thank you, I intended to use it for small turnings and inlays, so it sounds like it will work out well. By the way, do you know if the sapwood can be used for smoking food?
Using plum wood
Any recommendations on how thick to cut the disks of a 20-inch-wide plum tree to get the best drying process?
how to seal the tree?
I was given a 35 year-old plum tree today, and hope to make flutes and handles and maybe pipes and carvings from it - Vern speaks of sealing the wood - can anyone elaborate? How long should it dry? I live in Finland, and it is quite damp and soon to be cold - it will dry in the shed outside I reckon - I guess this will affect how long it takes... Once again I wish I had apprenticed to my grandfather, master cabinet maker - but still dream of working with wood.
Thank you,
Jeremya
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