Replies

1. 
   StanleyNiemiec | Sep 06, 2002 03:07am | #1

   Billets, turning squares, blocks, whatever, in hickory are going to be difficult to find.  Hickory is not the easiest species to dry because of its density  --  it tends to wind, honeycomb and split.  Whoever does the drying will have to have some good experience.

   I doubt if this is a standard commercial product -- best do a web search in Carya country and see what comes up.

2. 
   DennisS | Sep 06, 2002 04:54am | #2

   Mike -

   I'll get back to you in email.

   Thanks for the reply.

   Dennis in Bellevue WA

   [email protected]

3. 
   forestgirl | Sep 06, 2002 05:31am | #3

   Dennis, have you check with Edensaw?

   forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl   ;-)

1. 
   DennisS | Sep 06, 2002 08:30am | #4

   > ....have you check with Edensaw?

   Yeah. Neither Edensaw or Crosscut carries anything but 4/4 hickory.

   Somebody told me it's because Louisville Slugger, the bat company, buys up all the hickory. But bats are made out of ash. Don't understand it except for the seasoning thing that N. posted.

   I'm turning carver's mallets with maple heads and hickory handles. Up to this point I've glued up the 4/4 hickory to get a decent size handle and allow a "knob" at the end. But I'd like to eliminate a lamination in the handles if possible. I'm looking for the ultimate, total uniform "feel". My current model has an ash handle with Grenadao staved up (6 pcs) around the head all with consistent face grain around the head. If you (or anyone) wondered why I had such an interest in creating 'perfect' 30 degree angles, now you know (grin).

   Just glued up this project tonight so we'll see how it turns out. I used plastic resin for the glue-up since I've had good luck with that before. In fact, one little mallet I made for my shop I used to drive a 16d nail through a 2x4 just as a test. Put a coupla dents in it but it didn't come apart!

   Remains to be seen how that resin stuff works on tropical hardwood, though. It's full face sheild mode at the lathe when we start this puppy!

   Dennis in Bellevue WA

   [email protected]