# What are they...???



## robutacion (Mar 9, 2012)

Hi everyone,

Most will know that, I come up sometimes with some "strange" pen blanks that, can be considered also of great rarity and beauty, quite often a 1 off thing...!

However, and in the name of "knowledge gathering" and" wood identification" skills/ability, I would like to show you all, 3 different pen blanks turned and finished as samples as normal.

There are no added colours and or any other artificial material(s) over the samples surfaces, apart from my normal CA finish (approx. 10 coats) and a black marker I used to paint black the gaps of the first sample where I used the 2 barrel turning system so, can you identify the 3 woods...???

The first one that gets it right, will get a 250gr parcel with 1 of each sent free of charge (freight on me...!):biggrin::wink:

The names of these woods are all part of my "timbers list" attached for guidance only so, that should help.

I will accept either the species name or the species number as per my timbers list so good luck...!

Did someone say that we learn something every day...??? well, here we go...!:wink:

Cheers
George


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## Akula (Mar 9, 2012)

I don't know but will be following this thread.  The second one is wonderful and I must know it's name


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## David Keller (Mar 9, 2012)

Hard to say, George, but I'll wager a guess…

Black wattle, palm, and platypus gum burl would be my three…  The first blank is a doozy for me.


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## khallpens (Mar 9, 2012)

here is my quess from your list in the photos. 
top three are item number 44 south Australia Shiraz red vine.
top 2/3 are 51 Silky-oak wood. the bottom four are 62 Australin fig tree.


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## ROBCTRY69 (Mar 9, 2012)

no idea i like the number 3


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## robutacion (Mar 9, 2012)

Nah...no one had it right, yet...!:biggrin:

I'm not going to say if any of you, got even close, to complicate things even more, sorry...!
Sometimes, I just like to be a bastard, when hurts no one...!:wink:

Cheers
George


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## 1080Wayne (Mar 9, 2012)

The beauty of this game that we play with wood is that it is possible to find totally unique and stunning pieces from ANY species . The first and third examples certainly fit that description . I will guess the first one as toona (just because I`ve never heard of it) , the second as palm (because it looks like it ) and the third as spotted gum (because it seems to describe what I see) .


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## crabcreekind (Mar 10, 2012)

id say the second is red palm


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## bensoelberg (Mar 10, 2012)

My guesses in the order you showed them: 36, 30, 7.


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## robutacion (Mar 10, 2012)

1080Wayne said:


> *The beauty of this game that we play with wood is that it is possible to find totally unique and stunning pieces from ANY species *. The first and third examples certainly fit that description . I will guess the first one as toona (just because I`ve never heard of it) , the second as palm (because it looks like it ) and the third as spotted gum (because it seems to describe what I see) .



I couldn't agree more with your first sentence, as is so true...!

That can in fact, make wood species identification a very difficult thing, any of the wood species that are well known of quality and beauty but that do not change much from piece to piece, log to log and tree to tree (to a certain point, off-course...!) are normally recognised and identified with some degree of simplicity but, wood species that are very irregular to the way they look and are formed by nature, particularly many of Aussie natives.

My selection of these 3 pieces was based on the fact that I had just made the samples and secondly I though that they were quite intriguing, to say the least.  I was quite sure that one of them would be fairly easy identified, one other not so difficult for those following my posts and pics I share with everyone but one in particular, (cut recently) would be a bit tricky, particularly because of the nature of the colours within (hint, hint...!):wink:

Thank you, to everyone that had a go so far but, there are no winners yet...!:biggrin:

PS: Sorry Bob, you are not to disclose what you know about these blanks,, please...!

Cheers
George


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## David Keller (Mar 10, 2012)

I'll revise my previous guess to:  Shiraz vine, palm, and platypus gum burl.


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## 1080Wayne (Mar 10, 2012)

If we get to regress with a guess , lets make it acacia acuminate , palm and platypus gum burl


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## robutacion (Mar 10, 2012)

Sure, I will accept a maximum of 3 goes from each member, there is the educative aspect of this type posts but, I like to see that we can all have a little fun in the process, huh...???:wink:

Still, no one got it right, yet...!

I will add some additional info that may or may not, help the identification of these 3 blanks, and that is, only one of these wood species is native to Australia, the other 2 are introduced...!

And while were are into question/thinking time, I would like to ask if, on the first sample shown (2 barrels turned), you would make a quality pen with a blank looking like that and in a similar barrel orientation...???
I will explain the reason of this question at later time.

Keep trying...!:wink:

Cheers
George


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## robutacion (Mar 10, 2012)

Well, I noticed that the pics of the first sample are a bit blurry, while all the others did come sharp, all taken at the same time and at the same location so, I took another lot of pics today to replace the one on the first post but, not being able to edit that post any more, I have to added them here.

They are still not as sharp as I would like, as for some reason the camera seems to have difficulty in focus properly on this blank so, here they are, not perfect but a little better...!:biggrin:






While in the shed taking these pics, I looked at my recently finished samples nails hangers and spotted another blank that, is quite interesting and if you think that the 3 samples I ask you for identification are difficult to work out, I wonder what you would thing of trying to identify this one...!



Now, this one doesn't count for getting the prize if you identify correctly the first 3 samples but, if you want to give it a identification go, you're most welcome...!:wink::biggrin:

Cheers
George


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## David Keller (Mar 12, 2012)

Alright, I'll take my final guess on the original three…  Australian Cherry Plum, palm, and platypus gum burl.

I'm interested to hear the final answers on these, George!

BTW, the boat still hasn't made it from your house to mine, but no worries on my end!


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## robutacion (Mar 12, 2012)

David Keller said:


> Alright, I'll take my final guess on the original three…  Australian Cherry Plum, palm, and platypus gum burl.
> 
> I'm interested to hear the final answers on these, George!
> 
> BTW, the boat still hasn't made it from your house to mine, but no worries on my end!



Sorry David, you ain't got it...!:frown:

Oh yeah, that boat...!
And while I can not recall at the day of the shipping day, 3 damn months waiting is sure a long time, huh...???

You will be "mad" when you find out what that first one is, I'm sure...!:biggrin:

Thanks for participating...!

PS: Hands good now...???

Cheers
George


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## 1080Wayne (Mar 12, 2012)

Well that first one is totally baffling . The spalt pattern is extremely unusual . I don`t think I`ve ever seen white and black side by side with such a sharp transition line . In my world , white spalt is also so soft that you can carve it with a finger nail . Either your fungi operate in a different manner or that sample came from a unique set of local conditions . I can only conclude George , that you are going to decay in a different manner than us N Americans !

Anyway , to continue my non-winning ways , lets try Peppercorn tree , palm and platypus gum burl .

And to answer your question as to whether I would try to make a quality pen with a blank looking like that , the answer is yes , I only make quality pens , and using that blank it would be a quality pen whether it was a slimline or an Emperor . I personally like a wide colour range on a blank , and always try to drill a blank to maximize that effect .

Your last unknown will remain so until you tell us . All that I can tell more or less for sure is that it likes to live in a climate that isn`t bothered by wide seasonal variation .

Thanks for the entertainment George . Your palm root arrived last Friday . Great looking pieces .

Wayne


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## David Keller (Mar 12, 2012)

robutacion said:


> PS: Hands good now...???
> 
> Cheers
> George



Pretty good…  I still don't have my grip back to full strength, and I've noticed that my hands get tired pretty easily.  All in all, I'd do it again in a heartbeat…  You can't beat sleeping through the night without your hands waking you up!

How are yours and Merissa's doing?


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## robutacion (Mar 13, 2012)

1080Wayne said:


> Well that first one is totally baffling . The spalt pattern is extremely unusual . I don`t think I`ve ever seen white and black side by side with such a sharp transition line . In my world , white spalt is also so soft that you can carve it with a finger nail . Either your fungi operate in a different manner or that sample came from a unique set of local conditions . I can only conclude George , that you are going to decay in a different manner than us N Americans !
> 
> Anyway , to continue my non-winning ways , lets try Peppercorn tree , palm and platypus gum burl .
> 
> ...



Hahahaha, the problem is Wayne, there is no spalting or decay in that blank...!:biggrin: so, I may decay like anyone else in the USA, huh...???:frown:

Apparently, you guys pretty much agree that the 2 sample is Palm and the third sample is Platypus Gum Burl but only found in some of the trees base, pretty much at soil level and in a area that will not be more than 2" thick (ring), something that I would never found out, if I hadn't to dig constantly these tree bases to remove the bottom part of the burls, always under ground...!  The "pink" is often found in these areas of cut but that green is something else and like a "gem" growing from another "gem"...!:wink:

So, this leaves us with the first one that, we also know now that, has no spalting or any kind of fungi, the white is solid wood but the brown stuff and that black next to it, not so much...! (another clue here).

There are also hints of what it is within the eyes of the brown stuff as the sample rotates and to make things a little more confusing, I used 2 shorts to do this sample...!  (another hint, here)

It would be also fair to say that if 2 species were introduced and only one was native to Australia that, the Platypus Gum is the native one so, this first sample has to be from an introduced species that I once shown here on IAP...! (another hint..!):biggrin:

It doesn't seem that anyone has tried to give a name for that 4th sample in the pics, interestingly I had those blanks on sale here not long ago and no one showed any interest in them, which surprised me a bit but, that's life...!

Thanks for letting me know about the arrival of the Palm blanks, don't forget to have a pen done and show it to us, please...!
And for the entertainment part of things, you're welcome...!:wink:

*David*
Between Merissa and I, I was the last one to have them done with my left hand done just over 4 weeks ago.  All is going well, no infections, only mine tearing the stitches because I could wait to start buggering about so, I paid the price with extra pain and healing time but now, all seems to be OK, only too damn itchy, the right hand was the same and still itches...! 

Strength levels is improving slowly as expected, I estimated 6 months before the hands can do a fist with some good grip, the only thing that lets us know we had them done is when something "pointy" hits the operated area of the hand, that hurts like hell...!


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## 1080Wayne (Mar 15, 2012)

Okay George , so if the white isn`t spalt , it must be sapwood , which means that the left hand side has been cut at an angle , and the right hand side crosscut (maybe across a bit of a crotch on a small branch) , which is what led to your question as to whether such a blank was suitable for a high quality pen . None of which tells me what wood it is , though I found in my dungeon a piece of horse chestnut which looked a bit similar . And I suppose the fourth unknown is black wattle , after looking at the pictures you posted .

Wayne


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## robutacion (Mar 16, 2012)

*The secret unveiled...!*

Oh Wayne, you have tried so hard mate even tough Kevin was the first to get the other 2 correct first...!:wink:

You know, the white is no sapwood either...! now I got you pretty baffled, huh...???:biggrin:

What made the whole thing so difficult to guess, apart from being obvious by now that the blank is made of 2 pieces of then same wood species but a couple of shorts left over from a bunch I cut a few weeks back, is that the brown part of the blanks is actually solid tree knot so, the answer is..., come on, can't hear that drum roll...! is, is, Norfolk Pine, a giant tree that come down a few weeks back (pic attached).

And yes, the fourth blank is a Black Wattle crotch pen blank piece...!

No one really won the price but, just for the effort you and David put into this thread, you both will receive one blanks of each of the first 3 samples as the fourth would put the box over the 250gr. and I don't want that so, Wayne, please PM me your Postal details (I've got yours David) and I shall send a small parcel to each of you, free of charge...!:wink:

Once again, thank you to everyone that participated in this fun quest.  I will get one other, some day...!:wink:

Cheers
George


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## 1080Wayne (Mar 17, 2012)

Well George , I never would have guessed Norfolk Island pine . Of course , I don`t have 25 meters of head room in my living room , so I can`t grow them that large !

Same shipping address as for the palm root you sent me . Send me yours and I will return the favour . Not really sure that you will be able to identify it though .......


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## David Keller (Mar 17, 2012)

I can't believe that, George!  I just finished turning three lamp shades from Norfolk Pine!  That stuff spalts unbelievably well, so I hope you left some logs out to let nature do its thing...  I'll see if I can dig up a photo of one of the partially finished shades.



Turn it thin and soak it in oil/mineral spirits, and that stuff glows!  The dark lines in the photo are from the spalting.


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## robutacion (Mar 17, 2012)

*award winners*

I agree guys, it wasn't a easy one to work out but, was the results after I made the  sample out of it that, gave me the idea to open this thread, joining another 2 woods that a lot of people haven't seen...!

One of the problems with this 100+ years old tree, was that, I was given it to me 3 1/2 years ago, in exchange of me dismantling it from the top down, as it had the house and the shed under it (almost...!).  Council rules did stop the tree from being removed but, a few months ago the South Australia rules related to trees, have changed and relaxed quite considerably to the point, a permit was now possible for its removal.

When the tree has planned to come down, I had just had the Carpel tunnel operated on my left hand, impossible for me to do any work, much less play silly monkeys up a tree that tall...! 4 1/2 weeks later, I haven't attempted any of that sort of work but I will soon.

Not being able to cut it down, the owner called a tree company with all the gear necessary to get the job done quickly and cleanly, as long reach telescopic buckets, a large team of man, a large shipper and a root grinding machine got this monster cut and transformed into small chunks in no time.

I went there 2 days after the job done, to pick-up some logs and other pieces that I asked them to leave behind for me but, when I got there I could see that, is large and very old tree, was a big disappointment and something that I call a "dud", why...??? because this tree hadn't develop the knots typical and expected of a Norfolk Pine tree.

The 6 or 7 stars that are always seen when the logs are cut/sliced tight in the centre of the knot formation, this tree produced almost none...!

I brought home a full 6x4 trailer full of logs and other pieces and all I salvaged out of all that is what I have shown in the pics above so, I'm pleased that I endup not being the one to do all the hard work and expense, what a disappointment...!

I had great plans to making lots of large bowls, plates and platters out of the wood from this tree, that didn't happen but, was the size of some of the knots that I found here and there that gave me the idea to cut pen blanks, where I could have as much knot material in it, with some angle to increase the knot effectiveness in a pen, that did work well in the sample so I would expect to see many more beautiful pens made out of these blanks, in due time...!:wink::biggrin:

Wayne, you do not have to send me anything mate, was your dedication to find the correct answers that I'm awarding so, you don't have to re-tribute anything, mate.

I will get them in the post, very soon...! 

PS: David, that Norfolk pine piece is stunning, I always get mesmerized with the effects this wood can produce if worked in a certain way, well done, mate...!

Cheers
George


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## robutacion (Mar 19, 2012)

*Parcels sent*

Hi peoples,

Wayne and David, your blanks (small parcel) was posted this morning so, on their way they go...!
Let me know when they arrive, please...!

Cheers
George


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