Thursday 24 April 2008

A very rare piece of wood finds a home



I will admit it - I am quite spoiled with some of the infill wood I have. Rosewood tops that list - but a while ago, I ran into a piece that stopped me dead in my tracks. It was a small section of burl. There was not much, and I had to really work to get enough for an XSNo.4.



And even after it was roughed out- I was not 100% sure I had captured enough of it. About a month ago, I started the plane. As I was working away I realized this piece was spectacular.



What sometimes happens is the figure and curl of the wood disappears as you cut it down and fit it to the metal shell. This piece was the reverse. With every cut - the infill kept getting better and better. There was a great light patch of wood on the rear infill that I really wanted to keep. I cheated the rear infill as far to the right as I could to capture as much of that patch as possible. You can see the patch in the photo below.



The front bun was equally spectacular - despite its small size.



This piece of burl was a very rare find. I cannot promise to find another one like this - but there are a few other large pieces that look promising. I just feel lucky to have found this piece.

7 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Konrad,

Just like pulling a rabbit out of your hat! Ye, you are truely a magician!

Michael

PS - That's pretty much the way I want mine to look.

24 April 2008 at 21:16  
Blogger Konrad said...

Hi Michael,

Thanks - glad you like the plane. It was a pretty awesome one.

Cheers,
Konrad

25 April 2008 at 06:04  
Blogger Unknown said...

Wow. Incredible. Rosewood has quickly become my favorite turning wood.

But, I hate to be the one to point this out--your last entry promised that the next photos would be of the mystery plane...

Keep up the good work!

25 April 2008 at 09:59  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

How about a post showing off your lumber stash?? *drool*...

26 April 2008 at 15:04  
Blogger Konrad said...

Hmmmm.... lumber stash. Let me think on that one.

26 April 2008 at 15:26  
Blogger Jim Shaver said...

I've seen the "stash" ... somethings need to been seen to believed and don't photograph well....and that stash is just that, SURE JIM....lol!!

26 April 2008 at 19:03  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Konrad is being modest about the performance of this little plane. It carries the strength and power of a bench plane on a small frame. The right size for small work or details like marquetry. Puts your hands right over the work, and the feedback is coming up into your hands all the time. With or against grain. One hand or two. It'll be a most-used tool!

Specs:

Length/width: 5-1/2" x 1-3/4"
Blade width: 1-7/16"
Heft: Hefty!
Bedding angle: 52-1/2 degrees
Mouth gap: 1-1/2 to 2 thou

Wiley

29 April 2008 at 21:27  

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