coconut palm

[Dvoigt]

I was give some coconut palm (Black palm) wood. It is very heavy and looks like it will be difficult to work with. I have a feeling it is a wood that likes to split and/or blow up. Anyone ever work with it and can give some tips?

Thanks!
D

 

[spiritwoodturner]

Turns great! I've never had any problems with it. It's different!

Dale

 

[leehljp]

Dale needs to give you some tips. Palm has a reputation for blowing up as much as any other wood. Very difficult for many. I tried it two or three years ago when I had considerably less experience and it did not go very well!

 

[Skye]

It's basically made of two parts; the wood which is kind of soft and the harder toothpick looking fibers inside it.

As you turn it you'll probably want to be careful when truing the ends. The toothpick fibers are pretty sturdy and the mill can tend to bump along over them and cause an uneven result with a pen mill. A little thin CA will stabilize the softer wood, making it a little closer to the density of the dark fibers.

Also, it'll probably throw a couple daggers at you. It's like a porcupine throwing quills at you as you turn it. Be careful, use sharp tools, don't be afraid to use sanding paper to help get you to your final shape. Sometimes this wood can tear out, so sanding to shape or using CA to stabilize it can be a good idea.

It's not real hard to work with, but it does have a unique personality.

 

[spiritwoodturner]

Hank, you give it a try again and I doubt you'll have any problems with it, although Skye is spot on about the ends, and he's right, it is unique. It's been a while and I had forgotten about the "straws", which are unusually large and they are tough. I didn't have my disc sander when I did the last one, and may try sanding the ends flush next time. I haven't made all that many of them to be honest, but have made a dozen and sold 'em all and don't remember cursing as much as with Snakewood!

Also, I tend to buy wood and set it aside, and live in a semi-arid climate, so my palm is DRY! I wonder if you guys are turning palm with a bit of moisture in it. I suppose that could change everything. I haven't done anything unique, just haven't had problems with it.

Another thing I was going to mention is the surface is going to be a little grainy no matter what you do, again, because of the "straws". I wasn't doing CA then, but would think 4-5 coats of thin followed by 4-5 coats of straight thick would smooth that out.

Hey, D, try it, it can't be tougher than some other woods to get a finished product!

Dale

 

[Dvoigt]

I tried a few, I had two blow outs. But I know that one was due to me getting impatient and got the edge of my gouge into it. I did complete one but later found a crack along where the two different colors meet that appears to be easily fix able. I'll have to give it another go later.

 

[TellicoTurning]

One problem with the palm is that it's not really a wood, but more in the grass family. There can also be considerable silica and grit in between the woody strands.. this will eat up the edge of your tools pretty quick. You'll need to keep them really sharp, maybe a couple of times during the turning. and as Skye said, pay close attention to your pen mill... you might even want to try a disc sander to square the ends.

The end product can be spectacular. I actually found a piece large enough to make a peppermill... it got an incredible amount of attention in my booth before a customer finally bought it.... I had a devil of a time getting it relatively smooth.

 

[Munsterlander]

Red palm on a WPP "warrior" is one of my favorites, and wound up being the pen my daughters and I selected as a memorial pen for my son. Like everyone said, the straws or quills or whatever you call them can occasionally be a pain (especially if you're working with cross-cut!) but in general not particularly difficult and super cool when done (although, coincidentally, the first non-cross-cut black palm blank I tried did blow up). I love that it results in something with such a surprising appearance but there's nothing artificial in it. Enjoy.

 

[Nickfff]

Dvoigt

Hello, I done some black palm pens and they look nice. I didn't have problems turning but have had issues drilling...they seem to split apart....

Anyone have some tips on drilling black palm w/o splitting?

 

[holmqer]

Dvoigt

Hello, I done some black palm pens and they look nice. I didn't have problems turning but have had issues drilling...they seem to split apart....

Anyone have some tips on drilling black palm w/o splitting?

My only solution to blank splitting when drilling black palm has been to use an oversized blank.

For a Baron for example, I can drill the body using a 3/4" blank with no problem, but the cap blank splits unless I use a 1" blank" For this reason I buy 2" square stock and resaw it on my bandsaw.

 

[mywoodshopca]

I did one recently and it split in half while turning.. I picked up the broken part, ran some medium on the tube and glued it back on.. filled the void with the shavings and you cant tell where it broke.. I showed it to Quality Control (wifey) and she couldnt see where the break was until I showed her the line that blended in good with the fiber lines..

 

[Dvoigt]

I gave it ago and and this is what I did.... I tired to do some different shapes. the groves sure are hard to smooth the CA in.