robutacion
Member
Hi peoples,
I haven't much active in here lately as all these new eBay listings I have been adding this last couple of weeks, have been driving me mad so I decided that was time to have a brake and get a bit of chainsaw work, after my Carpel tunnel surgery last 13 of December.
I have been gathering some small jobs, trying to do a couple at the time, saving me time, travelling and dollars so, yesterday I started by removing this medium(ish) Platypus Gum burl that I found inside of of a near by hospital car-park, with the small tree being dead for some time...!
It took me some effort to get the correct permissions to get this burl but, nothing comes to me free hand so, nothing is new there.
A bit of digging in the middle of a damn unexpected storm that soaked us in seconds, before we had time to run for cover but in the end, the weather did allow us to finish the job and get this burl in the trailer.
The problem was, the damn thing was hollow (of burl but, full of mud, instead...!). Chainsaw chains just don't last long of this termite mud so, after 6 chains changes, I got it out, by extremely disappointed...!:frown:
It was a lot of work just to get the OK to get it, and after so many chains buggered, I was expecting a lot better but, the termites have built a nest on and under that burl, was only the hard shell of the burl that kept that small tree from falling over.
Interestingly, the very same thing that kept that tree standing up, has shown to be of extreme beauty, after I got hole all clean/washed all the mud out. The extremely hard/dense edge of the Platypus burl, of which the termites had to work a lot harder to eat, has created a meticulous "carved" surface on the burl by these termites.
Going a little further, and taking a piece to the bandsaw, has proven to be quite of a pleasant surprise. No amount of washing seemed to stop the bandsaw blade to throw sparks every so often, taking the "life" out of the blade teeth in no time but, I saw how I can make some blanks that will be completed with resin casting where the termite carvings will be the primordial focus, completed with the stunning burl wood attached...!
The 6 long months of waiting to be able to get this burl, still are a bit of a disappointment, as I would prefer if the burl was intact but, considering that I could have done all this worth for absolutely nothing, if the burl was "totally" eaten or, the permission to get it out, have been denied, what I endup with is not as bad as it could be, huh...! modesty sometimes helps in these situations...!:wink::biggrin:
So, is not going to be long before, I have some samples of what I have in mind done, and if they just came out half as good as I have them picture in my head, is going to be OK...!
PS: I also got yesterday, from the old fellow that we got the Almond burl from, 2 very old Almond stumps that are/were large for a Almond tree. The tops were cut decades ago, and when question the nature of those stumps, I was immediately told that, no other trees than Almonds, were ever planted in that yard, and if wasn't enough what he said, he took me around the back, that I couldn't see from the road and he pointed at a humongous tree 30 meters away and said, yeah...! those were like this...!
I didn't have the camera with me, at that point and I know that I will see that tree again soon, in fact he said " you may endup with it, also...!":biggrin:
This is a still alive, Almond tree that stands up 15 meters or so, and the base of its trunk, which is full a burls, is about 2+ meters all around, something that I will confirm and show to everyone, next time I'm in that way...!
Today, I got a 40 year old true Christmas tree that died in the beginning of 2011...!:beat-up::bulgy-eyes::yawn:
Cheers
George
I haven't much active in here lately as all these new eBay listings I have been adding this last couple of weeks, have been driving me mad so I decided that was time to have a brake and get a bit of chainsaw work, after my Carpel tunnel surgery last 13 of December.
I have been gathering some small jobs, trying to do a couple at the time, saving me time, travelling and dollars so, yesterday I started by removing this medium(ish) Platypus Gum burl that I found inside of of a near by hospital car-park, with the small tree being dead for some time...!
It took me some effort to get the correct permissions to get this burl but, nothing comes to me free hand so, nothing is new there.
A bit of digging in the middle of a damn unexpected storm that soaked us in seconds, before we had time to run for cover but in the end, the weather did allow us to finish the job and get this burl in the trailer.
The problem was, the damn thing was hollow (of burl but, full of mud, instead...!). Chainsaw chains just don't last long of this termite mud so, after 6 chains changes, I got it out, by extremely disappointed...!:frown:
It was a lot of work just to get the OK to get it, and after so many chains buggered, I was expecting a lot better but, the termites have built a nest on and under that burl, was only the hard shell of the burl that kept that small tree from falling over.
Interestingly, the very same thing that kept that tree standing up, has shown to be of extreme beauty, after I got hole all clean/washed all the mud out. The extremely hard/dense edge of the Platypus burl, of which the termites had to work a lot harder to eat, has created a meticulous "carved" surface on the burl by these termites.
Going a little further, and taking a piece to the bandsaw, has proven to be quite of a pleasant surprise. No amount of washing seemed to stop the bandsaw blade to throw sparks every so often, taking the "life" out of the blade teeth in no time but, I saw how I can make some blanks that will be completed with resin casting where the termite carvings will be the primordial focus, completed with the stunning burl wood attached...!
The 6 long months of waiting to be able to get this burl, still are a bit of a disappointment, as I would prefer if the burl was intact but, considering that I could have done all this worth for absolutely nothing, if the burl was "totally" eaten or, the permission to get it out, have been denied, what I endup with is not as bad as it could be, huh...! modesty sometimes helps in these situations...!:wink::biggrin:
So, is not going to be long before, I have some samples of what I have in mind done, and if they just came out half as good as I have them picture in my head, is going to be OK...!
PS: I also got yesterday, from the old fellow that we got the Almond burl from, 2 very old Almond stumps that are/were large for a Almond tree. The tops were cut decades ago, and when question the nature of those stumps, I was immediately told that, no other trees than Almonds, were ever planted in that yard, and if wasn't enough what he said, he took me around the back, that I couldn't see from the road and he pointed at a humongous tree 30 meters away and said, yeah...! those were like this...!
I didn't have the camera with me, at that point and I know that I will see that tree again soon, in fact he said " you may endup with it, also...!":biggrin:
This is a still alive, Almond tree that stands up 15 meters or so, and the base of its trunk, which is full a burls, is about 2+ meters all around, something that I will confirm and show to everyone, next time I'm in that way...!
Today, I got a 40 year old true Christmas tree that died in the beginning of 2011...!:beat-up::bulgy-eyes::yawn:
Cheers
George
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