Softwood burls

[mywoodshopca]

I was contacted recently by a guy asking if I wanted some burls he found while hunting. They own 10 acres that they will be clearing within the next year so he told me to come take all the burls If I want them.

I went to look today and there is a lot of burls in just the short distance I walked today. They are all softwood at this end but the other end is hardwood (next trip).

Today I only grabbed one softwood burl, its about 18" across by about 9" deep.

How are softwood burls for turning to vases, bowls, etc?

 

[David Keller]

Should be fine... Some soft woods are harder than some hardwoods, so the description is not really accurate. You don't need the structural integrity of really hard wood for vessels, so you should be fine.

 

[mywoodshopca]

Thanks David.

These are spruce and fir burls.

I counted about 30+ in the 10 minutes I was there today.

 

[David Keller]

If you get tired of turning them, give me a shout:biggrin:

Aspen burl is one of my all-time favorite woods to turn, and I'm pretty sure it's classified as a softwood.

 

[Mark]

Nice find. Enjoy the Burls..

 

[Mack C.]

If you get tired of turning them, give me a shout:biggrin:

Aspen burl is one of my all-time favorite woods to turn, and I'm pretty sure it's classified as a softwood.

Hi David; Aspen is definitely a "hardwood". Any tree that loses it's leaves in the winter time is classified as a deciduous tree and therefore is a hard wood tree.

Now whether it is a soft hardwood or a hard hardwood, that's a different story.

 

[David Keller]

Thanks, Mack. I'd forgotten the deciduous factor. It does illustrate the point about some hardwoods being rather soft... Cottonwood is another that comes to mind as well as box elder(Manitoba Maple in Canada I believe). All of them can be beautiful when turned.

 

[PenPal]

In the discussion re Hardwoods v softwoods I am reminded of the great anomoly Balsa Wood is a true Hardwood.
Regards Peter.

 

[Sylvanite]

Any tree that loses it's leaves in the winter time is classified as a deciduous tree and therefore is a hard wood tree.

Except for tamarack.

Regards,
Eric

 

[MesquiteMan]

The difference between hardwood vs softwood has nothing to do with whether or not they are deciduous. It has all to do with how they reproduce. Softwoods are gymnosperms and hardwoods are angiosperms. Angiosperms have protective membranes of some sort around their seeds while gymnosperm seeds are bare.

 

[Jgrden]

The difference between hardwood vs softwood has nothing to do with whether or not they are deciduous. It has all to do with how they reproduce. Softwoods are gymnosperms and hardwoods are angiosperms. Angiosperms have protective membranes of some sort around their seeds while gymnosperm seeds are bare.

So gymnosperms can be arrested for indecent exposure, right?