moving on from pine!

[goldeneyedmonkey]

Ay up,

I'm getting a bit bored of always using pine for my designs (I'm just using Redwood @ the mo), obviously there is still a demand for pine, but I want to go a bit more upmarket with my next batch of furniture.

I'm thinking of using Sycamore for coffee tables/ end tables & some small chests of drawers, I love the grain and the dapple on some bits of the timber. And I also want to make some steamed furniture using Ash, I hear this is a good timber for producing curves after steaming. Any ideas on the next step?

As per usual thanks in advance for any advice. _Dan

 

[OLD]

The question is a little loose so my answer has to be buy some hardwood and sharpen your tools.

 

[special bone]

Try Poplar. It's one of the cheapest hardwoods and is prone to some interesting colourations. It is also easy to work without blunting all your tools too often .

 

[Shane]

Try Poplar. It's one of the cheapest hardwoods and is prone to some interesting colourations. It is also easy to work without blunting all your tools too often .

and it is great firewood for when you've done too many 'practice' pieces :lol:

 

[flanajb]

What about MDF. It is all the rage at the moment

 

[Woodwizard]

"Ay Up" - I read that and thought - you're from round my neck of the woods, and it seems you are!

Anyway...

I once thought I'd struck gold 'discovering' Sycamore (sold as a type of maple in some parts of the world) at what was closer to softwood prices.

I soon learned why a tree that seems to grow like a weed (its every where you go) isn't used that much in woodworking.

Don't know if it was just the batch I had but:

There were LOTS of color defects that didn't show up until the finishing stage.

Blades that cut Oak just fine, produced sweet smelling smoke and black marks on the timber.

It didn't like glue much!

I'm interested to know if others had the same problems?

Poplar.

I love it. It cuts, sands and finishes like a dream. It produces the best dovetails I've ever done. Consequently we use it for all drawer sides in our hardwood furniture and painted kitchens / cabinets.

The only draw back is that the 30% - 50% of it that doesn't have that creamy maple / sycamore kind of look is GREEN.
I've never made an entire piece out of it, but i bet you could if you use the colored bits in the unseen areas.

Alternatively given that i think it was available for as little as £12 / ft3 +VAT (from Arnold Lavers Sheffield)) you could make a fire with the green bits as suggested!

 

[Kane]

Probably a stupid question so go easy on me ...

Is poplar the same as tulipwood?

 

[Shane]

I've used sycamore successfully for a kitchen top, but it was such a long time ago. I cant remember having trouble with tooling though, and the colouring was fine in that instance

 

[Richard Findley]

Probably a stupid question so go easy on me ...

Is poplar the same as tulipwood?

Yep! :wink:

 

[BradNaylor]

Try Poplar. It's one of the cheapest hardwoods and is prone to some interesting colourations. It is also easy to work without blunting all your tools too often .

and it is great firewood for when you've done too many 'practice' pieces :lol:

I'd stay well away from poplar/tulipwood unless you are planning on painting the finished piece.

It might work easily but it is very soft and has has no aesthetic appeal whatsoever. In its native USA it is considered a utility timber good only for stud walls etc. I think they're right!

Selecting a timber purely because it won't blunt your tools sounds crazy to me. Tools are meant to be used and when they go blunt you sharpen them.:roll:

If you are moving on from using redwood then I would recommend oak. After you've used hardwoods for a while you'll never want to make furniture out of crappy pine again.

If you're passing through Stockport Dan, pop in and I'll show you all the different woods.

Cheers
Brad

 

[Kane]

Probably a stupid question so go easy on me ...

Is poplar the same as tulipwood?

Yep! :wink:

Ty mate

 

[lurker]

Probably a stupid question so go easy on me ...

Is poplar the same as tulipwood?

Yep! :wink:

No!!

its not the same as the poplar you get in the uk