Sourcing Blanks

[wizer]

I'm running low on practise wood and have been looking around for blanks. Mail order blanks seem an extremely expensive way to source wood? The postage is obviously astronomical. Do others but wood like this? I'm about an hour away from anywhere that sells turning blanks. Is it a case of saving up and making a trip and keeping a stock? Or am I being particularly tight?

Stiles and Bates show is in a couple of weeks so I'll probably stock up there. Green wood is nice but I'm not at the skill level to finish turn it from wet and I'm too impatient to double turn it

 

[Dalboy]

Wizer

Like you I have to wait until I can make a order up before it is worth placing an order. I'm a little better off in such that S&B are only 1/2 drive away. Try contacting your local council gardens department and see if they are felling any trees you never know they might just say yes(cheap turning material for practice). By the way I am also going to their show

 

[seanybaby]

These are pretty good value Tom.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/30-Assorted-W...h=item370094732387&_trksid=p4634.c0.m14.l1262

I've ordered a few boxes and they have all been upto scratch.

 

[wizer]

Not sure what day I'm going yet. Hopefully Friday. Have you been before? Is it any good?

 

[wizer]

These are pretty good value Tom.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/30-Assorted-W...h=item370094732387&_trksid=p4634.c0.m14.l1262

I've ordered a few boxes and they have all been upto scratch.

Cheers Sean, looks ok, but I'm always nervous about 'packs'. I might sit on my hands for a couple of weeks til the show and maybe try mail order when I'm a bit more experienced and am sure I can turn a blank into a bowl (not happened yet).

 

[cornucopia]

These are pretty good value Tom.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/30-Assorted-W...h=item370094732387&_trksid=p4634.c0.m14.l1262

I've ordered a few boxes and they have all been upto scratch.

Cheers Sean, looks ok, but I'm always nervous about 'packs'. I might sit on my hands for a couple of weeks til the show and maybe try mail order when I'm a bit more experienced and am sure I can turn a blank into a bowl (not happened yet).

I have also orderd wood of this seller and his wood is good quality- the elm i gave to richard was from him tom.

 

[pete honeyman]

I'va also bought stuff in the past from this seller, Paul Conroy, and it's always been top quality. Also Michael Adcock (try ebay item 160327370378) is very helpful and has some of the best blanks I've ever seen. My large elm pieces came from him, not cheap, but I'v never been disappointed.

Pete II

 

[Dalboy]

Not sure what day I'm going yet. Hopefully Friday. Have you been before? Is it any good?

No not been before hoping someone could say how good it is. Also thinking on Friday as I believe that there are more demonstrators on that day

 

[user 5053]

Buying turning blanks is a hugely expensive way of buying wood and is not something I would do. Green turning is the best way, is what the old bodgers did and you can shell stuff out at scintilating speed. No matter where you are in Britain you are never far away from piles of free beautiful timber. Naturally you need seasoned wood from time to time and the best thing is to go to a sawmill and buy it buy the board and then turn into blanks. Also if you do any shows or markets or are well known people will offer you timber often for nothing or a bowl or something in exchange.

 

[wizer]

Thanks for the recommendation everyone. I guess I should stop being a tight *rse.

Soulfly: I did say in my original post that I was specifically looking for dry timber. I do have some green stuff but I want some instant gratification and don't yet have the skill to thin turn green.

 

[Jonzjob]

Wizer if you are looking for practice bits then get down to your local joiners shop and offer a couple of ££ for the tea fund. You will be able to get some cracking bits the they can't use for pennies. I used to get lots of my wood from there and you never know just what may be on offer.

BUT!!! if I were you I would put a long pole between you and any iroko you are offered!

Where I used to live in Stroud there used to be a copy turner factory, a large place, and if I went there on a Saturday morning I used to be able to put £15-ish into the tea fund there (may have been beer fund, but?) and walk out with a large sack full of turning blanks. The best looking bits on my photobucket album came from there. If you can find a similar setup near by you then you could have a never ending supply for not-a-lot?

Another good source could be your log pile, or a neighbours! I have had some cracking wood from there, and still have! Don't forget to ask if it's the neighbours! :evil:

 

[paulm]

If you are planning on being around J6 of the M3 anytime Tom let me know, sure I could sort you out with a few blanks :wink:

A contribution to the malt whisky fund if minded would always be welcome :lol:

Same goes for others as well of course

Cheers, Paul

 

[wizer]

Good idea John, I'll have to try to find somewhere like that. Only place I can think of actually sell their off cuts and are wildly over priced

Paul, that's a kind offer but that's not somewhere I pass on my travels. I might be going that way-ish to West Dean in a couple of months so maybe I'lll drop by en-route.

Soulfly's idea of buying boards and cutting my own blanks has some weight. I was just thinking about an Ash board I bought a while back, it was 12 inches wide x 2 inches thick x 6ft long. I think I paid just over £50. That seems a little cheaper than buying pre-rounded blanks and I can use the offcuts for pen blanks or other oddities.

 

[Jonzjob]

Blimey Wizer, don't got to the ones that you know sell the bits! Go to the other ones. They probably only use them to warm the workshop in the winter and that has well and truely gone for now. Well it has here?

 

[big soft moose]

Soulfly's idea of buying boards and cutting my own blanks has some weight. I was just thinking about an Ash board I bought a while back, it was 12 inches wide x 2 inches thick x 6ft long. I think I paid just over £50. That seems a little cheaper than buying pre-rounded blanks and I can use the offcuts for pen blanks or other oddities.

thats pretty much where most of my wood comes from - didnt you get some 12x2 from mikes magical oak sale ? - that would convert nicely into fruit bowl blanks

also the stuff from the corby wood mine - though you have to be careful of the dust if turning iroko.

also in terms of free stuff dont overlook driftwood, stuff out of skips, freecycle, pallets (the blocks are often hard wood), and second hand furniture from hospice warehouses etc which can other yeild a suprising ammount of wood when dismantled.

Ive also occasional bought up chunky badly turned items at jumble sales and then returned them to a better / thinner finish.

 

[wizer]

some good ideas there moose.

I had ear-marked some of Mike Oak but when I opened my wallet, cobwebs and dust fell out. Funds are tight recently so I'm trying to be careful. Plus I'm not sure I like turning Oak The main reason I wanted those chunky bits off Mike was to make something similar to Blister's chair side table. I'm not sure if Mike still has them, maybe I'll pay him in instalments

I have become a skip/freecycle/boot fair junkie but as yet found nothing but a bit of green wood on FC.

I have a fair bit of Corby Iroko but it's not really to my taste and turning it is 'orrible. I may use it for turning in the future, especially if I ever get into segmented work.

Since I last posted in this thread I made an order with Scottish Hardwoods\Paul Conroy. So I will have a small supply to play with. I got mainly Sycamore because, I believe, it's a bit easier to turn and learn.

 

[MikeG.]

Hi Tom,

there is still a sizeable quantity of oak left, and turners will not really struggle with any of it........there are some good bits of 6x6 and 6x4, as well as plenty of planks, sections of which would be good for turners.

I also have one or two bits of stuff of my own that I have bandsawed into round shapes which would make a decent shallow bowl or plate......free to a good home.

Mike

 

[Jonzjob]

Hear is one of the reasons I won't touch iroko http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1458 ... stractPlus and the other is that I come out with a rash on my face and arms and my eyes get VERY sore. It burns well though :wink:

 

[wizer]

Mike I fear you're edging very close to the round side. Be careful, it's addictive and fun!

Can you give me some prices on the oak via PM please mate. I know you did before but I've had literally hundreds of pms in the past few weeks.

I may only take a few bits off you. Perhaps just one small 'post' for the chair-side table.

Jonz: I only used Iroko for the first time a few months ago. It scared the bejesus out of me and still does. When I first started using it I wore barrier cream as well as full PPE. Since then I've laxed the protection a little with no adverse effects. However, I got pneumonia last year and I suspect Iroko may have played a part in it.