Red Palm Blank Disaster

[ke4rdb]

Tried my hand at turning Red Palm last night. The project was supposed to be a Mont Blanc pen. Had my doubts about this wood when I cut the blank to size and it started to peel off long splinters (I use a Compound Miter Saw to cut to length. Went ahead and glued it up the tubes. I then started to turn, I really now was worried when my gouge ( freshly sharpen ) 1st touched the wood, instead of chips it started to come off like long splinters. Played around with tool rest height and angles and it started to turn OK. Got the blank rounded and rough shaped the lower tube, I then switched to a spindlemaster all was going great when all of a sudden the whole lower tube just exploded, it just came apart like a droped a box of straws, never saw anything like it. I have had other blowouts before (rosewood seems to do it once in a while for me when I do BtB slimlines) but this one was amazing in the way it went.

Anyway taking my chances and hoping to salvage something from the black I was able to turn the upper tube and make a keychain out of it. I think from now on I'll pass on the Red Palm but man it sure is a pretty wood.

James

[Ken Massingale]

Good save, James. I've never turned that stuff but have read several horror stories about it.

[Jim Boyd]

HINT: Soak with CA glue often

[Scottydont]

That the kind of blanks that could benefit from being stabilized. Nice looking key chain though!

[gerti]

Bummer! Reminds me of the time when I had a couple of gorgeous (and expensive) snake wood blanks. I was using those parabolic flute drills Berea is claiming to be the best. Well, they REALLY like to have the blanks ride up and crack. Ruined 3 of the 4 halves I had.

I saw a very experienced turner work on palm at some demo in Rockler. It gave him a very hard time.

[DeanKC]

Most palm is not really wood. That's a source of MUCH trepidation for many turners who love to work the stuff. The palms are evidently directly related more to GRASS than to trees! As a result, the outer portion of the palm is really what would be the heartwood of an oak or walnut tree. It's mostly dead, and it's mostly like a bundle of straws, even more so than regular wood. None of the normal lignal type stuff holding it together, or very little of it.

I know a couple of guys in Florida who occasionally turn the stuff. Both say they'd rather EAT palm "wood" than turn it because it's so darned cantankerous. As you said, pretty stuff, but a real pain to turn, evidently.

[jshaffer]

I've never turned this type of "wood" either, and for good reason! I have a buddy up in Ohio who has made several beautiful pens from it. He doesn't use the first cutting tool...he uses rasps and very course sand paper to work the blank to rough shape. (not a concept I would have come up with myself) This method appeared to work, but it took forever. (in pen-making time, that is)

Hearing him describe the agonies of creating these lovely pieces motivated me to stear clear! The soaking with CA glue sounded like a good idea, though.

James