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| T255 LIGHTLY ACCENTED 3 PIECE CURLY MAPLE SPINDLE SET |
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| New Price: 11.90 USD |
| Old Price: 17.00 USD |
| Saved: 30 Percent |
| Sale ends: 2010-03-22 06:00:39 |
 or:Show Seller's other items 815maple |
Reviews & GuidesPink Ivory Color Change UnusualUpdated 8/10/2007 Pink Ivory (Berchemia zeyheri) comes from a relatively small South-East African tree. This heavy and beautiful wood was considered extremely rare at one time, and still commands a high price. The loss of color in dark-dry storage is a serious problem. I have listed and described a number of cases of color changes below. In living trees, the cells in the outer rings of the tree that conduct water upward (sapwood), are nearly white in color. As the sapwood ages, the wood changes from sapwood to heartwood. At this time, the wood usually undergoes a rapid change in color (In some tree species, the heartwood stays white). In Pink Ivory the color change is much more gradual than in most species. In Pink Ivory, the white eventually changes to light pink, then pink, reddish, and a finally a full deep red color. It is a well known fact that in nearly every colored wood, exposure to light will cause the colored heartwood to loose color; however Pink Ivory also loses color away from light (and under low moisture conditions) in ways that are not typical. I noticed some eBay sellers labeling the discolored wood as sapwood. As a professional Wood Scientist, I felt this error needed to be ... Wood Common Names vs. Botanical NamesAs to the terms used in this guide, I'm pretty much using 'wood' to mean either the tree or the wood from the tree. Botanical name (or scientific name) means the genus and species of the tree. It's often difficult to pin down a wood as to an exact identity. There are a variety of reasons for this: One wood can have many common names. Many woods have 20 or more commonly used names that change depending where the tree is grown and the local language. The common name is different depending on whether the tree is harvested from the wild or plantation grown. Many different woods have the same common name: This is also fairly common and can be very confusing. How to identify ANY type of wood !Did you know that the Center for Wood Anatomy Research, in Madison, Wisconsin, will identify a
maximum of five wood samples per calendar year as a free public service
to U.S. citizens? Pen Kit Plating Options GuideThere are a wide variety of plating options available on pen kits sold today. Choosing which finish to use for a pen can be difficult and may be based on the wood used, customer preferences, pricing etc. This guide will go over some of the options available. The number in parenthesis is my wear rating from 1 to 5 (least durable to most durable) and is purely my opinion - others may well disagree. The first determination of quality is often how the plating is done at the manufacturing plant. Unfortunately, this information is only rarely available. The cheapest kits are plated using the tumbled method of plating, resulting is a thin, uneven inferior coating. The better method is the rack method where parts are separated during plating and results in a much more consistent and durable coating. Most kits sold in the United States today are plated using this method. Gold: Still the most common plating sold. The quality of gold plating can vary from very poor to excellent, depending on both the way the plating is done and what combination of gold and other additives are used in the plating process. There also seems to be a wide variation in the color of gold plating that may be related to the manufacturers plating formula and/or some variation in each batch of plating solution. By it's nature gold is a very soft metal and gold plating regardless of quality will wear off of pen parts over time. American Made Powermatic Wood LathesPowermatic made two basic wood lathes through and into the '90s. The smaller machine, model 45, was far less popular then the larger machine, the model 90. The primary end user for these lathes was the public school system with thousands of them sold. Schools nearly always use three phase power so be careful that you know what you are buying when you locate a used machine for sale. For some reason woodworking hobbiests are fearful of three phase power while metal workers pretty much assume the used machines they acquire will be three phase. The early model 90s had a Reeves drive (variable width pulley system) that went straight to the spindle from the motor. This version is very hard to change the motor in as it is tucked way up in the headstock casting and there is no room for the capacitor and its protective cover. The later model 90s had an intermediate jackshaft between the motor and spindle allowing the motor to be mounted much lower. This later design has a broader spindle speed range and the lower mounting position makes it easier to change the motor. The later models will be painted dark green or gold metal flake. The early models will be grey, pea green or dark green unless repainted. The hardest sub assembly to get for these lathes is the tailsotock followed by the tool rest support. Without these components the lathe is substantially worthless and basically a parts donor for seldom needed parts. MarMachine rebuilds these lathes and offers them on eBay. We also rebuild components and offer some will fit parts. Our latest repro part in tailstock spindles for both the 45 and 90 lathes. Since we part out some lathes we can supply some used parts also. Original equipment tool rests, faceplates, outboard handwheel/faceplates and outboard tool rests are normally offered on eBay when available. Mesquite - A Guide to the Tree and WoodMesquite (of the genus Prosopis) consists of about 45 species of leguminous spiny trees and shrubs found in subtropical and tropical regions of the Americas, Africa and southwest Asia. There are three common species of mesquite in North America: Honey Mesquite (Prosopis glandulosa), Screwbean Mesquite (Prosopis pubescens), and Velvet Mesquite (Prosopis velutina). The Honey Mesquite is distinguished by smooth (rather than hairy) leaflets. It grows primarily in the Chihuahuan Desert east of the Continental Divide, but its outer range extends across the Sonoran Desert as well. The Screwbean Mesquite with its distinctive tightly spiraled bean pods grows in the northern Sonoran Desert up into the Mojave Desert. The Velvet Mesquite is the largest and most common of the three species. It has velvet-surfaced leaflets and grows primarily in the Sonoran Desert, west of the Continental Divide. Where the species overlap, the plants hybridize, often making identification difficult. Most of the following information is specific to the Velvet Mesquite, but all three species have similar characteristics. Algaroba, bilayati kikar, common mesquite, cuji, honey locust, honey mesquite, honey-pod, ibapiguazu, inesquirte, ironwood, mescrew, mesquite, screwbean, screwbean mesquite, screw-pod mesquite, scrub mesquite, tornillo, Torrey mesquite, velvet mesquite, wawahi, western honey mesquite Cutting curves and circles on the bandsaw.It is true that the bandsaw is one of the safest pieces of machinery in your wood shop. I believe it's the only machine, that has a blade that is pressing directly down, against your table...thus making it quite safe. Pen Turning & Working with Eastern Red CedarI am a bit of a woodworker . . . but not a pen turner. I do own a lathe . . . but have never turned or assembled a pen. About two and a half years ago I decided to take a huge Cedar tree that had grown on our property over the past 75 - 100 years to a local saw mill. It was in three massive logs and took me a loader and two trips with my trailer. The saw mill operator said "That thing doesn't look worth cutting up - are you sure?" We cut up that whole trunk (probably an 80 ft tree) and I found some of the most beautiful wood I'd ever seen -- or smelled. I wanted to share this wood with others who would appreciate it - and Ebay has been the perfect method. I've cut wood for duck calls, stoppers, lures, amulets, pen cases, boxes, small chests -- and, of course, pens. I've also built six Cedar chests myself. I've now sold and shipped over 500 pen blank sets (typically 12 blanks) all over the world. I try to include a few extras . . . and maybe some Walnut, Pacific Coast Maple, Alder or Osage Orange. Everyone has enjoyed the look, feel and smell of the Cedar and I have enjoyed meeting many new people! I have never recieved a negative feedback on my pen blanks - and if I don't send a woodworker exactly the mix of heartwood and sapwood he (or she) was looking for that is easily fixed next time they order. In over 500 orders I've never had one person not pay or send me a bad check or money order. Kudos to woodworkers! I'd love to sell all kinds of wood . . . but for now, it's mainly this great slab of Aromatic Cedar. Most of my wood is rough cut in full 1" planks - 4 to 6 inches wide. But, I have some chunks that I can use - so if you have a special request just let me know.&nbs... A History and User Guide to Amboyna BurlPterocarpus indicus is the botanical name for a tree that has inspired a wide variety of names and has been used in a wide variety of applications. In the United States, the tree is usually called Narra and sometimes further delineated as red Narra or yellow Narra or even orange Narra.The Narra that grows in southern and southeastern Asia is called Solomons Pradauk or Papua New Guinea rosewood. Narra also grows extensively in the Philippines, Borneo, New Guinea, Cagayan, Mindoro, Palawan, Cotabato and the Malay Archipelago. Its Malayan name is angsana. Narra has also been called kiabooco, meaning "twisted wood." The Narra found in African countries is known as "Paduak" When in the burl form, Narra?s wood is usually referred to as Amboyna burl ? that name coming from Amboyna Island, another place the trees can be found. In "Veneers, A Fritz Kohl Handbook," produced by the Fritz Kohl Veneer Mill in Germany, Amboyna burl is described as "one of the rarest and most expensive woods in the world," adding that "the burly part of the log is often very small." The scarcity of burl in the logs translates into rather high prices, as do its demand for use in high-end woodwork. According to the handbook?s authors, Amboyna burl is used for the "highest quality architectural woodwork" and that it was the first burl wood used for dashboards by Rolls Royce. Ordinary Narra may not be as highly prized as the wood that comes from the burls, but it is still a beautiful wood in its own right that can yield a range of interesting figures. Experts believe these figures are formed from the existence of "terminal parenchyma" and irregularities in the woods. Parenchyma is the wood?s soft tissue that stores and distributes carbohydrates. Narra?s grain can be wavy, interlocked or crossed creating attractive figures s... |
