Vince Pitelka on sun 13 aug 06
Dave -
Saw the postscript on your recent message, enquiring about the best wood for
handmade ribs. As you know, some hardwoods are more resistant to moisture,
so if you are in the habit of leaving your ribs in contact with slurry or
water (somehow that doesn't sound like you at all), you might want to get
some teak or ipe. Ipe is currently the wood of choice for a lot of deck
furniture, and can be purchased from the online hardwood suppliers for very
decent prices. We are lucky that it takes so little wood to make good ribs
and modeling tools.
Of course a sandy or groggy clay will be more abrasive than a gritless body,
but even a smooth porcelain is still fairly abrasive over time, so a good
tough hardwood like oak, hickory, walnut, hard maple, rosewood, or a good
dense mahogany will hold up much better than poplar or alder or any
softwood. If you can get ebony scraps, they are wonderful for pottery
tools, and the results are so beautiful. Many of the more exotic hardwoods
are great for making pottery tools, and small carving blanks are often very
reasonably priced. That way, you can try a lot of different woods and
choose the best over time.
- Vince
In LA for a final week with the grand kids before returning to Tennessee. I
am anxious to be back home, but it has been a great summer, especially after
being homebound last summer.
Vince Pitelka
Appalachian Center for Craft, Tennessee Technological University
Smithville TN 37166, 615/597-6801 x111
vpitelka@dtccom.net, wpitelka@tntech.edu
http://iweb.tntech.edu/wpitelka/
http://www.tntech.edu/craftcenter/
Lee Love on mon 14 aug 06
I use mountain cherry here, which is of medium hardness. Back
home I used what ever cherry wood I could find.
--
Lee in Mashiko, Japan
http://potters.blogspot.com/
"Let the beauty we love be what we do." - Rumi
Linda - Pacifica on mon 14 aug 06
Friends of mine are redoing their floors in 5 inch wide quarter-sawn Brazilian Cherry (certified from sustained forests). Oh boy, oh boy! They're saving me every scrap and am I gonna have fun this winter making tools.
Hell, I might make some spoons for chili, soup, pasta etc.!
Safe drive home Vince,
Linda
On Monday, August 14, 2006, at 05:41PM, Vince Pitelka wrote: so a good
>tough hardwood like oak, hickory, walnut, hard maple, rosewood, or a good
>dense mahogany will hold up much better than poplar or alder or any
>softwood. If you can get ebony scraps, they are wonderful for pottery
>tools, and the results are so beautiful. Many of the more exotic hardwoods
>are great for making pottery tools, and small carving blanks are often very
>reasonably priced. That way, you can try a lot of different woods and
>choose the best over time.
>
>- Vince
>In LA for a final week with the grand kids before returning to Tennessee. I
>am anxious to be back home, but it has been a great summer, especially after
>being homebound last summer.
Patrick Cross on tue 15 aug 06
On 8/14/06, Linda - Pacifica wrote:
I think it's pretty funny how little it takes to excite a potter......Here,
I saved you this hunk of wood....
Oh boy, oh boy! Linda
Patrick Cross (cone10soda)
Earl Brunner on tue 15 aug 06
And I was thinking along the lines of "Pork ribs or beef?"
Patrick Cross wrote: On 8/14/06, Linda - Pacifica wrote:
I think it's pretty funny how little it takes to excite a potter......Here,
I saved you this hunk of wood....
Oh boy, oh boy! Linda
Patrick Cross (cone10soda)
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