# spalted/curly maple turning blanks



## darty (Feb 1, 2009)

I milled the bottom of a sugar maple stump today into turning blanks.


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## Tennessee Tim (Dec 15, 2010)

They look good.Love the spalt

When cutting blanks ....is there a "standard" size or cut as please???? Those look like for deep bowls or are they cut oversize??
I guess these sound stupid :blink::huh:.....BUT I don't know:no:.

Have a Blessed day in Jesus's Love,
Tim


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## qbilder (Dec 19, 2010)

Beautiful!!! Sugar maple is my favorite wood.


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## HomeBody (Nov 24, 2010)

Is spalted wood structurally sound? Gary


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## darty (Feb 1, 2009)

Tennessee Tim said:


> They look good.Love the spalt
> 
> When cutting blanks ....is there a "standard" size or cut as please???? Those look like for deep bowls or are they cut oversize??
> I guess these sound stupid :blink::huh:.....BUT I don't know:no:.
> ...


I don't think there is a standard size. It depends on the size of your lathe and how big you can turn. I did cut them oversize, most I'll end up cutting in half.



HomeBody said:


> Is spalted wood structurally sound? Gary


I'm no spalted wood expert, but what I've found is it's a fine line. Let it go to long and it's firewood, not long enough and your disappointed.


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## TexasTimbers (Oct 17, 2006)

That's gonna make some real pretty stuff. I wish the hard maples were indigenous to my area. I guess we can't have it all but dang that stuff is pretty. 








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## qbilder (Dec 19, 2010)

TexasTimbers said:


> That's gonna make some real pretty stuff. I wish the hard maples were indigenous to my area. I guess we can't have it all but dang that stuff is pretty.
> .


Where in Texas are you? We have a couple varieties of hard maple here in NM. It's not sugar or black maple, but something in between. It has the leaf shape of sugar maple but with rounded lobes like black. Sure is hard stuff. Gets birds eye figure, too :yes:


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## TexasTimbers (Oct 17, 2006)

I'm at the confluence of 4 different hardiness zones so I have a great variety. I'm just about dead center of Paris & Sherman. zip is 75447 it's a real small zip you plug it into maps and view satellite and you'll see the type of area I'm in. Let me know if you can pick out any of those maples in the satellite view and I'll go drop them. :icon_cool:

I've seen trees that had leaves that made me think "they look like maple leaves but I know we don't have any maple here." I've seen bark somewhat like that but not that exactly.


We do have some old growth Bigleaf Maples way down south in the hill country that are protected by the state but I have never heard of any other indigenous maples here except for boxelder of course. They grow everywhere down here. Most do not have flame like mine but most do have some nice curl birdseye etc. 

I'll be a very happy camper if I discover we have some of those maples you showed. Thanks for the heads up. 




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## qbilder (Dec 19, 2010)

Big leaf maple like west coast maple? I'd be breaking the law :laughing: That stuff is often crazy figured & colored.


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## aardvark (Sep 29, 2011)

Growing one now in the front yard now.
One of the leafs I just yanked off a few minutes ago spanned 11"+ across, and I've seen bigger from it.


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