# Wood for Beginning



## scjohnson243 (Apr 30, 2014)

So I have started making a few pens and such on my lathe - I seem to find pen blanks all over, so finding cheap wood to practice with is fairly easy, but the blanks are small, obviously... I would like to try my hand on making some candle holders and peppermills, could you suggest a good supplier of cheaper wood that I can practice with, without runining some "Good" wood? Could I just go to Lowes and buy 4x4's and cut them in 6" sections on my bandsaw? how did you guys get your wood when learning?

(I know I *CAN* go buy the 4x4's and cut them, but is there a reason why this is a terrible idea?)

Anyway, thanks for the guidance.

--Note-- Searched and found a few links, was still curious about to local lumberyard, etc...


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## TomC (Oct 27, 2008)

scjohnson243 said:


> So I have started making a few pens and such on my lathe - I seem to find pen blanks all over, so finding cheap wood to practice with is fairly easy, but the blanks are small, obviously... I would like to try my hand on making some candle holders and peppermills, could you suggest a good supplier of cheaper wood that I can practice with, without runining some "Good" wood? Could I just go to Lowes and buy 4x4's and cut them in 6" sections on my bandsaw? how did you guys get your wood when learning? (I know I *CAN* go buy the 4x4's and cut them, but is there a reason why this is a terrible idea?) Anyway, thanks for the guidance. --Note-- Searched and found a few links, was still curious about to local lumberyard, etc...


I personally would not turn treated wood. You can always glue up some 3/4" boards to turn large items out of. I have turned pepper mills from glued up blanks. Popular is a cheap wood to practice on and it turns better than pine. Try to find a local lumber yard or hard wood dealer in your area. They are typically cheaper than Lowes and HD.
Tom


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## Maylar (Sep 3, 2013)

4x4's are good to practice with, and they're actually a challenge to work with. Pine (Spruce, fir, etc) tears out easily and is difficult to turn without leaving "fuzzies". Excellent practice.

Some construction lumber, particularly Doug Fir, can have pitch pockets that will make a sticky mess. Smells nice, though...


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## john lucas (Sep 18, 2007)

Ill make 2 suggestions. First is to just turn scap wood with the plan to toss it when your done. I use limbs or 2x4s cut to 1 1/2 x 11/2. That way you feel free to try any shape or tool and not worry about catches or other damage done to the piece. 
I started all of my turning by gluing up Blanks Into the sizes I. We'd. It's called segmented turning and is lot of fun and can be. Dry creative. 
You can buy 4x4 at lowes but do t turn the treated wood. Very nasty stuff


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## Bonanza35 (Jan 20, 2011)

Firewood is my favorite. It's cheap or free and you might end up with something special. Just be careful dealing with the irregular shapes on your bandsaw. Also, green wood presents a whole new set of challenges in terms of preventing drying cracks but it is fun to turn and you can find some amazing pieces of wood in a firewood stack.


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## Bill Boehme (Feb 9, 2014)

I brake for wood. I ought to have a bumper sticker on my truck with those words. Since I started woodturning, that is what I do whenever I see a stack of wood at the curb. Free wood is everywhere. It is just a matter of being on the lookout for it.

Most of the 4X4's are pressure treated for fences, decks, and other such stuff. Don't use that for turning. You might be able to find cedar or redwood that has not been treated, but then you will be paying much more than the pressure treated stuff. Green tree limbs are free and green wood turns so nicely. I bought some generic whitewood 2X4's at Home Depot and made about fifty pieces that were 1.5 X1.5 X 12 inches. I then got out my skew and started making beads, coves, v's, pommels, and whatever else I could think of until I could do it without getting catches (well OK, I stretched the truth ... I should say far fewer catches). When practicing, have a deliberate plan of what you will do ... none of this "let's see what happens" kind of undisclined practice which gets you nowhere.


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## scjohnson243 (Apr 30, 2014)

Thank you all for the replies... I never considered firewood... I was not turning green wood on purpose (Which limited my local harvesting) because I thought I should not turn that... If thats okay to turn, (if nothing else to learn without wasting "good" wood) then that opens up a LOT of options!!!

I think I will go pick up some wood and worse case go get a few 2x4's and start making mushrooms!  (I hear thats a good beginner project!)

Thank you all... So far I love making pens, but I dont feel like making a pen will contribute to my general "Skill" for woodturning... Bowls, platters, candleholders all sound much more complicated! 

Thank you all again!!! I like the last thought on practicing, Bill - I have to admit thats what I have been doing when I was not making a pen, just throwing wood on the lathe and making a bunch of cuts withotu any purpose, so, I agree, I need a plan. 

Thanks!!!


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## jgilfor (Jan 25, 2013)

Some of my nicest and most interestingly figured pieces came from firewood that I started to turn as practice. I made it a habit of sifting through my pile of split logs to find ones that looked spalted and with few cracks. Unfortunately, I now live in Florida and no longer need firewood.

I have turned quite a few 4 x 4's. They are great practice because, as mentioned, the wood is very difficult to cut cleanly. Great practice for tool presentation.


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## Brian T. (Dec 19, 2012)

Lots of cabinet shops have odd off-cut pieces = great glue ups.
I agree with the firewood idea.
Don't fall in love with the project. Make a plan of what to do.
If it fails, you can always put the wood back where it came from.

Like wood carving, start with even, straight-grained, knot free pieces.
Save the knots and spalted stuff until you think that your technical expertise can handle them.

Most of my wood carvings start as 40lb western red cedar shake blocks, 24" x 12" x 10" or so.
$5 each and maybe 1/3 of it I don't want to use.

So I "overhaul" it. "Haul" it out back and toss it "over" the neighbor's fence for his firepit.


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