# Ornamental Pear wood



## Handyman (Jan 2, 2008)

We had some bad weather here in the lower side of Louisiana this past week and a little tornado twisted off my Ornamental pear tree. So i have cut it up in a few pieces about 18" long and plan on turning it into some candle stands. Anyone ever use Pear tree wood??


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## guglipm63 (Feb 27, 2013)

Turned this a month ago from a Bradford pear that came down in a friends yard. It's fairly nice to turn green but on a few items I've done it does want to warp so plan ahead for that


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## jman75 (Apr 5, 2014)

I have used the bradford pear...pretty wood but very wet. That is a bowl from it as my avatar

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## duncsuss (Aug 21, 2009)

Pear wood can be beautiful ... here's a peppermill from a piece of Bradford Pear that Dave Paine sent me:


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## ryan50hrl (Jun 30, 2012)

duncsuss said:


> Pear wood can be beautiful ... here's a peppermill from a piece of Bradford Pear that Dave Paine sent me:


That's a beautiful pepper mill.....


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## phinds (Mar 25, 2009)

Handyman said:


> We had some bad weather here in the lower side of Louisiana this past week and a little tornado twisted off my Ornamental pear tree. So i have cut it up in a few pieces about 18" long and plan on turning it into some candle stands. Anyone ever use Pear tree wood??


I haven't used much myself but everything I've read says it's a favorite of turners and particularly carvers because of the smooth, even grain.


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## JohnInTexas (Apr 1, 2014)

Handyman, I bought a lathe and got into this hobby because of a big bradford pear I needed to cut down. It's really nice to turn green but it is prone to splitting as it dries. I am still learning patience and drying technique. The wood in my tree was light but with nice grain definition and some dark heart wood.

I think we are neighbors. I'm from Orange, TX.

Here is a pear bowl that cracked during drying....sorry, all my pear has met this fate thus far.










And here is some lumber I had sawn. I had the lumber dried in a solar kiln and it cupped quite a bit but should be fun to work with. The piece in the foreground is planed, sanded, and coated with teak oil.


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## jman75 (Apr 5, 2014)

You could put a stone inlay in the cracks...just put some tape on the back side to prevent it from falling out of the crack. Also you could cut the pith out and seal a bunch of chunks with anchorseal on the end grain. This is before turning but the chunks may have to sit for a bit to dry out a little

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## firemedic (Dec 26, 2010)

I'm a little late to the party...

Pear wood is awesome! Great for tools and threaded pieces just like any fruit wood. Bradford and other "ornamental" fruit woods are still fruit woods and I jump on the logs every chance I get.

ps - it's beautiful with an oil finish.


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## JohnInTexas (Apr 1, 2014)

Here is a plate I recently finished of bradford pear. It was turned from a slab I had dried in a solar kiln. Sure sands nice!


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## Bill Boehme (Feb 9, 2014)

John, If there is still enough thickness in the plate, I would recommend reworking the bottom to make the diameter of the foot larger. While the diameter is about right for a bowl, a plate needs to have a larger diameter foot for stability.


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## JohnInTexas (Apr 1, 2014)

Thanks for the note Bill...yes I think there is still enough thickness to run the base off and turn a wider one. I may have to wait until I get a pneumatic chuck so I can hang on to the finished side.


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## jomarra (Nov 7, 2012)

Here's a Bradford Pear that came down in my neighbors yard during Sandy.


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## Bill Boehme (Feb 9, 2014)

JohnInTexas said:


> Thanks for the note Bill...yes I think there is still enough thickness to run the base off and turn a wider one. I may have to wait until I get a pneumatic chuck so I can hang on to the finished side.


It would be even easier and more convenient to do with a jam chuck because you could remove the piece to check the thickness and then re-center it much easier than if you were using a vacuum chuck. It certainly is more convenient to work from the tailstock side. The headstock side is often a bit cramped for working space especially if the lathe has a large headstock.


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