In last week’s eZine editorial, Rob revealed that some of his “firewood” sometimes makes its way to his shop instead. It seems he’s not alone. – Editor
“I just read your article regarding firewood and what does and does not make the final journey to the wood stove. Here are a couple examples of projects that were diverted from the wood stove. The birch bowl was carved on the edges by a wood borer, which made the natural edge even more interesting. The buckthorn not only was diverted from firewood but also showed there is a nice use for the larger specimens of this invasive species. And the three cedar vases were branch wood diverted from the cookfire on a Cub Scout trip. You are correct: once a woodworker, always a woodworker, no matter what the task at hand is.”- Jim Sanders
Here’s one solution to this “problem.” – Editor
“I used to have that problem, too. Decisions, decisions! To get better heat and save energy, we replaced the wood fireplace with a gas fireplace. Nice, warm, no drafts, AND I keep all my wood!” – Carl Carter
“The last couple weeks I have been turning some of those surprise wood treasures you talked about in issue 412. I also burn wood for main heat source. While splitting firewood this fall, I was surprised by what I thought to be a near useless wood, hackberry. I had hauled this tree home just to get it out of the way at work. The wood has sat in a pile for about a year and a half. While splitting the hackberry this fall, I noticed spalting in the wood. I doublechecked to make sure it wasn’t maple. I must have hit the jackpot on the timing; the wood is fairly solid and turns quite well. Here are a couple pictures. Who would have thought, spalted hackberry?” – Todd Brooks
“I’m so glad that this subject came up. And I’m happy to reveal that in my shop there are treasures and heirlooms ‘waiting in the rough.’ I’ve got good pieces waiting to be turned and made into mallets (I have made six so far), knife handles, cutting boards, boxes and, and … Lurking behind trash cans, dark corners, rafters, etc include but not limited to: live oak, mesquite – oh, lots of mesquite — some acacia, mulberry, persimmon, apricot, redbud and …!!” – Jack Stanford
