Beauty is not everything.

[wombatie]

I recently got myself some thin sheets of King William Pine from Tasmania.  It looks nice and it looks sturdy, I thought it was just right for Christmas ornaments.  I have just spent an hour preparing the wood etc., and cutting a special ornament for my son in law but as soon as I started taking the pattern off I knew it was toooooooooooo fragile and yes it broke in two places.  Even if its glued back together its still going to be fragile.  The moral to this story is, never judge a piece of wood by its beauty.   

Marg

[Scrolling Steve]

Ouch !......That's not good !

[Scrappile]

Happen to me on the last one of Alex's bowls I cut.  Made good fire starting wood.....

[WayneMahler]

Very frustrating when that happens. 

[heppnerguy]

I also just used a piece of wood to cut a cross that I  was not too sure about. It was a veneered ply but the veneer was really thin. I had to give it a try anyway. I was lucky and only lost a couple of really small pieces of veneer so It will work but I will only use it for backer board from now on. Sorry you had this problem

Dick

heppnerguy

[Bill WIlson]

I've taken to using a lot more BB plywood for Christmas ornaments the past several years.  I prefer natural wood, but durability is a concern.  I also like them to be thin.  I think they look less clunky, plus I can stack cut more at a time.  Sure, I can carefully and successfully cut and give out 100+ ornaments without any casualties, but these ornaments become keepsakes and are intended to be around for many years.  I'm always sad to see one of my ornaments has gotten chipped.  I've offered to re-make a few, but the problem is I can't control how the recipients handle and store these ornaments.  I usually try to give special warning of their fragility, when possible, but the BB ply seems to offer the best compromise.  If I think they need jazzing up a bit, I will use dyes, paints and even spray glitter to lend some color to the otherwise bland look of the BB ply.

[Phantom Scroller]

Bet you said oh dear what a pity Marg.  what I meant to say was oh sorry to hear that Marg.  Roly

[Rockytime]

Beauty is not everything but often it is ahead of whatever is in first place. Anyway that being said I see people making key chains and luggage tags which receive rough use, in and out of pockets and purses. What hard wood would stand up to that kind of abuse? Just wondering.

[WayneMahler]

13 hours ago, Bill WIlson said:

I've taken to using a lot more BB plywood for Christmas ornaments the past several years.  I prefer natural wood, but durability is a concern.  I also like them to be thin.  I think they look less clunky, plus I can stack cut more at a time.  Sure, I can carefully and successfully cut and give out 100+ ornaments without any casualties, but these ornaments become keepsakes and are intended to be around for many years.  I'm always sad to see one of my ornaments has gotten chipped.  I've offered to re-make a few, but the problem is I can't control how the recipients handle and store these ornaments.  I usually try to give special warning of their fragility, when possible, but the BB ply seems to offer the best compromise.  If I think they need jazzing up a bit, I will use dyes, paints and even spray glitter to lend some color to the otherwise bland look of the BB ply.

Bill

 I have had a few customers return after walking around a fair with broken pieces. I exchanged them no questions asked. All were told about how fragile they are. Guess it is part of dealing with the public. 

[Bill WIlson]

7 hours ago, WayneMahler said:

Bill

 I have had a few customers return after walking around a fair with broken pieces. I exchanged them no questions asked. All were told about how fragile they are. Guess it is part of dealing with the public. 

Mine are all gifts.  It's a tradition that started about 25 years ago and has grown to the aforementioned 100+ annual qty.  Some of them are given to family members for them to give as gifts, so there are many people who have gotten them for years that I've never even met.  If I were selling them, I would do something like Rolf does and put them in a jewel case.

[CharleyL]

I too have had this problem, Marg, to the point that I prefer using Baltic Birch or similar veneer plywood whenever cutting pieces thinner than 1/4", but I cut 3D ornaments from 1-1 1/2" hardwoods and rarely have problems.  These Christmas Ornaments were all cut form solid woods and are about 1 X 1 X 3"  in size. They are fragile,  but I have never had one break while cutting it. I usually have breakage later when I drop them. These were cut on my DeWalt 788 using Flying Dutchman # 1R or 3R skip tooth blades. The wood is hard maple, black walnut, mahogany, and ash, all domestic USA hardwoods. The photo is from my cell phone.

Charley

 

 

[Rockytime]

Very good looking!

[bandaideman]

Sorry Marg but as a comedian years ago used to say Beauty is skin deep but ugliness goes all the way to the bone. So maybe ugly wood is better since it looks that way all the way through and you know what you got. But it probably doesn't mean the same with wood. 

[fredfret]

Marg,

I have seen many people make some very detailed cuttings in exceptional highly figured woods. In my opinion the beauty of the  wood and the pattern were both destroyed. Detailed patterns for plain wood simple patterns for detailed wood. That is only my opinion.  Sorry your piece broke at least it was repairable.