Exotic wood projects

[Xray]

Got these 10 or so strips of exotic wood a few weeks back, finally had a chance to do something with them.

Been working 12-16 hr shifts 7 days a week for almost 2 months, so haven't seen much of my scroll saw lately.

Got these off ebay, I thought they were a bargain. 12 inches long x 4 inches and from 1/4 to 3/8, they are perfect for some of the small objects I like to make, such as this arrowhead/wolf design.

Came out pretty nice, I stack cut 3, and they were rough on blades, I must have went through 6 or 7 spirals to complete.

Don't think I'll stain these, grain looks so nice I think just a clear coat will do.

Wood is Morado, Yellowheart & Paduak - Think I'll try some of that Zebrawood for my next project.

 

These strips range from $2 to $5 or so, and the seller will ship you 10 or so for $10 flat rate Priority, not bad, heres the link if anyones interested.

http://shop.ebay.com/sago901/m.html?_nkw=&_armrs=1&_from=&_ipg=&_trksid=p3686

[toolbeltman]

Nice work there xray ...thanks for the tip on buying wood and thanks for sharing your project with us...

[Oges]

Nicely done, the timbers look great, I wouldnt stain them either.

[Eagledrum70]

Very nice xray and I agree with Oges i wouldn't stain that beautiful lumber either . of course that is just my opinion.

[Xray]

Nope no stain, that would be the wrong move for wood such at this.

But a clearcoat I am going to try.

BTW, I am very satisfied with this seller, but if anyone knows any comparable/cheaper sources, please share.

I already know I want to stock up on some more of this.

[amazingkevin]

NICE FIND AND GREAT WORK NO MATTER WHAT YOU DECIDE THEY WILL LOOK GREAT!

[Oges]

Timber looks nice, but the postage to Australia would be a killer.

I have a supplier here in Australia who has a good variety of timber and caters to the thicknesses needed for a scroller, they are up in Queensland so not sure how they are fairing with the floods up there.

[Xray]

Here they are with gloss coat and black velvet backing.

Gloss coat really brought out the colors.

I'm working on another wolf design with more exotics including zebra, but problems with my saw is really holding me back.

[DWSUDEKUM]

Great Job on using the strips Xray. Thanks for sharing them with us.

 

DW

[amazingkevin]

excellant job doing the detail cutting.that wolf sure looks great!

[Xray]

Yeah I'm satisfied with them, especially considering that I'm working with a hobbled saw.

The dark one looks great, cam didn't pick it up too well ... Would probably look better with a white or gray fuzzy background instead of black, for some contrast.

[cjswoodcrafts]

xray. nice cutting, and i love them exotics, zebra wood is pretty easy cutting ( my opinion) i made a keychain for me and my wife and a couple rings out of it, i do have a suggestion about getting exotics, if you have a fairly big lumber yard in or around your town, that sells all kind of lumber, see if they have cull wood (seconds), we did that back in october got a few pieces of exotic, bought all their cull for 50 bucks for 2 trash cans full and what was on the ground by the trash can, alot of usable wood, most just had small cracks in em. if you dont know of any lumber yards that sell all kinds of lumber, google for your town and surrounding areaas, we had to travel towards atlanta (65 miles) to get the cull..

[Xray]

I agree, I got to search around.

Home depots I think put many lumber outfits out of business, theres got to be some around.

Theres a Woodcraft store not far from me, I know they sell exotics, probably at exotic prices too, but I'm going to check them out.

[toolbeltman]

I bought a piece of Paduk and a piece of American Walnut at Woodcraft 3"x15"x1/8"thick cost over $24 for the two....very exotic I would say..

[Oges]

I keep meaning to look around for timber/lumber places here to see if I can pick up some seconds or leftover pieces that are too small for them to use. Also need to check for some kitchen places that use Corian, see what they do with the sink cutouts etc.

 

I did find a skip bin place near me that allows people to go through their site and salvage any timber they would like. I havent gotten around to visiting there yet to see what sort of timber they have. Most of it comes from houses and building that have been demolished so im expecting it to be mostly pine, but may find others. Its free, so it couldnt hurt to take a look some time

[mikesscrollsaw]

I looked at the ebay link and compared it to woodcraft for pricing....

 

woodcraft is about 80 to 90 dollars per board foot for the 5 different ones I looked at...this guy is selling the same thing for about 17 to 25 dollars a board foot.

 

guess where I'm going shopping? thanks for the link

[Xray]

Glad to hear, Mike.

Never bought exotic before, I had the feeling the prices were lower than what I could expect most anywhere else, even figuring in the shipping.

I'll be buying some more soon as I get my paypal account juiced up a bit.

[cdrover]

I looked at the site for the lumber, prices seem reasonable with a great assortment. I am thinking I will place an order. I have always used 1 inch stock for intarsia with very little selection to choose from. , that is all I can get locally. Thanks for sharing.

[Xray]

I just ordered another batch, he says hes expecting to be offering even more in the near future, including mesquite, macassur ebony & redheart

[mikesscrollsaw]

I ordered several types but havn't paid him yet, sent him a message asking for combined shipping but he hasn't replied (been 3 days)

 

[Xray]

I'd say try again, hes answered me a number of times, usually within an hour.

Sometimes messages get lost in the system, or unintentionally ignored or deleted by recipient.

[mikesscrollsaw]

it's a big screw up.....for some reason he says I have an international address listed (germany) and is trying to charge me 50 shipping, I tried to tell him I don't live in Germany, I live in kentucky but he's not getting it, just keeps saying, international shipping is expensive.....and he says he sent an invoice twice but I never recieved either.....we're going back and forth with emails now, he wont' call me, seems like he's getting upset in the emails...... so this should be interesting

 

[Xray]

Odd.

If the info hes get from ebay says you live in Germany, that sounds like something you should clear up.

If your address is not verified, most sellers will refuse to ship, as they will not be covered in case of a loss.

You probably already knew that, sounds like a communication breakdown.

I had an invoice within hours, and wood on my doorstep in 3 days.

[mikesscrollsaw]

my wife changed the address on paypal to germany so she could ship something there for a friend....but she made it the primary address

 

I had to fix that and send him a new request for an invoice. I think he might have been thinking I was trying to scam him or something.

 

should be worked out now.

 

oh what fun technology can be

[Xray]

It is ultra easy to get into mixups via the internet.

Sellers get burned one or twice, get jaded, and assume anything amiss amounts to a scam attempt ... Buyers too.

Indeed, sometimes it is.

I'm a ebay power seller so I have some experience with things like this .. Sellers are forced to take paypals shipping info as gospel, and don't have

much leeway accepting anything else but what info they send you.

 

A little patience & understanding on both sides is necessary, and most misunderstandings will be cleared up if both sides remain clam and factual.