Because the bowl blank was rough turned and then air dried, it had distorted a fair amount. To make it possible to mount it for turning, it was first turned between centers to create a viable reverse chucking area. Once that was done, the process was very similar to turning any wood bowl blank.
The wood is quite hard, reported as harder than Oak, Hickory, or Ash, so patience is certainly required. Because the wood had distorted there was a good bit of bouncing and otherwise rough work in the beginning, however, once the piece was reasonable round the wood cut cleanly if slowly.
The Pistachio sanded well if slowly as would be expected from a dense hard wood. It took a beautiful finish with Shellawax.
The coloration and grain of the Pistachio is frankly stunning with lots of rich contrasting color and swirl. It is easily one of the most beautiful woods that it has been my privilege and pleasure to work with.
My only regret is that the wood is so limited in its availability and so expensive when it is available.
I firmly intend to contact the vendor I purchased my blanks from to obtain more once I finish working with the ones I already have. If any interested wood turner can locate a source of Pistachio I would HIGHLY recommend giving it a try. Just be patient, use sharp tools, relatively slow speeds until you have it well rounded, and be prepared to be blown away by the beauty of the finished piece.
As always, I wish all my readers a great experience in whatever their wood working interests happen to be and to those who like working with lathes especially, do a good turn today!