Bradford Pear

I did note what appeared to be inclusions in the edge of the finished piece that had the appearance almost of wood filler in a tone that didn’t quite match!

Bradford Pear Exterior Inclusions

I knew perfectly well that I had not used filler and I couldn’t imagine that the vendor who had sold me the blank would have done so prior to shipping.  I took a high resolution photo and sent it to the guys over at Got Wood and asked if they had any idea what I might be seeing and they weren’t 100% sure but speculated that it might be insect damage of some sort.  Regardless of the cause I find the effect to be a nice one in that the piece is certainly unique and there will never be another bowl exactly like it.

Bradford Pear Interior Inclusions

I enjoyed working with Bradford Pear and would gladly work with it again if the opportunity presented itself.  There are literally hundreds, if not thousands, or ornamental Bradford Pear trees planted near my house in rural northwestern Georgia and as people remove them when they fail, which they inevitably will, perhaps more Bradford Pear wood will enter the marketplace although I expect that many tree removal professionals are not aware that there is a potential market for the material and they may fail to make it available to smaller mills that would be pleased to have it for processing.  I have one additional rough turned Bradford Pear blank and it is entirely possible that I have additional stocks somewhere among my hundreds of blanks in various stages of drying, but as for now I couldn’t lay my hands on them.  Perhaps in years to come I will be pleasantly surprised to find additional stocks of this very nice and fun to work with wood either when one of my favorite wood suppliers restocks or when I find some hiding in my stacks and stacks of turning wood.

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!