J cinerea Range Map<\/p><\/div>\n
For the sake of simplicity and common understanding I will hereafter refer to J. cinerea<\/em> as Butternut.<\/p>\n The heartwood of the Butternut is most often a light to medium tan color that on occasion may have a slightly reddish tint.<\/p>\n The growth rings of Butternut are dark and for a fairly distinct grain patter. Butternut sapwood is yellowish white.<\/p>\n The sapwood of Butternut is usually a pale yellowish white.<\/p>\n Butternut grain is most often straight. Butternut features a medium to coarse texture with a silky natural luster.<\/p>\n In terms of decay resistance, Butternut is rated as moderately durable to non-durable, so this is not a great choice for outdoor applications. Butternut is also susceptible to insect attack.<\/p>\n Butternut is easily worked with both hand and machine tools.<\/p>\n However, being so soft, Butternut has a tendency to leave some fuzzy surfaces after planing or sanding, and sharp cutters and fine-grit sandpaper is recommended.<\/p>\n Butternut glues, stains, and finishes well.<\/p>\n Butternut has virtually no scent or odor when being worked.<\/p>\n Butternut is available in both lumber and turning\/carving blank formats. One should expect to pay mid-range prices for Butternut in comparison to other domestic hardwoods.<\/p>\n In this blog, I almost always recommend several vendors with whom I have done considerable business and in whom I have great confidence. These vendors are: West Penn Hardwoods<\/a>, Bell Forest Products<\/a>, NCWood<\/a>, WoodTurningz<\/a>, Amazon Exotic Hardwoods<\/a>, Griffin Exotic Wood<\/a>, Exotic Woods USA<\/a>, Got Wood?<\/a>, and Wood Turning Blanks 4U<\/a>. Note: ALWAYS green turn wet blanks from NCWood as their wax will not hold for extended drying periods.<\/p>\n At this time none of these vendors are selling Butternut bowl blanks, however WoodTurningz is selling standard pen blanks for $0.95 and Got Wood is selling 2” x 2” x 6” spindles for $2.25, on sale, with only 14 in stock.<\/p>\n Butternut is proving to be elusive, however, a simple Internet search reveals several potential vendors of Butternut but I don’t have any direct experience with any of them.<\/p>\n Woodfinder<\/a> is an excellent website that is dedicated to advertising wood dealers. In your search for Butternut, this can be an invaluable resource provided you use multiple search terms to capture all the possible listings. I can’t speak to the quality of any of the listed dealers, but Woodfinder does have the advantage of allowing searches to be performed based on location which might allow an interested buyer to visit a listed wood dealer in person to hand pick pieces at a comfortable price.<\/p>\n A significant problem with using Woodfinder is that many vendors are listed for woods that, upon further investigation, they do not offer. I don’t know if perhaps once they did and they didn’t update their listings or if some vendors use a standardized list of woods that include most everything conceivable with the idea that once you land on their page you will find something you want to buy even if you didn’t know it beforehand. It happens to me all the time!<\/p>\n Butternut finds a range of uses including, but not limited to: veneer, carving, furniture, interior trim, boxes, and crates.<\/p>\n Butternut is not listed as being endangered by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) Appendix II<\/a> nor does it appear on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species. <\/a><\/p>\n However, many Butternut trees in North America are currently afflicted by a fungal disease (Sirococcus clavigigenti-juglandacearum<\/em>) known as Butternut canker. The rapid decline of Butternut has prompted the US Fish and Wildlife Service to list it as a species of federal concern. The tree is protected in Canada.<\/p>\n “Species of concern” receive no legal protection and the use of the term does not necessarily mean that the species will eventually be proposed for listing as a threatened or endangered species.<\/p>\n I realize that inherent in working with wood is the killing of a part of the natural world that may be slow to return and if I become deeply concerned about this fact, I will have to find a new hobby. I hope that such a time does not come to pass or at least not any time soon. In part because I am concerned about legally and responsibly obtained wood, I am reluctant to buy from sellers outside of well-established and known vendors. I am highly unlikely, for example, to purchase any wood from auction sites, such as Ebay, because of uncertain sourcing and documentation, as well as the potential, even likelihood, of material being misidentified in order to achieve a higher selling price.<\/p>\n However, due to the commercial scarcity of some woods, resorting to auction sites such as Ebay or Etsy may be the only way to obtain some desirable domestic, or in some cases exotic imported, species that are not routinely commercially harvested. The potential risks of buying in these marketplaces have to be balanced against the desire to work with a specific species of wood. That is inherently an individual decision.<\/p>\n I also realize that many, if not most, wood workers do not have endangered species lists memorized, therefore I think it worthwhile and important to do even a small amount of research before purchasing any lumber, domestic as well as imported, to be certain of the potential impact you are having, even in a small way, on threatened or endangered populations. This information is easy to come by and takes only minutes to locate through any Internet search engine, including those you can access on your phone as you are standing in the lumber yard or store. Unfortunately, you simply cannot count on a vendor to tell you a product they are selling is endangered.<\/p>\n Aside from the usual hazards posed by wood dust, no further health reactions have been associated with Butternut. As always, caution is essential until you are certain you are not sensitive to Butternut.<\/p>\n It is important to remember that although many people may, or may not, be sensitive to any given wood, the only experience that truly counts is your own, so use reported side effects as guidance but not as a substitute for cautious and safe practices.<\/p>\n Appropriate protective equipment is therefore always recommended when working with this, or any other, wood, exotic or domestic, unless you have worked with the species before and are certain you are not sensitive to it.<\/p>\n Complete information about health hazards<\/a> associated with a wide variety of exotic hardwoods is available from The Wood Database<\/a>. Additional information about how to best use a dust collection system and personal protective equipment, such as respirators, can also be found through this excellent and comprehensive resource.<\/a><\/p>\n Fortunately, I experienced no negative side effects when working with Butternut.<\/p>\n This is my first time turning Butternut and I was excited to give it a try as I greatly enjoy working with other Juglans<\/em> woods.<\/p>\n My Butternut blanks was labeled as such by the vendor and based on the warping it was clear that it was dry. The purchase date of 2014 also encouraged me to believe it was well dried.<\/p>\n Butternut Interior<\/p><\/div>\n My Butternut blank was of the right general color appearance but it was certainly much harder than the 740 Janka Units listed for Butternut in the Wood Database. There was no fuzzing when I cut it although there was a significant amount of fiber lift when cut across the grain. It didn’t tear out but the extremely coarse texture didn’t respond well to cross grain cuts. It took well over TEN pieces of sandpaper at 60 grit with concentrated and focused area sanding to bring the interior and exterior to an acceptable smoothness.<\/p>\n And my Butternut had a delightfully sweet and spicy scent, sort of like walking into a bakery that even my husband noticed when he walked through the shop. But the Wood Database reports that Butternut has no odor.<\/p>\n Butternut Side View<\/p><\/div>\n In my experience, this Butternut behaved most like Mulberry, certainly not a soft wood. Hmmmm, I am forced to think that what was sold to me as Butternut was not the same wood as profiled in the Wood Database, J. cinerea. <\/em>I do not know if “butternut” is the common name of another tree that grows in the southeast but that seems one possible explanation.<\/p>\n At any rate, if what I worked with really was Butternut, then thanks, no thanks, I would decline to work with it again in the future. The amount of effort was much to great for the reward. The “Butternut” bowl is attractive enough but for the effort expended and the materials cost associated with making it, the Cherry and Claro Walnut bowls I made in the same batch were easier to make, cost less in supplies, and are as equally beautiful, and perhaps more so in the case of the Claro Walnut.<\/p>\n The more I turn the less patience I have with turning blanks and species that test the limits of my patience. This is meant to be a hobby, not work. Blanks and species that make it feel like work are not going to have a welcome reception in my shop in the future.<\/p>\n All that said, I don’t think that I worked with really was Butternut so take my tirade for what it’s worth; probably not much as I am probably ranting against an entirely different wood! I have other blanks labeled as Butternut and I will be curious to see if they handle the same as this blank did.<\/p>\n All cuts were made using the Easy Wood Tool<\/a> system on my Robust American Beauty<\/a> lathe. Forward chucking was in a Nova Chuck,<\/a> while reverse chucking was done using a Nova Chuck with Cole Jaws<\/a>. Sanding was with Gold and Green Wave sanding discs from Packard Woodworks<\/a>. Final finish is Shellawax<\/a>.<\/p>\n As always, I wish all my readers a great experience in whatever your wood working interests happen to be and to those who like working with lathes especially, do a good turn today!<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" At any rate, if what I worked with really was Butternut, then thanks, no thanks, I would decline to work with it again in the future.\u00a0 The amount of effort was much to great for the reward.\u00a0 The \u201cButternut\u201d bowl is attractive enough but for the effort expended and the materials cost associated with making it, the Cherry and Claro Walnut bowls I made in the same batch were easier to make, cost less in supplies, and are as equally beautiful, and perhaps more so in the case of the Claro Walnut.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":175,"featured_media":2979,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[135,128,136,137,129,138,139,130],"tags":[154,168,171,181,183,200,210,217,230,239,240,241,244,252],"yoast_head":"\nGeneral Characteristics:<\/h2>\n
Working Characteristics:<\/h2>\n
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Common Uses:<\/h2>\n
Sustainability:<\/h2>\n
Health Hazards:<\/h2>\n
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