[David D]

hello: I just made this Mule out of a shelf I found in my basement. It is definitely some type of hardwood. I was thinking mahogany but maybe oak? Can anyone make a guess? I think I will attempt some shallow carving and then I will stain and shellac it. Thanks fro looking. David D

 

[Tree Man]

Thats oak. Beautiful mule my friend

 

[SLING-N-SHOT]

Nice looking Mule David, great job, and yep I agree with Chris....Oak

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[Hoss]

Oak!

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[David D]

Thanks everyone for the help. The consensus is that it's oak. I wonder why people use nice hardwood for shelf material? I'll upgrade the usage by using it this way. Once I finish it I will post it again. Thanks Again. David

 

[cromag]

Personally , I disagree with the consensus but that's just my nature according to my bride.

 

[David D]

Personally , I disagree with the consensus but that's just my nature according to my bride.

What kind of wood do you think it is?

 

[Hoss]

Thanks everyone for the help. The consensus is that it's oak. I wonder why people use nice hardwood for shelf material? I'll upgrade the usage by using it this way. Once I finish it I will post it again. Thanks Again. David

I have a woodworking shop and I make alot of shelves and bookcases out of oak. It will take more abuse than soft wood.

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[cromag]

Lack of organization of the pores doesn't look right for oak , maybe light virola. Hard to tell without weight and hardness to measure it , could even be your other possibility of mahogany. Some shiney on it will reveal more

 

[Hoss]

hello: I just made this Mule out of a shelf I found in my basement. It is definitely some type of hardwood. I was thinking mahogany but maybe oak? Can anyone make a guess? I think I will attempt some shallow carving and then I will stain and shellac it. Thanks fro looking. David D

P1030598.JPG

How was it to work with? Oak is a pretty hard wood and a little more difficult to cut and sand.

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[Hoss]

Lack of organization of the pores doesn't look right for oak , maybe light virola. Hard to tell without weight and hardness to measure it , could even be your other possibility of mahogany. Some shiney on it will reveal more

At first I thought of mahogany but looks a little to light in color. I do have to admit the grain is a little different but it my be the way it was cut.

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[cromag]

There are quite a number of species of oak so keep that in mind. Notice how on this red oak the pores continue through the band notches but not on yours , and how the pores are concentrated in what was once the concentric grain of the tree.

 

[cromag]

I'm in the Southwest and the wood we get here is going to be quite a bit different than up North. I did finish carpentry for 40 years here and in the early 80's the door supplier (PMD) began using virola as a substitute finish wood for door casings , jambs and windows which looked much like that in its lighter toned forms. Painters hated it because it stained so much deeper than expected and was pretty soft. It disappeared in about a year and was substituted widely after that with radiata which looked like pine and was cheaper to import from New Zealand than to cut from our own forest because of the treehuggers and the spotted owl.

 

[David D]

hello: I just made this Mule out of a shelf I found in my basement. It is definitely some type of hardwood. I was thinking mahogany but maybe oak? Can anyone make a guess? I think I will attempt some shallow carving and then I will stain and shellac it. Thanks fro looking. David D

P1030598.JPG

How was it to work with? Oak is a pretty hard wood and a little more difficult to cut and sand.

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It cut really easily on the bandsaw although I have just installed a new blade. It was a little harder to sand on my drum sander setup which is a drill press with sanding drums. I had to push a bit. It responded to hand sanding pretty well; not too much muscle to see progress. I stopped at 600 grit. Carving it I will have to see. I will try the Dremel first and knives if that doesn't work.

 

[David D]

There are quite a number of species of oak so keep that in mind. Notice how on this red oak the pores continue through the band notches but not on yours , and how the pores are concentrated in what was once the concentric grain of the tree.

P3300037 (Medium).JPG

I know zero about wood although I can usually tell hardwood from softwood. That's why I asked because there's lots of knowledgeable people like yourself on here. The other pcs I have are all the same width but one side has shallow grooves or channels cut into it so it seems to have been commercially prepped for some purpose maybe, just shelves. I will repost once it's all done and maybe that will make it easier to see what it is. If not, no worries. It will still be a good slingshot.

 

[Rockstar]

Color, coarseness, grain pattern suggests oak imo

 

[David D]

Color, coarseness, grain pattern suggests oak imo

Thanks Rockstar.