My Favorite Types of Wood

Asking an artist to pick their favorite medium or their favorite work of art is akin to asking a parent to choose which of their children is their favorite. Ok, I don't have any children, so I may be reaching a little, but still it is very difficult to choose a favorite. But, I will at least list a few of my favorites, in no particular order.

Amboyna

Amboyna burl is a spectacular wood to work. It has rich red colors with various highlights, browns and creams. Typically, the grain is spectacular, with tight swirls, wonderful eyes and just all sorts of unusual patterns. It almost always yields an amazing looking pen. It is also a predictable wood to work with, usually dense and relatively easy to turn, that is, for a burl. Clearly, a standout in the world or wood.

Redwood Lace

Redwood Lace Burl is a tight-grained wood with exceptional character. Often the wood has a lace like grain pattern, which makes the wood look like it has waves in the grain. The color is typically a red (to orange-red), with deeper brown colors running through the wood. Since it is a redwood, the wood has a characteristic redwood smell when turning the wood. This is a pleasant way to make the shop smell nice. It is a softer wood, easy to turn, but often needs some extra work to stabilize the wood.

Ebony

Ebony comes in a number of flavors. Macassar Ebony, Black and White Ebony and Gabon Ebony are three popular choices. All are very dense wood, which are a bit difficult to drill and turn. This oily wood is also prone to cracking while working the wood, making it a bit more labor intensive. Extreme care must be taken working with Ebony to prevent cracking of the wood due to overheating. But the results are a classic look that is hard to beat.

No matter which wood is being used, all are fun to turn. Each has its own strengths and weaknesses and each yields great results. It is so hard to pick just one favorite, so I will nominate all of them!.