The Holy Grail of Rarity, Woodturning a Grass Tree Root

Comments · 5.7K

• MI

  @mikeholton · 3 years ago · pinned

  Hi All, I realise that I do not mention in the video how much I paid for the root, this was because at the time I had not told my wife 😃 I paid £120, which is by far my most expensive purchase of a single piece of wood. All the best, Mike.

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• PE

  @PeterLawrence-mi4zx · 3 years ago

  In Australia where they tend to come from they are now getting hard to get as they are protected. Extremely slow growing and a stump this size could be hundreds of years old ,when clearing the land 50/60 years ago we just burnt them by the thousands, a unique smell. They grew on sandy soil up too several metres deep

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• SA

  @sandyalexander · 3 years ago

  Grass Tree used to be called "Black Boy" (but that is no longer PC). A species of Xanthorrea found in Australia. The core you have there is probably 300 - 500 yo. The colour can range from an uninteresting yellow through to beautiful reds to black. The dust is carcinogenic so good dust mask is essential.

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• BO

  @Bodorgan19 · 3 years ago

  Not only is the grass tree slow growing but it's extremely rare to end up with a usable woody section like this. They often are full of brittle resin voids or just break up with age. An extremely unusual piece.

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• PA

  @patembry6625 · 1 year ago

  I didn’t think I liked all the dots but with the natural ends I really like it, yes it is beautiful. Amazing how the swirl pattern came out, lovely.

• BI

  @bigtimef150 · 3 years ago

  I could feel the anxiety the whole time he was turning this. I love the finish. Too often people  go straight for the gloss on exotic wood and imho it looks to "plastic". Mike you nailed this.

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• BE

  @benvasilinda9729 · 3 years ago

  As someone who owns a tree business in the US(Florida) I actually got into the business just to make money but wound up having an immense respect for wood and it’s uses. I now save wood from trees that I take down that I know will be of value years from now. I keep it to deal with later when I’m older and have more time for it. Ur videos are just proof of that.

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• CA

  @camplethargic8 · 2 years ago

  Metal wristband and long sleeves around a rotating machine gives me the dread shivers.

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• BO

  @bow-tiedengineer4453 · 3 years ago

  I definitely think the satin finish was a good decision, when you were first turning it I wasn't a fan of the texture of the wood, and when it was glossy it didn't really look right either, then suddenly it looked nice. The live edge is gorgeous too, I'm glad you managed to keep it. I've certainly never seen wood like this! Glad you shared this project with the world.

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• UN

  @UncySpam · 3 years ago (edited)

  I grew up on a sheep farm in central western NSW. We had hundreds of acres of these trees. They are very slow growing (2” in height a year, less in drought) and very hardy. They send up a spear of flowers each year. They will stop flowering and need a bushfire to regenerate every 6-7 years. The local mob (gamillaray) called them Bingah Wingul.<br>Never imagined I’d see someone using a stump of one for turning. Glad I stumbled across your channel!

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• AR

  @ArtifexExMachina · 3 years ago

  That grain really looks amazing. Didn&apos;t know the woody core of plants like this can be turned, I always thought they would just turn into a fibrous mess.

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• ST

  @stereomike75 · 2 years ago

  My only quibble is that you didn&apos;t explain why a grass tree root is so rare and what&apos;s so special about it and where it&apos;s from etc. Very interesting though.

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