I turning a small burl and i not sure what kind of tree it is from. I think it is a gray or black birch. Are black and gray birch the same tree? The wood smells like menthol. The burled wood is translucent yellow and becomes a golden color when exposed to air. Is this an oxidation process? The wood is green. What kind of movement can I expect from the wood when it dries? The burl is small and oddly shaped. In trying to maximize the burled wood I choose to incorporate the heart wood. Does birch heart wood check a lot?
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birch identification?
- Thread starter victortmina
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- May 16, 2005
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Sweet Birch, some call it black birch or cherry birch. Smells like wintergreen. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sweet_birch
Birch moves a lot, but cracks little if you take it to a reasonably thin section and shape. I use 1" max for 16, 3/4 for 10" and things make it inside a 3/8 wall when I'm done.
I don’t know the answers to your species questions but I have worked with paper birch. I don’t know how it is related to the varieties you mention. Its’ pith is tight and stable, but with green wood there is significant radial shrinkage, as with all green wood. I have successfully turned natural edge end grain goblets from it and as long as it is cut thin enough, the side walls flex with the shrinkage rather than split. The pith remains solid and tight.
- Scott
- Scott