So, I ordered 20 board feet of purpleheart expecting to get the usual 3 to
6 inch widths. Got some of that, but also got one board 12 inches wide
and 66 inches long. What a surprise. Now I just need to figure out what
to do with it. Clearly something decorative. I was going to build some
boxes thought purpleheart and maple would look good together.
dgadams
On May 30, 7:23 pm, dgadams <[email protected]> wrote:
> So, I ordered 20 board feet of purpleheart expecting to get the usual 3 to
> 6 inch widths. Got some of that, but also got one board 12 inches wide
> and 66 inches long. What a surprise. Now I just need to figure out what
> to do with it. Clearly something decorative. I was going to build some
> boxes thought purpleheart and maple would look good together.
>
> dgadams
What a great buy! Whatever you do- don't cut that board up to make
smaller projects. The gods of woodworking would smite you mightily if
you did.
Maple and purpleheart are great together. I'm preparing to chose wood
for a lap harp today and I'm looking forward to seeing what I have in
my lumber stack. I haven't been in there much the past few years- so
it will be a surprise. I'm hoping there may be a nice piece of birds-
eye maple and I'll laminate that with some purpleheart, or padauk.
Not that I need any more wood- since I have accumulated enough to last
me two lifetimes, but I have to ask- from where did you get your wood?
Donna Menke, author, The Ultimate Band Saw Box Book
On May 30, 8:23 pm, dgadams <[email protected]> wrote:
> So, I ordered 20 board feet of purpleheart expecting to get the usual 3 to
> 6 inch widths. Got some of that, but also got one board 12 inches wide
> and 66 inches long. What a surprise. Now I just need to figure out what
> to do with it. Clearly something decorative. I was going to build some
> boxes thought purpleheart and maple would look good together.
>
> dgadams
Personally, I don't like combination of purpleheart and maple. Beside
the lighter wood, purpleheart looks like Oscar Meyer bologna or
something.
Jeff
A 12" wide piece of purple heart??? Sounds like it's time for you to buy a
scrollsaw!
"dgadams" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> So, I ordered 20 board feet of purpleheart expecting to get the usual 3 to
> 6 inch widths. Got some of that, but also got one board 12 inches wide
> and 66 inches long. What a surprise. Now I just need to figure out what
> to do with it. Clearly something decorative. I was going to build some
> boxes thought purpleheart and maple would look good together.
>
> dgadams
dgadams wrote:
> So, I ordered 20 board feet of purpleheart expecting to get the usual 3 to
> 6 inch widths. Got some of that, but also got one board 12 inches wide
> and 66 inches long. What a surprise. Now I just need to figure out what
> to do with it. Clearly something decorative. I was going to build some
> boxes thought purpleheart and maple would look good together.
>
> dgadams
Put the rip blade on the tablesaw and rip it into the usual 3 to 6 inch
widths. Then you'll know what to do with those!
Mmmm... No.
Maybe a purple sofa table?
In article <[email protected]>,
[email protected] says...
> So, I ordered 20 board feet of purpleheart expecting to get the usual 3 to
> 6 inch widths. Got some of that, but also got one board 12 inches wide
> and 66 inches long. What a surprise. Now I just need to figure out what
> to do with it. Clearly something decorative. I was going to build some
> boxes thought purpleheart and maple would look good together.
Indeed they do -- the combination can be stunning. One caveat, though: a
few others have warned here that purpleheart turns brown with age. My
experience (and that of most of the people who have posted on the
subject) is the opposite: that it's brown when fresh-cut, and develops
its rich purple color through exposure to sunlight. The consensus seems
to be that there are two varieties of purpleheart, one which ages brown,
and one which ages purple. Probably best to verify which you have before
using it in a project.
Cut a small piece off of the board(s) you want to test, and expose the
test piece(s) to sunlight. If the fresh-cut surfaces started out brown,
and turn purple in the sun, they will [probably] stay that way.
A Google Groups search on purpleheart in this newsgroup should locate
the earlier discussions.