Chinaberry Bar Top

[WDH]

I am making a bar top for a lady.  She came by to look at the different wood options.  I showed her thick stock in walnut, white oak, pecan, and maple.  She saw some 6/4 chinaberry slabs and decided that she wanted the chinaberry because the color would match the reclaimed SYP she was using for the ceiling.  They added a sun room to the house that connects to the kitchen.  Where the old kitchen window was at the sink, they created an opening to the sun room.  The piece I am making will extend from the old window sill above the sink into the sun room to function as a bar that someone can sit at and visit with the cook in the kitchen. 

I have never made anything but a stool out of chinaberry.  It was pretty easy to work with and that surprised me.  It has very large, coarse earlywood pores and very small latewood pores creating a very strong grain pattern.  There is a pronounced textural difference between the earlywood part of the board face and the latewood part.  You can see that in the pic.

I used the "faux thick" technique that I have shown here before where I cut off about 2" of the end of the board, turn it back under, lining up the growth rings, and glue it on.  This gives the appearance that the board is twice as thick as it really is.  The top finished out at 2 1/4" thick.  I thought that I would post a pic for those of you in the South who have not seen chinaberry wood or worked with it.



 

[wildbill]

i didnt think you could do anything with chinaberry trees except burn them.  i have a couple in the back yard and hate almost everything about them except the shade they provide over parts of the garden

[thecfarm]

The real question is,Are we going to see it in her house?

[mesquite buckeye]

Looks nice. ;D

[WDH]

Wildbill,

When you come to see me in a couple of weeks, I will show you some. 

Ray,

I sure hope that we will see it in her house  .  I am sure that she will like it. 

[thecfarm]

I will be waiting to see your mighty fine work in her house.  ;D

[POSTON WIDEHEAD]

Shiplap. 

[bama20a]

 I am sure that she will like it. 
If she don't then bless her heart she has problems :'that do look nice.
I remember in another topic where you explained the faux thick " technique,(I believe it was on a table you built for your daughter,?)
Do you remember were? I'd like to see more on the technique.Thanks Mark,,,

[Axe Handle Hound]

Very nice!  I don't believe we get Chinaberry up here, which is maybe too bad because that's a pretty piece of lumber.   It almost looks like a cross of butternut and cherry.  I really like the edge detail you put on it.   

[PC-Urban-Sawyer]

I am sure that she will like it. 
If she don't then bless her heart she has problems :'that do look nice.
I remember in another topic where you explained the faux thick " technique,(I believe it was on a table you built for your daughter,?)
Do you remember were? I'd like to see more on the technique.Thanks Mark,,,

Mark,

Search is your friend...

I think this https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php/topic,58511.msg851424.html#msg851424 is the topic in question.

Herb

[pineywoods]

Very nice.. I've sawed some, it is indeed beautiful wood. A chinaberry log that will produce boards like that is rare. By the time they get big enough, they are usually hollow and rotten. Decided on what kind of finish yet ?

[WDH]

I am leaning to 100% tung oil.  It is food safe and water resistant.  It will likely ne finished once installed.  That way any fasteners used to attach it to the base can be plugged and sanded, then finished. 

[Dan_Shade]

the wood in the picture looks kind of like cherry...  does it look like that in person?

[WDH]

No.  The grain is way too strong.  Here is a pic of a slab just off the mill.



 

[WDH]

Mark,

Here are two more links for projects that used the "faux thick" technique.  The first is where Scott Smith made a beautiful quartersawn red oak dining table.  Look at the pics in the beginning of the thread and go to the one where he shows the finished table top and you can see the end grain.  See how beautifully he matched up the growth rings on the end.

https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php/topic,60909.0.html

Here is one where I made another kitchen island, this one out of quartersawn white oak. In reply #14 in this thread, you can see the kitchen island top and the end grain where the same techinque was used.  A pretty good grain match here as well.

https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php/topic,62486.msg923348.html#msg923348

[Dan_Shade]

the grain definitely stands out more in the second photo.

I like the color

[bama20a]

Thanks for the come back. That was some good reading that I'll bookmark.

[POSTON WIDEHEAD]

I'd love to have a slab of that Chinaberry......take a check?  ;D

[PC-Urban-Sawyer]

I'd love to have a slab of that Chinaberry......take a check?  ;D

Now, David, you know WDH doesn't like checks, that's why he uses AnchorSeal!

Herb

[POSTON WIDEHEAD]

I'd love to have a slab of that Chinaberry......take a check?  ;D

Now, David, you know WDH doesn't like checks, that's why he uses AnchorSeal!

Herb

[WDH]

If you have a sawmill, you don't buy lumber.  Something is wrong.  Is this a scam  ???.

[POSTON WIDEHEAD]

If you have a sawmill, you don't buy lumber.  Something is wrong.  Is this a scam  ???.

Press 1 do be remove from my calling list.  ;D or stay online for some more great offers.  poston-smiley

[WDH]

Pic of bar top installed with wrought iron supports.  Sorry the pic is in poor focus. 



 

[thecfarm]

That does look mighty fine.   ;D  The brick part,I don't know.

[WDH]

It used to be the outside wall.  A sun room was added.