White Ironwood meels
A few days before my 60th birthday, I found a White Ironwood (Vepris Lanceolata) that had shed a large branch. So on my birthday, I cut three sections from the fallen branch, and brought them home. I invited my wife to have a look at my birthday treat. I told her it was in the boot of my car. Maybe she thought I had bought a new kite or kiteboard. She didn't expect to see this!
The wood had a few inclusions, but I thought I could work around it. My main concern was that the inclusions would weaken the handle.
The first club being shaped. The wood looks kind of pink in the picture. But the heartwood is actually a platinum blonde, while the sapwood is a lemon yellow.
The second club being shaped. There is very little information on the Internet regarding White Ironwood timber properties. It is hard and dense, and has a tendency to crack on drying.
The clubs after shaping. They weigh 6.8 and 7.2 kg. I still need to do a bit of trimming, shaping, sanding and varnishing. But I will do that after they have dried out completely.
The picture below gives a better indication of the colour of the heartwood (platinum blonde) and sapwood, (lemon yellow).
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11 November 2014. I filled the cracks with epoxy resin, and did the final trimming, shaping and sanding. I gave each club 2 coats of varnish.
The club on the left weighs 6.2 kg. The club on the right weighs 5.9 kg.
Here are some close up shots. For some reason my computer renders the colour pink, while it is actually a silvery white colour. I will try to get a better picture later.
Another closeup. The wide angle lens on the iPad camera makes it look like a cylindrical club.
Family portrait. My red milkwood CJ2's and my white ironwood CJ3's.