[Regia-NA] Re: [RANA-Members] The provenance of wood

[Jim]

Douglas Sunlin wrote:

> [....] has anyone made a business of coppicing ash poles for
> re-enactors? Surely a growth industry! ;)

I've been selling ash poles that I've carved down from square stock.
I start with rough cut 6/4 ash, which comes in 12ft lengths and range
from 5 to 12 inches in width.  I cut the boards in half (6 foot) and
then square off the edges on a table saw.  Then I cut 1-1/4" rips
out of each board and turn each rip a quarter turn and run it through
the saw again so that they are perfectly square.  Next I change the 
angle of the tablesaw blade to 45 deg and cut off each of the four
edges, turning the board from being square to being octagonal. I then
use a block plane to knock off the edges and shape the board until it 
is perfectly round.  To finish the poles I fine sand them and coat them
in linseed oil.
I've been selling my poles at SCA events, along with my period ash
bows.  $30 for round ones that are sanded and oiled and for ones that 
I've left octagonal, saned and oiled.
$10 for ones that are rough cut octagonal, unoiled and have saw marks.
The round poles don't sell, and the finished octagonal ones sell once 
in a while, but the rough ones.
I live in the San francisco area of California, but I might be able to
ship to other parts of N.A. Most of the poles I have in stock are 6ft 
long and 1-1/4" in diameter, but I can make longer ones.

Smithr