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Pirhana pine

Steve68

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Or is it Parana pine????

A friend of mine has just given me two good sized off cuts and it may be just thick enough for a few pen blanks. Has anyone worked with it and does it turn / finish ok?

Cheers,
Steve.
 

Phil Dart

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It both turns and finishes OK if you accept that it's pine, albeit not as soft as the stuff we're used to seeing in the UK. So sharp tools, and plenty of sealer before your final finish, otherwise it just soaks in.
 

Steve68

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It does have some nice red streaks running through it which is why I thought it may make a nice pen blank. I'll give it a go tomorrow if I have time.
 

Penpal

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Amazing how much attention we give to victory material for pens then its a lucky dip.My quest has been grain ,grain. Same amount of effort great rewards.

Peter.
 

martin.pearson

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Haha, that brought back memories, I made my Mum a sewing box using Parana Pine when I was at school, she still uses it to this day over 45 years latter lol
 

lignaterrae

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I'll echo comments above, it's a lovely timber especially when streaked with red. Turns beautifully between centres. It's no longer harvested as the trees are now threatened so reclaimed stuff is the only source.
It is (was) from the state of Parana in southwest Brazil, growing in cool subtropical mountain areas. While called 'pine' it is not a pine at all but an ancient order of conifer that evolved very early in Earth's history, 250 million years ago and before the dinosaurs appeared. They look like Monkey Puzzles and are closely related to them. The wood looks nothing like a typical softwood, it's reasonably dense, approaching that of ash in some examples and lacking obvious growth rings. It looks for all the world like a great quality, fine textured hardwood.

I love it (if you hadn't already guessed !)
 

silver

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I have a pen that my dad made using it, was one of the last he did.

It's a really nice wood and gave a great load away not so long ago.

If I remember Bill Mooney did some slimlines earlier.

From what I remember is it's a pain to turn as the red veins are very hard and need to keep chisels sharp.
 

Penpal

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I'll echo comments above, it's a lovely timber especially when streaked with red. Turns beautifully between centres. It's no longer harvested as the trees are now threatened so reclaimed stuff is the only source.
It is (was) from the state of Parana in southwest Brazil, growing in cool subtropical mountain areas. While called 'pine' it is not a pine at all but an ancient order of conifer that evolved very early in Earth's history, 250 million years ago and before the dinosaurs appeared. They look like Monkey Puzzles and are closely related to them. The wood looks nothing like a typical softwood, it's reasonably dense, approaching that of ash in some examples and lacking obvious growth rings. It looks for all the world like a great quality, fine textured hardwood.

I love it (if you hadn't already guessed !)

Many thanks mate for your input here on this timber I often go into detail about some of the timbers I use and why for the same reason,it might open a few doors when you come across it elsewhere.

Kind regards Peter.
 

Woody

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I had tons of it ripped out of an old building that we demolished 4" x 12" in 12 ft lengths I think it is an amazing wood especially on larger items the grain is very fine and quite dense personally I love the stuff and it takes a great finish from polish or oil so go for it and enjoy
 
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