Knowledge You Can Build On — Est. 1998
Arizona Aligator Juniper Bowl
Dennis Bilevich PRESCOTT AZ
>The Bowl is 8 inches in dia. 6 inches Tall and 1/4 inch thick. Finished with 4 coats of Watco Clear and Beall buffed. The bowl was turned real wet and soaked in DNA with Dave Smith's instructions. Bowl was completed in 4 weeks and had no cracks or warping. Juniper is very hard to turn due to the fact that it will crack when working with it on the lathe.
Still learning how to photograph.
All comments and critiques are welcome.
Re: Arizona Aligator Juniper Bowl
GaryG in MD
>Dennis,
Nice work. I think your interesting shape makes excellent use of the character of the wood -- much of which might have been turned away with a simpler form. What exactly is "alligator juniper"?
Born in Bisbee,
Gary
Re: Arizona Aligator Juniper Bowl
Jennifer@Indy.USA
>Hi Dennis,
In the 7 years I lived in AZ, I never even knew what woodturning was. Had I known, it would have been fun to turn some of the wood that's found out there. This looks like a prime example! A fun shape that has a lot of character. I'm curious about the name of the wood. Why Aligator Juniper? Have you eve turned creosote? I dont' think it gets big enough, but it might? I loved the smell of creosote after the rain.
I use to do a lot of mountain biking around Prescott. What a great place to live. It was one of my favorite places to just hop in the car and drive to from Phoenix.
Jen
Re: Arizona Aligator Juniper Bowl
JL
>Pretty with lots of character. What the heck is an Arizona Alligator Juniper?
Re: Arizona Aligator Juniper Bowl
Jeff Schrader
>For this type of Juniper, the 'Alligator' refers to the way the bark looks - a lot like alligator skin. It is abundant in north/central Arizona. The burls are beautiful as well, with lots of eyes.
Re: Arizona Aligator Juniper Bowl
Jennifer@Indy.USA
>Thanks Jeff....I'd never heard it called that. Very interesting.
Jen
Re: Arizona Aligator Juniper Bowl
Dennis Bilevich PRESCOTT AZ
>Thanks for all the responce. Dennis
Re: Arizona Aligator Juniper Bowl
Howard Norman-Prescott, AZ
>Jen, there are two junipers that are common in Arizona. The Alligator Juniper that was used here and Shaggy Bark Juniper. The Shaggy Bark Juniper is just that, the bark comes off as long thin strips almost like hair. The Alligator bark looks like the skin of an Alligator. I have several Alligator Bark trees on my property here.
Howard
