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+-- Thread: Bradford Pear (/showthread.php?tid=7353594)
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RE: Bradford Pear - handi - 03-16-2020
When I lived in TN, my neighbor lost a couple in a storm.
I grabbed some blanks. Turned to rough shape green (fun but wildly messy!) then let them finish drying and finished turning them. Came out beautiful.
RE: Bradford Pear - Arlin Eastman - 03-17-2020
Aram made a box from some in handtools,
I have never turned it before but heard it is nice to turn.
RE: Bradford Pear - AHill - 03-18-2020
(03-16-2020, 12:50 PM)WoodworkerTom Wrote: It's more popular in Europe. Pink in color, muted grain. Might be good for turning or box making.
Not the same as the European pears. Bradford pear is Chinese, and it's non-fruit bearing. It's a junk tree, IMO, since it grows very quickly, damages easily in high winds and cold, and doesn't have a long life. Unfortunately, landscapers like it because it grows fast and has those beautiful white blooms in the spring.
European pear, also known as Swiss pear, is fruit-bearing and is a marvelous wood for turning and carving. The pink color in European pear comes from steaming the wood after milling. Swiss pear is also used in flutes and violins.
RE: Bradford Pear - TomFromStLouis - 03-19-2020
If you like cherry then you will love pear wood. Like cherry it is a close grained fruit wood and it is a bit harder and tighter grained than cherry. It darkens from the pinkish hue over time to a more neutral tan color but it carves and turns like a dream. Some curl is likely near branches and crotches.
It will want to warp a lot as you dry it so consider cutting thick boards you can flatten after drying.