# Chinese Tallow



## Lou Currier (Jun 24, 2017)

Has anyone turned Chinese Tallow? There is a whole pile...should I grab some?


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## rocky1 (Jun 24, 2017)

I don't know but everyone seemed interested when I threw a stabilized spalted tallow blank in the pen swap box. Danny said it was the first one he took out of the box. Speaking of which, I have several more of those I need to get listed.

Crotch in it has some really nice tendencies Lou. Blank I threw in the box looked like it had a lot of potential.


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## JR Parks (Jun 24, 2017)

The CT I tried was softish and uninteresting. Crotch wasn't available I did not let it spalt so maybe Rocky has something -


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## Tony (Jun 24, 2017)

I've read somewhere on here that someone did and liked it, I've got a tree in the back yard that I think will be coming down in the next year or two so I'll see then. Tony


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## rocky1 (Jun 24, 2017)

Wasn't finding anything in search here so I Googled it... 

Turning Chinese Tallow - Google Images - Yeah, you will probably want to rescue it tomorrow after looking at pictures!

Little info on turning it here...

Interesting site here - on carving canes out of Tallow - @ripjack13 (_since you asked about carving last week_).


Don't eat the leaves Lou! 

Uses:
Ingestion of plant material causes gastrointestinal upset with nausea and vomiting. Contact with the
plants can cause dermatitis (Westbrooks & Preacher1986). The milky sap in both the leaves and the
berries is poisonous to animals (Redlus 1997). Sheep and goats have been known to eat the leaves of
Chinese tallow, but the plant is toxic to cattle (Jubinsky & Anderson 1996; Russell et al. 1969). 

https://plants.usda.gov/plantguide/pdf/pg_trse6.pdf

Reactions: Way Cool 1 | Informative 2


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## Lou Currier (Jun 25, 2017)

Grabbed a few pieces last night...one big trunk piece with a partial Burl ball...tried to find its mate to no avail  another turner probably got there before me.

Reactions: Like 1


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## JR Parks (Jun 25, 2017)

Wow. Rocky - none of mine looked like that. Mine was dirty white and plain. We cut them out of our parks as they are an invasive species. Better keep checking- Photos from web

Reactions: Agree 1 | Informative 1


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## rocky1 (Jun 25, 2017)

Yeah that's kinda where mine went too Jim... The stuff I set aside looked mostly white, was exceptionally wet when I sealed the ends, and the entire log turned a dirty Gray. It was however crotch, therefore has at least some interesting grain, and wasn't all bad. Once sawed into blanks, and stabilized, it seems to have some interesting qualities about it. 

The stuff I found on Google was beyond pretty interesting, as was some of the reading on turning it. Definitely enough to make a guy want to set a few logs back and save it. 

Might be a good candidate for spalting Lou, maybe chat with *@sleevecc * he sells spalt cultures, may have some experience with Tallow and could point you in the right direction to find bowls like those above.


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## Lou Currier (Jun 25, 2017)

I know one thing...the flies LOVE it!

Reactions: Agree 1


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## Wilson's Woodworking (Oct 26, 2017)

rocky1 said:


> I don't know but everyone seemed interested when I threw a stabilized spalted tallow blank in the pen swap box. Danny said it was the first one he took out of the box. Speaking of which, I have several more of those I need to get listed.
> 
> Crotch in it has some really nice tendencies Lou. Blank I threw in the box looked like it had a lot of potential.


I turned that the other night on a cigar kit and will be getting a finish on that group of pens by this weekend. I will post a picture when it is finished.

Reactions: Like 1


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## Lou Currier (Oct 26, 2017)




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## barry richardson (Oct 26, 2017)

My wife's former house had a big chinese tallow tree in front, was considering taking it down (really messy trees) I think I googled those same images and was stoked, but the arborist talked us out of it. I have no personal experience turning the wood though...


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## Wilson's Woodworking (Oct 26, 2017)

barry richardson said:


> My wife's former house had a big chinese tallow tree in front, was considering taking it down (really messy trees) I think I googled those same images and was stoked, but the arborist talked us out of it. I have no personal experience turning the wood though...


I would love to have an exotic tree that needs removed in my neighborhood. All I have around here is maple, Walnut, boxelder, hackberry and the likes.


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## Tony (Oct 26, 2017)

Wilson's Woodworking said:


> I would love to have an exotic tree that needs removed in my neighborhood. All I have around here is maple, Walnut, boxelder, hackberry and the likes.



Danny, I have a giant Chinese Tallow that needs to come down. Cut down one of those big walnut trees, bring it down and I'll happily trade you. Tony

Reactions: Like 1 | Funny 1


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## Wilson's Woodworking (Oct 26, 2017)

Tony said:


> Danny, I have a giant Chinese Tallow that needs to come down. Cut down one of those big walnut trees, bring it down and I'll happily trade you. Tony


I have slabs of Walnut cut and drying. You get that Tallow tree cut and will work a trade on some crotch pieces.

Reactions: Like 1


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## Wilson's Woodworking (Nov 3, 2017)

Here are four of the blanks that I got out of the trade earlier this year. The gray cigar pen is the Chinese tallow. Wow did it ever turn out. Looks much better in person.

Reactions: Like 1 | EyeCandy! 1 | Way Cool 1


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## Tony (Nov 3, 2017)

Nice pens Danny! That honeycomb one jumps out at me. Tony

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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## rocky1 (Nov 3, 2017)

That's Corn Cob! What part of the city did you grow up in!!!

Reactions: Funny 3


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## rocky1 (Nov 3, 2017)

Nice job Danny! 

That Tallow blank was sweet, glad to see it turned as nicely as I suspected it would! Do have a bit more of it stabilized with some figure that shows some promise. Dyed one batch green, and that looks like it could be interesting as well.

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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## Tony (Nov 3, 2017)

rocky1 said:


> That's Corn Cob! What part of the city did you grow up in!!! View attachment 136571



My eyes ain't what they used to be.......

Reactions: Funny 1


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## rocky1 (Nov 3, 2017)

You been reading too much!

Reactions: Agree 1


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## Tclem (Nov 4, 2017)

AKA popcorn tree

Reactions: EyeCandy! 3 | Agree 1 | Way Cool 1


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## andymccrory (Jan 1, 2018)

I was given some from a club member cause he was allergic to Chinese Tallow. It was a nice spalted piece. The first piece turned out a beautiful bowl. The next piece I turned made my throat close, eyes water, and sneezed for a couple hours. Even with breathing protection, I am too scared to turn the nice rounds I still have on the shelf....

Reactions: Sincere 1


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## andymccrory (Jan 1, 2018)

I found a pic before I finished the bowl....

Reactions: Like 3 | Thank You! 1 | EyeCandy! 3 | Way Cool 4


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## DKMD (Jan 2, 2018)

andymccrory said:


> I found a pic before I finished the bowl....
> 
> View attachment 139201



That looks a lot like sweetgum that I have seen locally... pretty stuff!


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## Tclem (Jan 2, 2018)

andymccrory said:


> I was given some from a club member cause he was allergic to Chinese Tallow. It was a nice spalted piece. The first piece turned out a beautiful bowl. The next piece I turned made my throat close, eyes water, and sneezed for a couple hours. Even with breathing protection, I am too scared to turn the nice rounds I still have on the shelf....


Same issues for me.


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## ripjack13 (Jan 2, 2018)

Send everything you guys are to askeerd to turn and stuff you're alergic to, to me. I'll take care of it. I aint lergic to nothin....


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## Digginestdog (Feb 3, 2018)

Wilson's Woodworking said:


> I would love to have an exotic tree that needs removed in my neighborhood. All I have around here is maple, Walnut, boxelder, hackberry and the likes.


 
Danny, let's not get carried away here about Chinese tallow. It is a weed tree, haha, not an exotic. They do have beautiful Fall color, but as someone mentioned already, they are messy and nasty to have in your yard, hence, I kill all of them in my yard before they get too big, and they come up everywhere. You're lucky to have those hardwood trees. That said, I do like the grain pattern in the pen below or above (sometimes I don't know where I am, haha), and the gray color is okay. Any of us in Florida should be able to help you find a Chinese tallow (also known as a "popcorn" tree due to the bazillion white popcorn-looking seed pods they produce each year). Glad someone tried working with it first, now I'll start looking for some. Another wood that I discovered by accident was Photinia, more commonly known as Red-tipped Photinia. I haven't had a chance to compare it to anything, but judging from the weight of it, it should be hard. Now, I have a few crotch pieces of that already cut. It's normally planted as a privacy hedge, but if you let it go, it will grow into a tree, and the one I cut down had already destroyed the eaves of the house where it was planted. One of my next projects is to go back and dig up the stump.


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## Lou Currier (Feb 3, 2018)

I have a bunch


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## Digginestdog (Feb 4, 2018)

Lou Currier said:


> I have a bunch


Lou, you got a bunch of Chinese tallow?


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## Lou Currier (Feb 4, 2018)

Digginestdog said:


> Lou, you got a bunch of Chinese tallow?



Yes


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## rocky1 (Feb 4, 2018)

Yeah, but you have to load it, Lou's not allowed to pick up anything heavier than his.................................................................. ink pen! 
And, Tony thought I was going to say something else there!

Reactions: Agree 1


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