Paulwonia...

General Discussion
1

Got this as an e-mail…

 

Subject:**

**Extremely rare Paulownia Tometosa 22"-24" widths sigle slabs!**
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**Wanted to see if you were interested in some very rare paulownia Tometosa. 
I harvested a massive 50-75 yr. old paulownia tree that was more than 48'' across.
I have made a few boogie boards  and an Alaia, but wanted to find someone who has more skill and appreciation for what I have.
I know how rare a find these are and almost feel bad when I shape them, learning how to shape for the 1st time with something so rare.
I have 7 slabs that are 22"-24" wide. I had to cut the monster in half, so I could cut it so there is no pith from the center to worry about.
I also have about 50 pieces that are 8.5"-13"+ by 96" long for 2 piece boards.
Everyone I've talked to has never even heard of such a large tree!
I wanted to contact a few professionals before I put them up for sale online.
I've included a few pics for you.
I know how rare these pieces are and just want someone with more skill to shape them and share them with others.
I doubt you will ever see any boards like this more than once or twice in a lifetime!
Thanks for you time,
Thomas ___________
(e-mail address witheld)
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2

Why would you mill it with a saw to small for the job??? With no specific plans for the timber

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4

paul,

do you know the source/person ?

that would be my first concern.

herb

5

So, he found a rare 50-75yr old tree and went and cut it down, knowing full well how rare it was?. Why?. Im no greenie, but shit if he knew it was in his own words “rare”, why cut it down?

6

 

I asked about price...
**The Paulownia I have was planted by a G.I. after returning from Japan after the war. So it was most likely planted in 1945-1946.**
**I harvested the trunk 2 years ago. The monster log was more than 4 foot across!**
**In fact in order to cut it on the bandsaw mill I had to half the log.**
**There fore the woods color, uniformity and strength is very good.**
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**I am a cabinet maker, and wood aficionado. I love exotic and one of a kind type materials.**
**When I came across the paulownia I just had to have it.**
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**Some of the board makers have said that they cut their wood down to 6" widths so the width didn't matter.**
**As much time, energy, effort as well as my fondness of wood. **
**I'd actually like to know if you would be able to show off the rarity of the widths of the wood, or would you be hacking it up into little pieces?**
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**I believe it's Paulownia Tometosa.**
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List of what I have

 

7/4 Board

7.5” x 96”

6/4 Board

12.5” x 98”,

42”x11”-16” tapered

 

 

5/4 Board

11” , 7.5”,11”,12 ¾”  by 96” length

2 owl boards, they kinda look like owls really great grain rouded tops w/ a tapered bottom.

 

 

4/4 Board

6.5x102,

 12.5x102 (5pc) some splits

 6.5x102

8”,8.5”, 11” (4pc)

6.5”,10 7/8”  (2pc)

10 ¾”(5pc), all by 96”

  42”x 22”(6pc) cupped a little

 43 ½”x 19.5”(2pc)

 42 ½”x 19 ¾”(2pc)

10”-14”x42” tapered

 11 ½”- 21 ½”x 42” tapered

 

 

Odd size

12 ½” x 96” x 5/8”

10” x 42” x 12/4

 

 

Smaller Boards 4/4

8.5” x 42”(6pc)

10” x 42”

 11” x 44”

 8.5” x 46”,

9” x 64”(2pc),

8.5” x 64”(8pc),

9 ½” x 96”,

 

 

 


Slabs
17”x96”x 5/4”
17 ½”x 96” with small taper 2 ft. from end
20 5/8”x 96”x 5/4”
20 ½” x 96” x 6/4”
2 pc 20 5/8” x 96” x 5/4”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

91 b.f. in the smaller boards

276 b.f. nice boards 

100 b.f. slab monsters

 

 

I know that Alaia blanks go from $150 (they look like cheap flooring) to $300 (for a blank that is 3 pieces).

With the pieces I have I could glue up 20-22 blanks $6,000-$6,600 knowing that 2 piece blanks are more beautiful and valuable than several pieces.

The slabs are harder to value as it's tough to tell what something you can't get is actually worth, but I'm sure I could get $500 per 1 piece blank. 6pieces x $500 = $3,000

 

 

So if I sold them individually I believe they'd have a $9,000-$9,600 value.

But as a whole lot I'd be willing to sell them for $4,000.

I know that that's a lot more than the going rate for common Paulownia, but these are very uncommon pieces, and would add an huge premium and value to any board that was made from them.

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7

I would love to get my hands on that if it is real, but his price being based off of blanks versus BF tells you something

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Paulownia itself , is not a siutable timber for slabbing. A tree that old would be far denser than a much younger tree , therefore missing out of one of paulownia best virtues , which is its relative lightness compared to most other woods.....12" wide boards are about the maximum width needed for surfboards , if your into bookmatching or grainmatching......but narrower widths are far more practical , and easier to process.........paulownia , being fast growing and relatively available and affordable , will always serve many practical needs.......but in the surfboard world it will always be poormans balsa.......

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[quote="$1"]

 

I asked about price...


The Paulownia I have was planted by a G.I. after returning from Japan after the war. So it was most likely planted in 1945-1946.
I harvested the trunk 2 years ago. The monster log was more than 4 foot across!
In fact in order to cut it on the bandsaw mill I had to half the log.
There fore the woods color, uniformity and strength is very good.
 

 

[/quote] This sounds a bit dodgy !!!!....a paulownia tree left unmanaged , will regularly throw out suckers from its base and seeds from higher in the tree and become an environmental disaster.....There is a rural property not far from me that has been almost totally devstated from an abondoned plantation.....unless this 4ft wide tree was pruned for many years , you would need a d6 dozer to cut a path in to cut it down !..........

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I dunno, call me skeptical.  He talks repeatedly about the rarity of his wide slabs, but if you chambered the board, or ripped it and built a fishbone hws, then it really won't matter, as you will be ripping the slabs anyway. (And if he's a cabinet maker, doesn't he know you rip wood lengthwise, not "hack" it?)

So, what is he suggesting, that you build a solid wood board?  If you do, then weight would be an issue.  What would a solid paulownia surfboard weigh - 50 lbs, 75 lbs, or more?  Plus, does anyone really go gaga over a wide piece of paulownia?  The stuff I've seen has a pretty nondescript grain. 

It all just sounds a little hard-sell to me (I couldn't see the pictures). 

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Good point Huck. In Australia , paulownia has been pitched into the market at the maximum price that the market will bare......its way over priced. It grows much faster than pine ,and so,should be cheaper.......but the general market price is 4 times higher than pine.....the problem is , that it is not grown in enough quantity to make it viable for larger timber merchants , so they class it as a "boutique" timber and charge more for it. This also discourages its wider use , and makes it only viable in niche markets , like surfboards for instance....it does have some nice qualities, but not enough to class it as a sought after cabinet timber. If it was priced sensably , it would encourage more plantations..........and I'm sure it would be put to many good uses.....

12

Yeah, I got that email too. The guy is sending me a small sample. I’m guessing he is not going to like the price I offer (if the material is any good) based on what he wrote about alaia blank prices…