Australian #26Z Platypus Gum tree wood - PEN blanks raw/diagonal cut

- Sold in packs of 4 blanks

Blanks size of approx 21mm square X 130mm long

250gr. Pack x 4 blanks

NOTE: This listing doesn't offer pack(s) choices, blanks/packs are too identical to require such method so, simply select "Add to cart" and then select the number of packs you want, on the "quantity" window.

This Platypus Gum wood, was the start of a great relationship we have had with Nick, our auto-mechanic since we met in 2005.  He burns lots of firewood but he doesn't know much about trees, even though he planted most of the trees in his new property, when he purchased it about 20 years ago.  

He is Italian so, Olive trees had to be part of his plantation, working a couple, of areas for his Olive grove spots, something that he worked pretty hard on to get them to start producing and doping well in that terrain.  

The place had a few older trees, one of which was a old Platypus Gum tree that was living in the exact spot where he wanted to built a house for his 3 your soon's and wife so, the tree had to come down.  All this happen many years before I moved to this area and met Nick but one day, while I was there for a vehicle service, he mentioned about some very large wood discs that were cut from that Platypus gum and that he only recently found out there, the tree people that done the job and where in charge of cutting all the wood into firewood sizes, they left a few of the larger disks from the tree trunk base, intact/not split/cut into smaller pieces and simply covered the up with tonnes and tonnes of the wood cut from that very large tree.

He asked me if I was willing to come down one day with my gear and get those discs off the soil (half buried from the weight of the wood they put on top, through all those years...!) and cut it all into firewood sizes., I said sure, I can do that even before I saw what he was talking about.

Before I left, I went and had a look, with my wife Merissa and I spotted some colour in the wood that was not you normal Gum colours so, I grabbed my small chainsaw that I carry in the vehicle at all times for the "just in case...!", cut a piece of it and realise that, I wasn't going to allow him to burn that lot so I offer him to swap those discs with some Red gum already cut, and after I told him why, to him the wood colours didn't matter at all, and the Red Gum is the most prized firewood sourced in these areas.

I returned a day later with my trailer loaded with the red Gum wood and, after I emptied the trailer, I cut the slices of the Platypus Gum in half for easier handling, put the in the trailer, assisted by my helper wife and we come home, happy with the chance to have some of that old wood that I had only seen in small/younger trees, some of which he also planted after he had to remove the old tree to built the house.

Him and the wife that died of breast cancer in 2005, planted plenty of trees all over the place, far too many but they knew that some wouldn't survive and other would develop well so, the idea was to plenty twice as many to what they needed (land could accept) wait 10 years and they make the selection of what was doing the best and cut the other stuff.

Merissa and I, endup being his tree people and lots of new tree species and all sorts of stories come out of that place until just recently, our job that is pretty much done, the place looks good now and we may not be able to do any more of that sort of work due to health issues so, out friend Nick, may need to find someone else to continue taking care of his property trees...!

We may not be in the position to do any of that work anymore but, there are a few trees there that, when is time for them to come down, I'm pretty sure, our friend Nick will make sure that, the best logs suitable for wood work, will come to our place...!

As for the wood itself, the colourations found in this old wood, are not found in younger trees, I know, I cut a few of them and the wood is not even close to this one so, I make sure nothing is wasted, it won't last forever, but I enjoy working with it and continue to make some unique blanks out of it, until the last piece is used...!

The diagonal cut blanks such as those listed here, are extremely difficult to obtain, the wood has veins of hard resin throughout and spoil most of the boards that have the size to cut the diagonal blank from most of the wood is mostly usable as straight grain pen blanks...!

Thank you for visiting