Persimmon and pear trees

[Gouge]

My father has some property in Anderson S.C that he is about to retire to. There is a couple of pear and persimmon trees that he is going to cut down. What would be some good uses for this wood?

Mark

[prizzim]

Don't know about persimmion, but Pear is really good for grilling and smoking meats. Unless you found a burl, or some good crotch figuring, I'm guessing it's not to fancy a wood, and as with all fruit woods, it's bound to be a little on the soft side. Grill on!

[Sweany]

pear is great for smokin' my favorite.

Persimmon is one hard wood. They use it to make golf club heads.

Some of it is real purty. Makes good mauls or straightening clubs like Tai posted.

[Phillip Jones]

Persimmon is a close relative to Ebony, I think.

It's a good hardwood. Looks good when stained black to more closely resemble Ebony.

[BDK]

hey mark the persimmon will make a great self bow. if your into archery. boo

[homesteader]

Persimmon is indeed the dense wood some use for wooden clubs. Pear on the other hand, is relatively soft. It does have one incredible property though. The grain is so tight and uniform it almost doesn't appear! hmmm...dis-a-pear? Anyhoo, you can cut it as easily cross as with grain, and it holds incredibly fine detail. As a result, many model ship builders use it for tiny carvings.

[Gouge]

Thanks for all the input guys. How should I process the wood. What should I do to make it usable? Should I dip the ends in wax? Should I put it in a drying cabinet? Leave the bark on or off?

Thanks

Mark

[Crex]

Mark,
Persimmon is an ebony, Dirospyrus virginiana (sp), not quite as dense as the black stuff from across the seas but a very usable wood for handle material.
Cut it over size to rough usable dimensions and dip the ends in wax (like I did with that osage). Put it up in a dry place and "sticker" (put spacers in between for air flow). Attic is a great place to cure out.
The heart wood is chocolate-grey brown and quite atractive, sepecially if you cut the burls and crotches for figure. Don't leave it on the ground long, Long horn and flathead borers love the stuff as do pinhole borers. Make sure you get the bark of asap.
The pear can have some nice figure, in places, (remember the dagger I showed you at Trackrock, the wooden sheath was pear) and it can be cured the same way. It is much softer than the persimmon.
Bring some down to Trackrock and I'll trade you some osage.

Carl Rx

[Fox Creek]

Pear wood would be great for wood cuts, for our members that double as two dimensional visual artists.