Chestnut Oak Burl - Best Way to preceed?

I have a friend who called me up yesterday, and said bring your trailer...I have a burl I cut for you. So this is what he had done, and I estimate it weighs in at at least 400 lbs. It took 3 men to load it on his ATV cart yesterday, when they were cutting firewood. It is heavy for sure!

I cut this down the pith this morning, and it is about 25" + across the burl. The pith cut does not show a lot of figure, but I think it might have better figure underneath the bark when I get to it. The growth rings are very close together and tight on this, and I anchorsealed all exposed end grain this afternoon. Even with trimming off some of the excess, this burl is way too heavy for me to lift, without possibly doing some damage to myself, and I am pretty strong for my age.

Now, I would like advice from some of you burl specialists that frequent this site. I have done a few burls, but never put one this big on my lathe as of yet, nor as heavy. Would you simply cut the edges to fit on the lathe, attach a heavy duty face plate? Make a natural edge, or a regular type bowl, then take the bark down on the outside exposing the burl figure?
I have a coring rig, so perhaps core it to make some nested bowls? Natural edge if I do it this way, perhaps? I am just looking to get the most out of this, so your input would be most valued and appreciated by me!

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No idea how to proceed with this one Roger as I have never dealt with one that large.
From the pics it is for sure a burl but it's certainly not showing anything very interesting but that could change as you get into it.
If it was me I would certainly core it, especially if it started showing some nice figure.
Good luck with it however you proceed and please keep us updated.

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Originally Posted by daryl moses

No idea how to proceed with this one Roger as I have never dealt with one that large.
From the pics it is for sure a burl but it's certainly not showing anything very interesting but that could change as you get into it.
If it was me I would certainly core it, especially if it started showing some nice figure.
Good luck with it however you proceed and please keep us updated.

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That would make a bunch of pen blanks! :D

Some people might make natural edged bowls, perhaps bland in the middle but figured around the rim. If those deep spikes of dark color are solid and continue all around the burl the effect could be stunning! But it's a guessing game - you never know what a burl will bring until you cut it.

To maximize the figure from around the outside I might consider making a number of shallow bowls or dished platters, the curvature roughly following the outer part of the burl. I might make more radial cuts then based on what I discovered slice off slabs for individual pieces, wax and dry.

I've made a number of these small (10") dished platters which have been very popular, especially when figured. The walnut one in this picture was especially attractive (if I say so myself!) If working from a large burl I'd probably make a much smaller foot.

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If you like to turn smaller things like I do, another option is to cut and dry blanks suitable for turned or flat boxes. When cutting turning blanks from highly figured wood I usually seal all surfaces with Anchorseal.

JKJ