| Mesquite Block M-1144 2" x 2" x 24" 2.8 lbs. This is a hefty 2" x 2" Mesquite spindle. The overall color is the warm reddish brown of Mesquite heartwood. We've cut a number of these spindles, and the grain pattern and characteristics vary from piece to piece. We take photos of each individual piece, so please look carefully to inspect the piece you are choosing. Mesquite characteristically has wavy grain with occasional knots. Some of these pieces will have cracks, either ones that formed during growth (age-blackened) or during processing -- you can treat these with CA glue or fill with epoxy. Or you can cross-cut the spindles to avoid them entirely. There are also patches of bark and wane on some of these spindles, so please review to make sure you are OK with any complexity. The bark is beautiful and can be preserved in the finished turning, if you wish -- best to secure it with CA glue. Some of these pieces have scuff marks from our sawblades or a bit of surface discoloration (Anchor Seal) that will sand or turn off as you work the piece. This is a GREEN to partially air-dried blank, meaning that it still retains a lot of its original moisture from when it was a living tree. It has been well-sealed with Anchor Seal and is in the process of slowly drying. It was heat-treated to kill off any hungry critters that may have been burrowing inside. It was measured at 25% MC in May 2022. If you need a current moisture content, please message us and we'll check its status for you. We take more than 3 photos of each piece, so please scroll down through the pictures to see all of them. You can enlarge and zoom in on these photos, if you'd like to really see the grain. Mesquite is beautiful wood, and we are sure you will enjoy it! About the Tree This Texas-grown Honey Mesquite tree was harvested in El Campo, Texas in March of 2022. It was cut down by the city for reasons unknown to us, and we were happy to help save the tree from a burn pile. It is possible that this tree was damaged by the Valentine's Day Freeze that Texas suffered in February 2021, which is when our state lost a lot of beautiful trees in an unusually deep and long freeze. You can feel good about this American-grown hardwood being responsibly harvested and turned into beautiful art by YOU. The tree was in healthy growing condition, with a minimum of bug damage and a nice healthy girth to the trunk. There is some minor evidence of fire damage, perhaps from a campfire, near the base of the tree on one side. It may have been in a fairly protected area such as a city park, as the Mesquite is less twisted and gnarly than trees grown in open pastures. The grain looks generally long and straight and of excellent quality for green or dried turning. |