Stash Photos - Your very favorite piece

[Burl Source]

The thread about walnut lovers got me thinking.

A lot of you knife makers have a stash with exceptional pieces of wood, stag and ivory that you are saving for just the right knife.
I forgot to mention meteorite as well. I know a lot of you guys have been stashing some killer slabs for bolsters and such.

Maybe you would share a photo of what you have hidden away. I'm not talking about your whole stash, but maybe one or two photos of something exceptional to make the rest of us envious.

From what I have seen so far, Roger has everyone beat with the piece of Koa he has stashed.

Feel free to post your address and where the pieces are hidden as well.

 

[billf]

I don't have alot of pictures of my wood stash...but here are a few Koa shots

The third one is the most amazing figure I've ever seen in a piece of Koa - Burt Foster actually said it was too nice to cut into a knife handle

The 4th piece is 2.5" x 9" x 60"....

none of them are sanded finer than 80 either, so just imagine ....

Bill

 

[Burl Source]

Dang Bill!
What did you do?......mug a Hawaiian Ukelele maker. That is some awesome Koa. Especially being only lightly sanded and looking that good. #3 is no good though. Better send it to me for disposal.

 

[billf]

haha

I have a friend who is a cabinet maker on the Big island !

My wife thinks I am insane, since I have possibly the biggest stash of Koa outside of the 50th state..stickered in a spare bedroom

I also have a couple huge pieces of Killer amboyna burl, some big pieces of ironwood, Masur Birch and curly ebony..no pics, though

Bill

 

[Burl Source]

haha

I have a friend who is a cabinet maker on the Big island !

My wife thinks I am insane, since I have possibly the biggest stash of Koa outside of the 50th state..stickered in a spare bedroom

I also have a couple huge pieces of Killer amboyna burl, some big pieces of ironwood, Masur Birch and curly ebony..no pics, though

Bill

I checked your profile and it doesn't tell me where you live. But I do know the good stuff is stashed in the spare bedroom now.

If you want to impress your wife, you might let her know that the good figured Koa is selling for $100 a board foot and up. That is wholesale direct from the mill. ....and when you can get it. They are putting more restrictions on the cutting of koa so my guess is that you made a pretty good investment.

 

[RogerP]

I've seen some of Bill's stash in person and those pieces are to die for. That one piece of flame Koa - man, I don't think it can be topped.

Here is part of a killer Koa board I picked up some months ago:

And a nice walnut gunstock currently inbound:

Would love to see some stash pics from others!

Roger

 

[Burl Source]

Roger,

I never can get good photos of Koa but I can imagine what yours and Bill's pieces look like in person.

Does your koa have as much red as shows in the photos?
I have found some of the red stuff will have color changes from red to gold, brown and olive colors as the light hits it from different angles. More like a gemstone than a piece of wood.

 

[RogerP]

I'd say my piece is more golden than red - not as red as the photos suggest, but definitely every bit as curly and the chatoyance is off the scale. But then I have only had one piece finished out and it was for a display piece of the wood only:

I had a couple blocks stabilized - one of which should be getting on a knife soon. I'll be interested to see how it finishes out.

Bill's flame piece had a lot of vibrant orange and red.

Roger

 

[billf]

The red stuff is pretty rare I think

I've gotta say, though, that for tight fiddleback, I think Roger's piece is the best I've seen ....but he lives too far away for me to "repo" it - haha

I live in CT....but I gotta warn ya, I have 2 ferocious pound puppies guarding the stash....

I do have some stag and mammoth ivory....but from what I've seen of the Hanson stash, I'm not even going to embarrass my little pile by showing it....

 

[SBranson]

Wow that's some nice stuff Bill and Roger. Bill, that #3 piece is just crazy.
And Roger, that piece of walnut... well I can't wait to see that on a knife some day.

 

[Shaughnessy]

Heres a few for ya fellas. I share my stash once in awhile with other makers tho.

 

[billf]

Bubinga?

pretty nice !

 

[RogerP]

Shaughnessy - your stash is enviable to say the very least. That walnut you posted in the other thread was spectacular. What type of wood is that in your first pic?

Roger

 

[Shaughnessy]

1) Pomelle Sapelle
2) Natural Box Elder Burl
3). Quilted Maple
4). Double Dyed Box Elder Burl.

Oops forgot this one from across the pond....Karelian Birch

 

[Shaughnessy]

Roger, thanks I do like walnut a lot. I have a ummm..."wood fetish" I guess. Knife handles, furniture, picture frames, turnings, anything in exotic wood.

-Larry

 

[Kevin Jones]

I have some very nicely figured Ironwood and Cocobolo blocks (my favorites for wood knife handles), however haven't shot them.
Might do so if I can get some good natural light over the next couple days.

Here's some mammoth scales awaiting just the right handle:

And a nice piece of amber sambar stag which will find it's way to a big southwest bowie:

An ancient Walrus tusk fashioned into a sled runner. I will use this in making a Bowie display stand. About 15" long:

 

[ddd]

Here are pictures of two "stashes".
One, of fossilized ivory from various sources belonging to
Andre and Michael Anderson (Sweden), and the other of some blocks
of stabilized wood that I photographed in Edmund Davidson's workshop...

All the best,
David Darom (ddd)

 

[Burl Source]

Lately I have been fond of Koa as well.

This is not the high grade fiddleback stuff like Roger has. More of an oddity but I like how it looks.

Here is an attempt to show what I am talking about with the color changing red Koa. It is a much more dramatic change when seen in person.

The wood in the background is white fiddleback koa.

 

[RogerP]

^^^ That one piece on the far left is gorgeous.

Roger

 

[Russ Andrews]

Roger's Koa chunk is exceptional...!

My "stash" piece is roughly 17" X 4" X 1 5/8"....Just waiting...

This is the supplier's photo...