Bad poplar board

[Dan m]

Thank you Michael!

[Dan m]

It cuts better when the bit is turning the correct direction. I've been working with CNC machines for 14 years but this is the first time I've dealt with this error.

GreenManIMG_0557.jpg

That turned out very nice great job! I really like the color of the wood, are you going to just leave it natural and seal it?

I personally like poplar as a option to pine when you're looking for some cheaper material and want to just grab something from Lowes or Home Depot. It also seems to take stain really well.

Dan

[Rcnewcomb]

OK. Poplar is back in my useable list

[jerry carney]

Samples look very nice, I use popular a lot when doing trail cuts, no problems if you condition it before
stainng it. ( nice carvings) Jerry

[edcasati]

FWIW, I have had some luck with Poplar and 3D carving as long as I avoid going with the grain. Carving at a 45 degree angle to the grain seems to work very well. It doesn't hold detail very well, so running a depth of 3mm or more, as you would do on a simple sign is a good choice for this largely knot free and inexpensive wood.

[mtylerfl]

Thank you for your feedback and info, Ed!

[kp91]

Poplar has always been a favorite. The biggest reason was for the longest time I had more poplar than I could ever use. The price makes it a favorite wood for 'giveaway' projects, like these for a Church Summer Bible school.

I have made many of these benches out of Poplar with engravings on the top, and in most cases the owners have decided not to paint them, but let the colors stand as is.

It can be fuzzy, especially in the humid summer of Virginia, but with a sharp cutter it works out OK in the end.

[Jim_in_PA]

Poplar .... I also don’t like boards that have the all to common “green-ish” coloration. .

Note that the greenish color of the Tulip Poplar heartwood turns brown with exposure oxidation.

Like poster kp', I have used a ton of tulip poplar (most milled on my property) and while I agree it's not the best for some CNC work, it's still a very nice species to work with as it can mimic other more expensive close-grained hardwoods with a "good dye job" and finish. It can also mimic pine nicely with the more knotty, lower grade boards but is stronger/harder than pine.

I often use poplar for test pieces on the CNC where I need to check for tweaks before committing to expensive material.