Post #131825 by SCTikiShack on Sun, Dec 19, 2004 8:36 AM

Aaron's Akua,

I am fortunate to have easy access to a vast supply of redwood. In the winter time hundreds of logs wash up on the beach by my house. However, sometimes these logs have rotton spots and will mess up your carvings. I've had to gorilla glue many tikis to keep pieces from falling off. Fortunately the stuff is so strong that you never have to worry about it again. You can actually mix it with a little sawdust to match the color of your tiki.

About a year ago, one of my best friends purchased 18 acres of raw land in the Santa Cruz mountains. In the process of building an access road several tress had to be cut down. About half of these trees were milled using a portable Lucas Mill. The smaller logs < 1 1/2ft diameter and some special larger pieces I got to keep.

I'm not sure if you ever used redwood or not. I think it is one of the best woods to work with. It's two dimensional characterstic helps add depth to your carvings, it is rather soft, and bugs don't like it. I think they find those tannins are yucky. The only drawbacks are that Redwood only grows in certain areas of the world and can be very expensive to purchase (Which you probably already know). Since these trees are so large,ancient and beautiful I think it is bad JuJu to cut them down solely for monetary purposes. This is why I always get trees that have already fallen and give them a new meaning/life. You wouldn't believe all the resources that I see while I am mountain biking around here the only problem is the access.

I think I hear my little 11 month year old son waking up so I have to go. I will tell you the stolen tiki story shortly when my family permits.

Thanks,
Will