infinite_monkey Posted May 5, 2004 hey all just wondering out of interests sake if any one has uncovered any ingenious methods of grinding/pulverising etc, various types of tree bark for other various types of activities, tried a few myself but just take such a long time and never seem to break it up to much, maybe im just being pedantic in trying to get it as small as possible. oh this is probably in the wrong place but having decision issues today so here it is [ 05. May 2004, 14:38: Message edited by: infinite_monkey ] Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Beaker Posted May 5, 2004 I use a large metal file... I rub the bark up and down the file like it is a grater.. This gives you VERY fine powder... Cheers Beaker Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mescalito Posted May 5, 2004 Can't remember the name of the woodworking tool,but it's like a big cheese grater with a handle each end Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Torsten Posted May 6, 2004 garden mulchers are great for getting managable size. then a coffee grinder. Cheesegrater for wood = plane Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
infinite_monkey Posted May 6, 2004 some one uggested a good ol blender but chopping the bark up a bit first (though something tells me is that all you will get is fibre jammed in the blades) but a coffe grinder never thought of that one, thought about file or plane/cheese grater for wood/file, but damn that would take a long time Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mescalito Posted May 6, 2004 Umm...Chip slicer for wood = Plane Edit: Rasp is the word!! [ 06. May 2004, 02:42: Message edited by: mescalito ] Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
planthelper Posted May 6, 2004 first when stripping the bark of the wood, make sure you produce wide and long strips of bark. after a few days its dry enough to be grinded. the chees crater thingy is called a "cabinet scraper" and the old ones, with the wooden handle can be bought at market fairs (they were used for airplane builing in the war, thats why there are soo many in oz). the new ones are metal only and are sold at the hardware shop. but any planer will do the job, naturaly electric planers are saving you a lot of ellbow grease! and thats why long and wide strips of bark are better, you can feed them directly into the planer saving you hours of time!! be carefull not to get your fingers pulled into the blades!! the planer needs to be securly fixed to a bench or so and the hole where the chips come flying out of the planer must be positioned in a way that allowes you to catch and save the material. btw, some bark comes with some soft corky stuff on the outside, just rub it off and discharge this soft stuff, as it does not contain much actives. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Andrew Posted May 7, 2004 Granma,s old meat/fish mincer works well for withania roots.You know the ones,they clamp onto the edge of the table or bench and you wind them with a handle.Dont see them around much these days,I guess electric food processors took over. A surform might work,its like a rasp with holes right through it so the material comes through the back of the working face.Just realized that planthelpers cabinet scraper is probably a surform,to me a cabinet scraper is a flat rectangle of steel with a wooden grip attached to one side(my old man is a cabinet maker/french polisher/carpenter and joiner from the old days. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Andrew Posted May 8, 2004 just thought of another similar tool called a spokeshave.Obviously its purpose is shaving the wood off a wooden spoke for cartwheels etc. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
planthelper Posted May 8, 2004 i used the word spockeshave in parts of my post which i deleted. spockeshave is an often used wrong term for cabinet scraper. the wierd thing is, the cabinet scraper is a special planer in fact, but called a scraper. the spockeshave was used for wheel making but, has a scraping action and not a planer action. btw, i used to be a pro cabinetmaker & french polisher. [ 08. May 2004, 17:25: Message edited by: planthelper ] Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Andrew Posted May 9, 2004 I,ve always thought that a spokeshave would be good tool for the exterior shaping of a didgeridoo,not that I,ve made one myself(I play). I,d really like to have a go making one but its hard to find suitable logs around here,I need to travel a couple of hours down the coast to find termites.One day I will do it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
planthelper Posted May 9, 2004 yep, i used them for dige making, because you can follow any lunps and bends with it! for the rough shaping i used the arbortech system from the tool shop plus angle grinder. the inside of the dige is cleaned with metal rods, metal rods with chisle attached to, and chiseling. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
