@Planck - I really do appreciate all your insights into things 'wood'. The woody material is very fine fiber. I can turn the top layer and it comes of as a mat while chips are flying out from in between, so to speak. It also doesn't stick to everything. The dust is not statically charged like the Rosewood was. 3 stems of Rosewood is more dust in my office than a year of turning quince. That is a very interesting finding as it may have further implications.
The Madrone/Manzanita wood is a really good lead from
@danielj . When I turned it, it was very much like the quince. That is readily available with a quick 60 mile drive to the coast.
There is a connective tissue between fibers. I think a nail in a fully hardened and dried piece of quince would just split completely. I can only drive the drill in the core about 1/2-3/4" before it stops dead in its tracks and needs clearing. The quince is harder than a stabilized resin cast by a lot. We're talking rock candy for lack of a better measure. And that analogy is not far off - it smells like a cake when baked.
Fortunately, the receivers only have to deal with the compression of the o-ring. The o-rings are Viton and pretty hard. By design, there is only .002"-.003" clearance to the final flange on the VC. I run the bore up to 8mm, adding another -.002". Rolled o-rings are stem-killers. That is more than enough force to split the hardiest of stems. But a proper o-ring fit will put significant force on the wood. Yet, to day, the only split I've seen was caused by me. Once the stem is stable, the port doesn't change much at all. You would think moisture would swell the thing but there is something regulating that. With water present, it will swell to 115% original size. But it won't just draw that out of the air like a wick. It is an amazing material in this regard.
I find this material more fascinating every day particularly now that I am looking for a more available alternative. I've got years more of exploring to do with the current stock.
@danielj - where did you find allergy data on Madrone? I really think this is a viable alternative to Quince. I need to test its connective prowess. I have a pen commission to finish so that should help test that shrinkage-girding trick.
