Not quite alchemy, but pretty close.

[Charlie Harley, #14153]

My other hobby is building furniture, with a style that’s a mash among arts and crafts, industrial funk, and steam punk.

 

Many pieces are made of recovered pallet wood, a surprising number of which, especially those at big box hardware stores, are made of oak for their strength. Occasionally I can look through the dirt and grime to see unique grain structures, and sometimes quarter sawn pieces.

 

Today was especially fortunate. What started off looking like the top piece in the photos sanded and oiled to become a charcuterie board with amazing rays and structure on the surface.

 

Not quite turning lead into gold, but I’ll take it! :-)

 

[Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984]

Sometimes you can find pallets from South America, exotic hardwoods.

[Crooked River Pete, SASS 43485]

I made a lot of cribbage boards out of pallet wood, found some realy nice pieces.

[Sedalia Dave]

Very nice

[Noz]

I found a paper pallet made of full 2" by 8" clear birds eye maple. Traded with a gunsmith for and old 22 rifle.

[Dubious Don #56333]

When I was a kid my church group had a trip planned to Snowbowl, which is a big ski place up in the mountains near Flagstaff. For some reason the group wanted a sled everybody could ride at once.

 

Me and my buddy Ken, a guy home from his family's last mission to Kenya I think it was, we didn't exactly have a "budget" so we used the only wood we could afford; pallet wood. Since "the group" grew ( little brothers, sisters some other kids I don't know who they belonged to LOL, we built a trailer for the sled LOL. On the front we fashioned a pair of outrigger steering skis nicely turned up at the front just like you see on Santa's sleigh. But it didn't work out that way.

 

Took the whole group to lug this contraption up the hill. Eight, ten, twelve? Don't remember how many we had on but it was around that number. I was elected to be the steerer because the rope wasn't enough to actually turn the "wheels" so the biggest kid got to use his legs to help steer. (because the rest of'em were skinny LOL) It was like trying to push a mack truck but we eventually got going. And going. And going. Faster, faster, faster...and then we hit traffic.

 

Guess what? No matter how much I steered, it didn't matter. Sled was in control. And those nice little ski ends in front? They just threw the snow right up my pants legs. (s) as in both. I had snow packed in there up to my butt. Both sides. You know how cold that is? LOL. It was probably a good thing nobody wanted to go twice. Not because we didn't have fun, we did. It was a blast. It was just that I really don't know how many sledders, beginning skiers and bystanders we mowed over on the way down and we figured they'd riot or something if we tried again. Man that was one tough sled. Pallet wood rules!

[bgavin]

I was really surprised at how nice cedar fencing comes out with a bit of belt sander applied.
I took off the rough surface, applied some orbital fine sanding and stain.

The bummer:  these new steps face the ocean, which is only 1 1/2 blocks away.
They get the sun and salt, and no doubt no longer look this fresh.