THO Game Calls Forums
The Art of Handcrafting Custom Game Calls => Handcrafting Custom Duck Calls => Topic started by: Curmudgeon on April 21, 2008, 03:27:41 PM
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So, I'm in Maui, sitting there at the breakfast table talking to a local tour guide about the options for the next week and I think, hey maybe there is a place I can get some Koa at. So I ask, and after a hilarious conversation with her father, she hands us some notes and directions to go see Gilly. Gilly may have some, just maybe. We get a recommendation for lunch in the area and head off on our first vacation adventure. We find the place, eventually, long story to be told but not this post. I knock on the door and I'm told to look around while he finishes lunch and he will find me. I have pictures and will post them all up later but this place was one of a kind. There were huge, realy realy huge trees everywhere, in the shop, pieces of wood as big as me stacked 12 foot high. Tree limbs over 36' across. A drum sander that used 6 foot wide belts! A lathe, I think he said it was an Olympus or Olympic, that weighed 2000 lb's. Old antique wood working machines laying around. Oh yea, and about 3000 board feet of Koa, and just as much Monkey Pod and Eucalyptus. At least a dozen whole trees, some he said were over 60 foot tall when they fell. It's a long story but I'll spare you the reading. I ask sheepishly, "you got any thing I can put in my luggage or check in" ? He says he sure does, he saves the little stuff to make paper towle holders out of. So we go upstairs and he starts handing me these sticks. I have my hands full and he says how much do you want, and I say I just need one or two nice sticks, I want to make a couple of duck calls from them. He starts laughing and says "We don't need many of those around here!". I pick out two nice sticks and hand the rest back. I ask how much we wants for them and he says it sells for $20/board foot, but he doesn’t really know if the two sticks together are even a foot of wood. I say no problem, and give him $30 bucks. I tell him $20 is for the wood, and the rest is for the story telling and the guided tour. At this point I had already been there 45 minutes and had gotten quite a tour. He looks at me and says, I've never been paid to 'talk story' before, you want to see my Follys Bell Saw (sp) ? A good while later I finally make it back to the car with both arms full of wood. All along the way he keeps picking up wood and handing it to me. I get the full story about the tree it came from and how he came to own it. It was a hoot..
Left to right. Hawaiian Curly Koa, the 2 sticks I picked out, 2 sticks he just gave me, next piece I don't remember what he called, but I remember the story. It's grey wood, that's all I know. The next two are Eucalyptus. The wood is extremely dense. It's much more reddish and even toned than typical. Next is a 4x4x16 piece of Monkey Pod burl. Yep, he gave it to me, although I did listen to his story about why they call it Monkey Wood when there are no monkeys in Hawaii. Anyway just wanted to share this pic. The pics of the rest of his place will have to wait till I have a bit more time. Is Eucalyptus good for call making ? It's so dense a soundboard ought to sound like an acrylic !
(http://i243.photobucket.com/albums/ff76/Endtuition/P1010191.jpg)
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Way cool story!! And great find. I'm looking forward to the rest of the pics!
Brian
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I agree with BigB, that is a great story. What an adventure. I'll bet he had as much fun showing you around as you did looking. And you came away with some wonderful wood to boot. You should make some candle sticks, pepper grinder, salt shaker, or something with the wood and keep it. It will always reming you and your wife if the great trip you had and the fun advernture every time you use it.
Looking forward to the rest of the pictures.
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Here are a few more pics of Gilly's shop.
I wish I had taken more, there is an entire section of his shop full of large scale jointers and bands saws, as well as a Foly band saw on rails in the yard under cover. Anyway here is what I did capture.
One of many piles of stumps and crotches. Look through the trees and there are even more piles.
(http://i243.photobucket.com/albums/ff76/Endtuition/P1000971.jpg)
Note the solid Koa wood walls !
(http://i243.photobucket.com/albums/ff76/Endtuition/P1000972.jpg)
Some of these pieces are as big as I am...Gillys private stash.
(http://i243.photobucket.com/albums/ff76/Endtuition/P1000973.jpg)
A few belts for the sander..he uses a forklift to get them on and off the hangers. Note the masive beam.
(http://i243.photobucket.com/albums/ff76/Endtuition/P1000974.jpg)
Just a couple of the antiques laying around
(http://i243.photobucket.com/albums/ff76/Endtuition/P1000975.jpg)
This is Benny showing me 'one beeg sucka' of a tree limb. All of this wood is from a single limb.
(http://i243.photobucket.com/albums/ff76/Endtuition/P1000976.jpg)
A few more piles of assorted wood.
(http://i243.photobucket.com/albums/ff76/Endtuition/P1000977.jpg)
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I'm buying a ticket......and an extra suitcase. ;D That's way cool, I always spend my time diving and drinking when I'm there. Time to make a wood run.
Bob
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WOW, I could go nuts at that place. I would just want to try to figure out how to get it all shipped back to Iowa. Cool pics, thanks. Ryan
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Incredible. Great pictures and thanks for going and sharing.
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:o Holy cow there must be a bajillion ink pens in there!! ;D
Cool pics & Thanks for sharing!!
Hope you had a good rest of your vacation too!! ;D
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WOW - WOW WOW WOW
Man what a place!
Al @ THO
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Great story. Does he have a spare room for me to hide in? ;D
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Way too cool,Sometimes the best things happen unplaned for sure--Thanks for posting--