redgum tables

Crafted in Braidwood by Don Raper

Profile of a Craftsman

An engineer by trade Don Raper became interested in wood when he met Keith Moss, an Irish wood turner and furniture manufacturer who set up his business in Bungendore NSW, in the early 1990’s. Keith was a traditional craftsman trained in Ireland and approached Don to develop and build the equipment needed to handle large Australian Red Gum Burls.

After 2 years developing  and honing the knowledge and building the equipment to handle the burls in his workshops Don carried on alone as family matters took Keith back to Ireland and Don, who had acquired a passion to work with this magnificent timber, continued  developing the knowledge to handle and build his Australian Red Gum Burl coffee tables.

Having grown up as a child on a farm in far western NSW, Don was familiar with the burl growth on gum trees. He therefore knew how to source timber cutters who would remove the burls, which are the equivalent of ‘cancerous’ growths on the gums, without harming the tree.

The burl which Don has used in the particular table on the right was sourced from trees west of the Darling river out from Bourke in NSW. The original burl from which the table was slabbed was estimated by forestry rangers, to be over 400 years old, some burls are up to 600 years old.

Don often says that when you work with timber which has such heritage the experience is to be treasured and the burl acknowledged for its precious gift.

Or talk to Don about what you might like to have made - to own a piece of history with a chance to run your hand across its ancient grain.