[kywoodchopper]

As most of you probably know I make funeral urns. I got a request last week for a tiger maple urn (which I had in stock), and a request for 5-micro urns out of the same wood. These were so that family members could have a small portion of the fellow's ashes. They wanted the large urn to be engraved with the Marine emblem, the fellow's name and dates. I have someone locally to do the engraving.

I did not have the micro urns made so I had to hustle and get those done. They wanted those to look similar to the main urn.

Here is what I produced. They were a pain to make because I had to keep my fingers out of the saw blade. Also when sanding after putting in the corner splines a regular orbital sander would round over the corners. I used an oscillating flat sander to do that sanding. The size was 1 3/4" H by 2 1/4" by 3".

I applied several coats of Zar polyurethane diluted 50/50 with mineral spirits. Then I applied a coat and sanded it while wet with 600 grit wet / dry sand paper in the random orbital sander. Then applied a couple more coats of poly.

The funeral home said the customer loved them. I get request for the micro urns about once a year.

The wood I used for the main urn, I can't find that quality any more. I used about 300 board feet over the past years. It is hard tiger maple.

My neighbor was in the Marines during the Viet Nam War so he contacts me often wanting urns for his buddies.
I have funeral urns in 16 states, Arlington National Cemetery and Quantico Marine Base Cemetery.

Malcolm / Kentucky USA

 

[difalkner]

Very nice work, as usual, Malcolm! Are the insides of these lined with anything or are they just the bare wood? Don't know that I've ever had the occasion to look inside an urn.

David

 

[hawkeye10]

As most of you probably know I make funeral urns. I got a request last week for a tiger maple urn (which I had in stock), and a request for 5-micro urns out of the same wood. These were so that family members could have a small portion of the fellow's ashes. They wanted the large urn to be engraved with the Marine emblem, the fellow's name and dates. I have someone locally to do the engraving.

I did not have the micro urns made so I had to hustle and get those done. They wanted those to look similar to the main urn.

Here is what I produced. They were a pain to make because I had to keep my fingers out of the saw blade. Also when sanding after putting in the corner splines a regular orbital sander would round over the corners. I used an oscillating flat sander to do that sanding. The size was 1 3/4" H by 2 1/4" by 3".

I applied several coats of Zar polyurethane diluted 50/50 with mineral spirits. Then I applied a coat and sanded it while wet with 600 grit wet / dry sand paper in the random orbital sander. Then applied a couple more coats of poly.

The funeral home said the customer loved them. I get request for the micro urns about once a year.

The wood I used for the main urn, I can't find that quality any more. I used about 300 board feet over the past years. It is hard tiger maple.

My neighbor was in the Marines during the Viet Nam War so he contacts me often wanting urns for his buddies.
I have funeral urns in 16 states, Arlington National Cemetery and Quantico Marine Base Cemetery.

Malcolm / Kentucky USA

Absolutely beautiful Malcolm.

 

[chessnut2]

Beautiful again, Malcolm.

 

[DonkeyHody]

Very nice work, and a great service to the families. Invest in a pair of Grrrrippers to save your fingers and inspire confidence. It's a game-changer.

 

[Shop guy]

As always very nice, Malcolm

 

[honesttjohn]

You got the touch Malcom

 

[CharleyL]

They look great!

I made 6 small urns for cats and dogs last year from mahogany, and I am one of several urn makers for my local woodworking club. The ones for the club are being provided free to any US Service Veteran or his family if they request one. We have also stocked some of them at all of the Vereran's cemeteries in North Carolina. Each Veteran's urn gets a laser engraved label showing the branch of service of the veteran on the front and then a second label with the club name and that the urn is a gift from us for the Veteran's service to our country on the bottom. Both are recessed into the urn. We began making these because we found out that the cremains of some US Veterans were being buried in styro foam coffee cups, etc. Other clubs in other States are beginning to do the same.

I haven't found the photos of the completed urns yet...still looking.


Charley

 

[JOAT]

That is nice work, and essential actually.

I'll probably end up in one someday. Don't think they do it any more, but what I would really like is to have my ashes shot out by a muzzleloading cannon, in a very nice area, that would never be built up. A company used to do that somewhere in the Rockies.

 

[CharleyL]

My uncle had said that he wanted his dumped in the toilet, but we couldn't do that. His oldest son ended up placing them in his backyard.

Charley

 

[DesertRatTom]

Gorgeous pieces Malcolm. I'd like my ashes scattered around my back yard.

 

[old55]

+1 what they said.

 

[Semipro]

Ashes

Very nice work, as usual, Malcolm! Are the insides of these lined with anything or are they just the bare wood? Don't know that I've ever had the occasion to look inside an urn.

David

David I dealt with this before , ashes are usualy return to you in a plastic container containing a small plastic bag that is sealed besides the ashes in the bag there’s a small metal tag with the name of the deceased and date of death, So i guess you could place the plastic bag in the urn and close the lid.
Usually the cemetery wants to know the dimensions of the Urn, the ones i Dealt with use a postal digger to dig the hole to put the urn in

 

[mark greenbaum]

My mom was cremated and had my dad take 1/2 of the ashes and dump them in the Atlantic Ocean way off from Florida. The other half of the ashes she wanted to have dumped into Lake Michigan off Traverse City; that way in about 7 years the ashes could theoretically rejoin off the coast of Nova Scotia. When dad transported the ashes to Traverse City from Florida, he had the obvious sticker on the back of the car "WIFE IN TRUNK". Mom had a great sense of humor and I am sure she would have approved.

Meanwhile, I turned an urn of Box Elder for the 1/3 of Dad's ashes, and labeled it "Box of Box Elder for the Elder". It's my avatar.

 

[kywoodchopper]

I offer these to first responders, and children / infants for free. I pay for any engraving that the family wants.

As for as finishing the insides - I generally apply a couple coats of shellac.

Malcolm / Kentucky USA

 

[Roy Drake]

A beautiful tribute to a veteran. Thank you for YOUR service. A selfless service to the family of any deceased person. Housing precious memories.

 

[JFPNCM]

Well done.

 

[JOAT]

I offer these to first responders, and children / infants for free.

I remember some years back, I was driving thru our town, 4 lane interstate, and passed a funeral procession, in the right lane. Not a hearse at the head, but a farm wagon, drawn by two mules. The casket couldn't have been longer than two feet or so. Very sad.