Hi Guys,
I've got this large Beech crotch and am wondering which way to slice it up. The slab is about 9" thick at the point the 2 limbs separate (sorry didn't get a pic of the top side). There also seems to be about 9" between the piths of each limb. I'm not sure whether to go for endgrain which will give me either 2 9" bowls or a larger form (you can see my scratched circle between the piths). Or should I go for face-grain orientation (my worry being that the bark inclusion might make it weaker). I've not turned anything like this yet so would appreciate any advice you may have.
The slab from just below it I chopped into an endgrain blank (8x8) and some smaller facegrain blanks.