I bought a so-called wooden pulley off eBay - you probably saw it there. It arrived this morning & is one of the more interesting things I've bought recently. It isn't wood, but some odd kind of wood chip composition I've not come across before. I'd say from the look of it that it was moulded, not turned from bar stock.
The wood chips are small - say 3/16" to 1/4" - & there is a sturdy steel boss in the centre of the crowned pulley. It cost £8.17 to send & the postage charged was £10, the cost of the pulley being a whole 99p!
Bargain.
Regards,
Kim Siddorn. Mechanical Engineers build weapons, Electronic engineers build radar, Civil Engineers build targets.