HELP ME TREE EXPERTS!!!
Cut and lying as seen in photo not 500 yards from my front door is what appears to be a serious bois d'arc log. Must be 12-14' long and easily 3' across.......start splitting it like a madman or skip it? I'm in Dallas near downtown. If anyone needs a better look I can email pics. I want to make a move before it starts checking. Tomorrow I can gather some smaller pieces for knife handles and whatnot. To the public I must seem like a nut and IF this is the golden wood we love I am a lucky SOB.
(http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g69/alexeinspruch/4EF5FF85-D2F1-40CD-A4DB-7FFD36737E09-2858-000001814F8D2BFD_zpsed792063.jpg)
Looks like it to me. Start splitting like a madman! Seal the ends to and if you peel the sapwood and bark seal the back too. Sweet find.
If the rings are good and the bark doesn't twist, go for it. Why let such an incredible tree go to waste. Think of all the belly splits. I tackled a 24" tree and it was some of the best wood I have ever seen. It looks like your log has some natural splits in the center. Mine had the same. Start your splits there and it will be easier to bust open. It looks like it is naturaly split into 4 sections. You are going to need a lot of wedges. A prybar will help to get it apart. Seal the ends with several coats of what ever you use. When you get belly splits, seal the backs of those also. Man, thats a heck of an osage tree. I would be all over that thing if it was by my house.
Dude this is just one section......it's waist high as it sits! It's on a really busy street though....how am I ever gonna crack this thing open? I have a maul and maybe 5 wedges.
Holy back ache Batman!!!!! You my friend are ambitious, with the splitting and moving and stacking and sapwood removal you may want to buy some Tylenol
That will do it. It won't be easy but you can do it. Bring a large dim witted friend. Being from Dallas I'm sure there must
be one around. Lol just kidding... Kinda :thumbsup:
Have fun. Whiskey helps the process too, but maybe not right by the road. Could lead to trouble.
My last giant was tackled to the detriment of my body.....and it was insect ravaged and twisted but half of it was good and went to good use....I'm a bit scared of this one but how could you pass it up?!!!
Problem is I had to get rid of all my large dim witted friends!
WOW, that is insane.. Count me out:) LOL
Craigslist log splitting service?
Don't be scared. Ask the crew that took it down if they can cut it into a couple of 70" long pieces and maybe haul it to your house. It might not hurt to have a case of beer in your hand when you ask. Or maybe offer to buy them lunch.
If it is straight grained it will suprise you how easily it will split. With the center being started like that you don't have to split all the way through it. You only have to go to the end of the natural split. On one of my 24" logs I drove the second wedge into it and the split ran all the way to the end of the log. Now if the grain is crazy on it, good luck. How are the rings? Were there any branches on it?
Here is what I got from my big tree. If the wood is good, its worth it
(http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r55/clintanders/DSCN6528.jpg)
That is what I'm talking about! Stay tuned for good pics tomorrow. Appreciate the encouragement and tips. Keep em coming...
I'll trade you ibuprofin for staves. d;^)
Hell, I'll see that Ibuprofen & raise you a bottle of hydrocodone & 3 quarts of good* Whiskey!
*'Aged 15 minutes in a tin bath' :readit:
It would be hard to pass up Robs offer..lol I sure do wish I lived closer I would come help you in a heartbeat...But its easy for me to say that since I live in TN..lol
I couldn't sleep tonight knowing that thing is on the side of the road. I'd be calling a tow truck to drag that thing home for me.
Trust me..... I don't have a truck anymore and my 2 month old boy can't swing a maul to save his life. Mom's at her office....gotta figure this out!
Holy mackerel, that is some log, good luck. Bue--. :eek:
Yep, I would get that thing home asap by whatever means necessary. I normally pass on such monarchs, but since it's already down and easily accessable... I be on that thing like a spider monkey.
If it was cut by the land owner take your time and do it right. If it was cut by the city, county or power company then you better get with it. Alot times the companies will have chipper trucks close behind. You don't want to loose it to the chippers.
Troy
Find someone local with a roll back and have them load it and take it to you house. Then you can work on it as you like.
I might have it hauled to a mill but there is no way I would try to split that monster. But I'm 46 years old and have lots of osage. If you are a young, large man, you might give it a go. Take pics. Bend with your knees. Find some help. Jason and Mike Westvang from Dryad bows live near Dallas. Jason's still pretty young.
I got 6" of snow this morning. I'm considering coming south to help and get some of Rob's wiskey.
Good luck with it. Tow truck would probably cost you $70 but would be worth it, if you have somewhere to store it. Check craigslist for portable milling services. You might be able to get them to mill the middle of it and leave enough on each side to split out some staves. If the slats are good you could probably get some of your money back selling them to suckers like us. :)
What's a rollback?
I'm 42 but think I'm 12 so that helps...maybe some of my jiu jitsu team mates who are in training for the Dallas Open might work with me....we live in a condo so no real storage unless I could split it all up and get it down to the inlaw's farm in Montgomery outside Conroe....that's where I cure stuff. That thing is huge so it can't be processed here unless it was already "reduced"....
The city cut it so I'm sure tomorrow is curb collection day.
What do the rings look like???
Is the bark straight or twisted???
Man that log is too short. Pisser. I did get about a 9 foot long limb plus a nice chunk for nice handles and things:
(http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g69/alexeinspruch/8A7DFEB9-B3C9-4B86-953F-51AE3C316C7F-3200-000001A94EF81CFB_zps6821cc87.jpg)
The limb:
(http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g69/alexeinspruch/140F7ACA-D496-41C5-BEAE-B384A3EB2D5B-3200-000001A94D0ECB9E_zpsa61ef9ef.jpg)
(http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g69/alexeinspruch/E538EE29-6FF7-40FC-9575-CCDB3059AE0B-3200-000001A94B115191_zps1f733755.jpg)
The chunk of limb I wish they left intact :
(http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g69/alexeinspruch/6593AC98-0195-4E41-AEC0-E7CA100F0D92-3200-000001A948EAF8B5_zps4d658219.jpg)
Are any of the shorter ones long enough to get billets?
Plenty... Would need cutting.
I want some!!!
billets is the way to go..roll them home and have at it :) wish I had osage as well
How long is the big piece?
9-10'... What should I seal it with? Wood glue or spar urethane?
Update: went to HDepot and bought some spar urethane to paint the ends with, and will leave bark where it is.
I wouldn't mess with the butt log there but I sure see some billets in a couple of the other pieces. Look at the grain and find where it doesn't swirl or barber pole. Anything longer than 32" will make billets but I usually cut them 36".
I use shellac to seal the ends.
How long is the 9' limb from those smaller limbs coming out of it to the end?
Man that's a cool find. I live about a half hour north of you, wish i could get there to "help" ;) you but i can't. Once came across a pretty straight monster osage that fell over, roots still intact. Only got a few 10" branches (and an all-over body ache) before the city hauled the blasted thing off!!! :knothead: :banghead:
This is the limb. Is it Osage? Bark looks suspicious!
(http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g69/alexeinspruch/6BC547BD-F279-458C-B248-87AF65018A90-3200-000001DF00980D7D_zps8918d4f9.jpg)
8'6" and 6" across.
QuoteOriginally posted by scrub-buster:
How long is the big piece?
My guess is right at 5'. They cut into it pretty good with their saws at one end and scarred it up, if that matters. I think the long branch I grabbed isn't suitable for a stave, looking at the rings....spacing is far and kinda arched.
It looks like mulberry from the new pics.
All of it? That chunk sure is yellow..... This limb I'm sure is not Osage. But, those are thick rings and the woods dead straight... What about the pile on p2?
Yep, looking back at those other pics, I think that thing might be mulberry, not osage. The bark doesn't look furrowed/rough enough for a big old osage.
Either way, there's bows in that thar tree.
I'm going to go back for a second look. The bark is definitely rougher on everything else except for that limb there. If I can split it it will yield many three-foot billets. Billets can be laminated together obviously to make a longer bow. I didn't even realize that...... I've been thinking one long continuous solid piece the entire time.
http://www.murraygaskins.com/mulberry.html
Another shot of the pile minus the giant log but including the mulberry stave.
(http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g69/alexeinspruch/69CACECE-E57E-4592-BA4F-5855F798DCC7-3200-000001A9515EA617_zpsdff70f1f.jpg)
More I research the more I believe it's a fruitless Mulberry. Also a good bow wood but not what I want....
(http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g69/alexeinspruch/F5DF946D-1E89-4A09-86E3-AE712B07E8E1-3200-00000237E8F17191_zps050df8f9.jpg)
Mulberry stave rings....thoughts before I chuck it or should I split it?
Yep, mulberry, the bark didn't look like osage from the first picture.
I don't chuck anything that might make a bow. Split it and see what you get. That article by Murray Gaskin, make it sound like a very good wood to work with.
Thanks Eric!
Mulberry is a relative of osage and a good bow wood from what I have heard and read.
Save the scraps for the smoker, it is good for chicken,turkey and pork... :)
Man I'm gonna do just that!
I have had very good results with Mulberry. Make sure it is good and dry, and make the limbs about 30% wider than you would osage for the same weight bow.
Nothing wrong with Mulberry and you got a bunch :)
Hey guys! The limb is a good one that I grabbed and as you can see the thing is not checking at all, bark is intact and I didn't split it. . I'm painting the ends tomorrow. Family responsibility has kept me from going to get a paintbrush if you can believe that!
If Murray says it is underrated then I would give it a try and go for it...likely using similar techniques as osage for scraping and following the ring if they are first cousins. Otherwise you can do it like a white wood (hickory, pecan) and the overkill will ensure a bow that lives if it has no serious flaws.....can always remove more wood if needed to get it down to weight and tiller. :)
How many coats of urethane on the ends to seal them?
Just slap it on good and thick. Though I would get it split as soon as possible so it can start drying properly and you can get to shaving wood. It will dry very slowly with the bark on and the ends sealed.
I'll hit it again but split it first.
SPLIT!
One stave is thinner as the split followed down to a branch and it almost ran off the stave, but it stayed intact. I split the last 12" from the other end and it helped a bunch. Man that stuff is damp! Looks good though. The billet is a tank. It split perfectly down the middle.
(http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g69/alexeinspruch/B4AC43A9-BFCD-4A60-97CF-6F489929DF0E-5502-000002B120703127_zpscaf44bc4.jpg) (http://s53.photobucket.com/user/alexeinspruch/media/B4AC43A9-BFCD-4A60-97CF-6F489929DF0E-5502-000002B120703127_zpscaf44bc4.jpg.html)
(http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g69/alexeinspruch/7588A5D2-FADA-4C1B-B8DF-3F34550F29D6-5502-000002B11BF155CF_zps73ebdc32.jpg) (http://s53.photobucket.com/user/alexeinspruch/media/7588A5D2-FADA-4C1B-B8DF-3F34550F29D6-5502-000002B11BF155CF_zps73ebdc32.jpg.html)
Billet:
(http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g69/alexeinspruch/2866D18A-D662-4A50-B6FF-9A69B23A0A2C-5502-000002B11E365E33_zpsbab577fb.jpg) (http://s53.photobucket.com/user/alexeinspruch/media/2866D18A-D662-4A50-B6FF-9A69B23A0A2C-5502-000002B11E365E33_zpsbab577fb.jpg.html)
Any hints on another split?