- Joined
- Dec 15, 2016
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My blanks didn't turn out so well, I would like to know what your doing and what should be considered acceptable loss. My story below;
I had a decent size walnut fall a few years ago back deep in the woods. Roots came up with only some damage to the tree when it fell. I attempted to cut some blanks from the base of the fallen tree and ended up with what I felt were going to be a few good blanks. I also cut some lumber from farther up in the tree simply to keep it from going to waste. So, I put the blanks on a plastic pallet in the old cattle barn (open ends on the barn) and used strips of wood to keep the blanks separate and apart. A couple years later when I went to check on the lumber and the blanks...I basically had a pile of twisted and warped firewood, having lost at least 2/3 of the pile of wood to twisting, warping and some splitting. Its been a little over 3 years now and I have what I would call two usable blanks, yet one of those is separating at the gain.
I attempted to quarter saw the wood as best I could with the old Stihl chainsaw and stacked it right away. The wood was out of any direct moisture (rain) and sunlight, it should have been pretty safe in the middle of the barn (aprox size 42x64). However, the humidity can be pretty high here in central Illinois. With my losses greater than 66%, obviously something was done wrong. I would like to get this drying process down right as a very close friend recently purchased a saw mill and is willing to let me use it for rough cutting stock blanks. I simply hate to ruin another pile of lumber and blanks.
I did have a little better luck placing a cherry log into the barn (given to be by the friend with the mill) and debarking it right away. Yet, waiting to cut blanks out of it until after a couple years of drying as a log. Months later, after cutting into blanks that wood still looked good.
I would be willing to close of a stall in the barn and install a dehumidifier if that would help. Any suggestions? What are you fellows doing to dry your stock blanks?
I had a decent size walnut fall a few years ago back deep in the woods. Roots came up with only some damage to the tree when it fell. I attempted to cut some blanks from the base of the fallen tree and ended up with what I felt were going to be a few good blanks. I also cut some lumber from farther up in the tree simply to keep it from going to waste. So, I put the blanks on a plastic pallet in the old cattle barn (open ends on the barn) and used strips of wood to keep the blanks separate and apart. A couple years later when I went to check on the lumber and the blanks...I basically had a pile of twisted and warped firewood, having lost at least 2/3 of the pile of wood to twisting, warping and some splitting. Its been a little over 3 years now and I have what I would call two usable blanks, yet one of those is separating at the gain.
I attempted to quarter saw the wood as best I could with the old Stihl chainsaw and stacked it right away. The wood was out of any direct moisture (rain) and sunlight, it should have been pretty safe in the middle of the barn (aprox size 42x64). However, the humidity can be pretty high here in central Illinois. With my losses greater than 66%, obviously something was done wrong. I would like to get this drying process down right as a very close friend recently purchased a saw mill and is willing to let me use it for rough cutting stock blanks. I simply hate to ruin another pile of lumber and blanks.
I did have a little better luck placing a cherry log into the barn (given to be by the friend with the mill) and debarking it right away. Yet, waiting to cut blanks out of it until after a couple years of drying as a log. Months later, after cutting into blanks that wood still looked good.
I would be willing to close of a stall in the barn and install a dehumidifier if that would help. Any suggestions? What are you fellows doing to dry your stock blanks?