Thread: Wood & woodworking

I hope I chose the right part of the forum to post this.

I have absolutely no knowledge or experience with wood and woodworking, but I'm very intrigued by it. I've always been interested by wood and would really like to start using wood to build things and corporate it in my life for do-it-myself type projects.

The reason I'm writing this is because I recently took down a fairly large hard white maple tree in my parents' backyard. And I was curious about the quality of the wood so I did a little research and I really started thinking about using the wood to build like small boxes or maybe a workout bench or a squat stand, jerk blocks etc. etc.
And in the future I'd really like to make my own furniture. But that's a long way to go.

Now, I've cut everything down into small logs for use in fireplaces for some friends, but I've saved quite a number of large thick branches and basically the entire tree trunk. I felt an odd way of respect for the old tree while I was taking it down and it felt like such a waste not using it trying to build something with it.

If possible I'd very much like to make a storage box/chest to store my razors and hones in.

But first things first, it's been about a week (and a half) when I cut the tree down, I just now started reading about sealing the tree and about drying it.
Fortunaly my big trunk has not 'cracked' (yet), whereas some smaller pieces have. So that's when I started thinking about taking this on systematically and that I need more knowledge and some help/input by people with more experience and knowledge.

So if anybody would like to share his knowledge with me I'd GREATLY appreciate it!

My questions for now are:

- What's a good way to seal the tree, I've read that paraffin does a good job?

- Is it dangerous to not cut the big tree trunk into pieces and let it dry as a huge piece? I'm concerned about mold, the tree rotting and things like that

- How long should I dry the maple before I could think about working with it? I wonder about the drying process and possible wood-warping and -bending and the likes. I'm really eager to get to work and start cutting, shaving, chiseling, etc. But I'm not sure if I should let it dry for a while and how I should dry it


My mother knows an old fella who has a ton of woodworking tools, so I'm going to pay him a visit soon and hopefully he can share some of his knowledge with me too; he already told my mom I could use any of his tools, so that's really nice.

Any input would be greatly appreciate, I'm looking to gain knowledge on this subject and would love to get it here,
thanks!

Got some old paint your not going to use kicking around, use that to seal the ends.

As a rule of thumb, an inch per year is what it takes to air dry wood. If you have a way of cutting it into boards, that would be good. Cut it into 1" rough boards, stack it on slats so the air can get to all the faces, but make sure those ends are sealed up or it'll surely split.

Definitely dry faster if it can be cut into boards first and then dried. the branches should be reserved for smaller items instead of boards as they have internal stress and will warp.

Cutting it into billets or boards will help it dry, so will taking the bark off. Sealing the ends with a few heavy coats of old paint is good, it should ideally be flat or a primer and latex is better than oil. There are products that are made specifically for it but they are not nesc.

Not sure about Belgium but there are sawyers with portable saws that will saw your wood into planks at your house.
Like Tintin and Rezdog said, it is best to saw it.

If sawing at this time is not an option be sure to get the trunk off the ground.

How large is the tree? Trees from yards make very poor candidates for sawing because of nails etc. My father used to own a sawmill both portable and stationary. The people with the logs payed for the blades used. I got a jig for a chainsaw to cut lumber in a trade. I haven't tried it yet. It looks like it would work for a small job.

Kiln dried ready to use maple is cheap,so IMO opinion is not worth the effort to air dry your own.
Slab it,stack it and wait a couple yrs,you may end up with some usable pces,not likley tho.

Thanks for the input guys! I had no idea.

The diameter of the trunk is around 60 cm ~ 23.6 inches and a couple meters high. But it sounds like some work to process, cut and let it dry, etc.

I think I'm going to buy ready to use maple and start working on that to build small boxes and start practicing on. Unless someone else can suggest a different kind of wood for this purpose.

I might use the big maple trunk to make an outdoor squat stand in my yard, it seems ilke it'll be huge and sturdy and I'll get some use out of it; at least I think it will hold up for a while and I wouldn't really care about the appearance of the wood, it just needs to hold a barbell. I can put it in the ground and pour some concrete around. And I can also use a part of the trunk itself to work out with. All good.

There's an old pine tree I have to take down next, my neighbor already told me to make outdoor torches with the pine wood. hehe

But if anyone is into fine woodworking, that's where my interest lies so I'll probably come back with more questions.
I primarily want to build a little chest/box for my razors and hones and eventually would like to get into furniture making and practical around the house objects, etc.

I really appreciate the help guys, thanks!

Keep at it,woodworking is a very rewarding hobbie.Have been at it for well over 50 yrs.
Boxes, tho labor intensive are fun to make.

Originally Posted by pixelfixed

Keep at it,woodworking is a very rewarding hobbie.Have been at it for well over 50 yrs.
Boxes, tho labor intensive are fun to make.

That is the nicest Kamisori box I have seen; thank you!
~Richard