Jon Posted July 10, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 10, 2007 Too lazy to look back and see if I mentioned that the stump was 6 inches above the ground. So, the stump was 6 inches above ground level! Here's where it stands now. 44 inches deep now. That's a gas-line behind the stump. We're thinking of using that to our advantage to get the stump out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmrentis Posted July 10, 2007 Report Share Posted July 10, 2007 WOW! You'll definately be getting some interesting pieces out of that thing! What is your general plan for that thing? Figured it out yet? I'm sure you'd be able to pull some wicked looking bodies and tops out of that thing. I really want to see how you shape that into whatever you have planned. If its not too much trouble, take a couple extra pictures showing the process of chopping that thing up and shaping it into whatever pieces you decide upon. Of course, that is IF you decide to do it yourself and not have some else do it for you. I can't imagine anything of that size and shape is even remotely easy to handle and cut. It seems that a chainsaw or portable bandsaw would help, but I bet there are better ways. Anyhow, thanks for taking those pics, that stuff is really interesting. I gotta say though, you seem to do things the hard way, I think I might have gone with the gas line spark short cut. First I would have figured out some physics, then placed the truck bed X amount of feet from the stump and then sparked the line, lol. Cool stuff Jon. I think that was worth the work for that piece. J Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Posted July 10, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 10, 2007 I'm thinking of doing the total length in half. So if we end up with the stump being 44" in length at a wider point of the stump towards the bottom, then I'll have it cut in half to be 22" and 22". From there I'm not sure on the width or thickness, I need to read up more on gunstocks to make sure I don't make them too thin. But likely all the pieces will be cut to 6.5-8 inches wide and 1.6-1.7" thick so they can be resawn into beautiful tops if used for guitars. Maybe I'll just leave it at full length and go from there, I've got a lot of ideas that I need to figure out before going further! I'll definitely have this wood milled by a professional, my chainsaw isn't strong enough to cut through Walnut, nor would I be able to resaw past 6". Wait till you guys see the tools we used to dig this thing out with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Posted July 20, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 20, 2007 We'll be attempting to pull the trunk out over the next few days, it's taken nearly 3 weeks to dig to the bottom! Also, I cut a few more of the small logs / branches up for knob turning and headstock veneers. One of the pieces of what I believe is Maple has had some amazing spalt grow through-out the piece. Like the pieces you'd see with no rotted / overly soft spots, it has a great deal of jagged grain. Also, here's a picture of my little stack of wood. Soon enough, I'll have a gigantic stickered stack of Walnut. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Posted July 25, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 25, 2007 The trunk has been out for a few days now. I think we've located someone in Burleson that will mill the wood for us. Measurements are 55" diameter at the top, 88" diameter at the biggest point and more than 2' in length. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattharris75 Posted July 26, 2007 Report Share Posted July 26, 2007 I can't wait to see what kind of boards you get out of that stump. Should be some pretty crazy stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikevirok Posted July 26, 2007 Report Share Posted July 26, 2007 I am another of the jealous ones here.... damn nice score man... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orgmorg Posted July 26, 2007 Report Share Posted July 26, 2007 Measurements are 55" diameter at the top, 88" diameter at the biggest point and more than 2' in length. Jon, do you maybe mean 55" circumference? That would be around 18" diameter, which is more like what I see in the picture. 55" diameter would be a monster! Still a nice chunk, though. Also, if you can get a hold of a pressure washer and blast the dirt and rocks out of all the nooks and crannies, you will likely save on damaged blade charges from the sawyer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Posted July 30, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 30, 2007 Yes, sorry! I was originally saying circumference and someone corrected me wrong. Crazy people. The reason the trunk is so clean now is because of using a pressure washer, there are still a few nooks and crannies as you mentioned, mostly little parts that will be cut off to lay flat on the milling machine. So we've got a guy out in Burleson that should be able to cut the pieces, I think we'll take out some of the smaller pieces first to see if this guy can handle a good 1000 pound trunk. I'm not so sure, I still need to talk to my dad about all of this since he's the one that located the guy and we're splitting the price for the milling. Man, I cannot wait until I can cut this wood open! I'm still a bit undecided about how I should have things cut. I'm really leaning towards flatsawn on about everything for what I'd be using / selling the Walnut as. Say we get the trunk cut in pieces about 1" thick and get a good 16-18 big flat pieces out of it. The center ones would be wider that I could split in half and get even more tops out of - all would be resawn when dry to have good 3/8" - 7/16" tops. Am I crazy, or does this sound like a good idea? What kind of cuts would you guys do if you had this trunk? The smallest pieces will probably be cut to about 2 1/2" - 4" thick pieces to be cut into body blanks for myself. All the really small pieces will probably be used for knobs and headstock veneer. Holy cow, I bet I have a good 20,000 knobs of turning wood! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Posted July 30, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 30, 2007 Here is a visual representation of what I have in mind. It's not 100% accurate by any means, but it's close. The center line is a tad off! Actually, that's a pretty crappy center line, don't pay any attention to that. Let's just call it a reference point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orgmorg Posted July 30, 2007 Report Share Posted July 30, 2007 Well, a stump is a different sort of animal than a log from above the stump, and terms like flatsawn and quartersawn start to lose their meaning down there, so don't be to worried about that. The grain will be going every which way it can. Best to just tell the guy what sizes you want, and let him figure out how to get them out of it. As for the weight, it's probably not a big deal. My sawmill is pretty typical of portable sawmills, and it is rated for 4500 lbs. I have had logs 26" diameter, 16' long on it, no problemo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Posted July 30, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 30, 2007 Thanks again on the helpful information! 26" diameter is quite massive, the lower part of the trunk is close to that and I can't even imagine that in log form. Freakn gigantic! I'm going to get the information on the sawyer now. My goal is to have the majority of the pieces (maybe not the stump) cut up by Wednesday or Thursday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Posted August 2, 2007 Author Report Share Posted August 2, 2007 We tried to work out the soonest possible time, but Texas is too muddy thanks to all the rain we keep getting. We're scheduled this Friday to cut up some of the smaller pieces. Probably all the pieces but the trunk and the two logs above the trunk. I'm going to have one massive stickered pile soon, fun! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Posted August 2, 2007 Author Report Share Posted August 2, 2007 ..but Texas is too muddy thanks to all the rain we keep getting... No more than 5 minutes after posting this, it starts pouring again. We've had less than 7 days of "swimming" weather this year. Where did our heat migrate to?! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guitart Posted August 2, 2007 Report Share Posted August 2, 2007 We have it up here in Missouri... aka misery. You've got some nice lumber, wish I could be as lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Posted August 3, 2007 Author Report Share Posted August 3, 2007 I know these pictures lack much of a description and I have no pictures of the wood detail, but I'll be incredibly busy the next few days and have 2 hours to sticker and seal this wood. I'll probably have some detail shots tonight, but I can't guarantee that. The trunk and next largest piece will be cut in 1-2 week(s). Before: After: The machine that was used to cut the lumber: The lumber after it has been sliced up!: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmrentis Posted August 4, 2007 Report Share Posted August 4, 2007 Dang, that is freakin' sweet!!! Definately got ajob ahead of you still getting at that lumber set up for drying! Best of luck with everything and hopefully you don't lose much since you've taken care to seal the end and air it properly. Either way man, cool stuff, very neat pictures as well, its interesting to see how it goes from a log to what we usually buy, I've seen this process a few times, but I always find it cool. In time, when you end up using these pieces you should make a step by step shot sequence from the stump before being dug up all the way to a finished guitar, that would be pretty neat. Well best of luck with everything and keep the pics coming. J Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orgmorg Posted August 4, 2007 Report Share Posted August 4, 2007 We've had less than 7 days of "swimming" weather this year. Where did our heat migrate to? Tennessee I've been out sawing in it every day this week. Walnut, too, coincidentally. My hands are practically black. Got to bring home a nice pile of slices from the humps of the really crooked logs, though. Glad to see you got it sawn up! I would be more enthusiastic, but right now, it just looks like more work to me. Have fun stacking! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Posted August 5, 2007 Author Report Share Posted August 5, 2007 Started working on my small wood drying area today. Got a pressure treated 4'x8' for the bottom and a pressure treated 2"x4" for the first sticker to keep bugs away. My dad and I will be investing a little more into it shortly to seal off the back, side, and top to protect the wood from the elements. We'll probably need 4 more 4'x8' sheets of plywood to finish all of that up. We also picked up some more sealer, a hygrometer, and a moisture reader for the lumber. Fun stuff, but I wont have money in my pocket anytime soon. There's (34) 1"+ flatsawn boards in the stack and several other off cuts and smaller pieces to seal and toss in there as well. We still have the stump and the next largest piece to cut up to add to all of this. You can check out the Black Walnut photo album here: Black Walnut photo album - page 1. Black Walnut photo album - page 2. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Posted September 17, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 17, 2007 I got some headstock veneers cut up just to start clearing room since I've got Walnut off-cuts everywhere. I think they look pretty nice. I also finished up a thin piece with some tru-oil since my dad has been wanting to see what the stuff looks like finished up. I love this wood! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheIRS Posted September 17, 2007 Report Share Posted September 17, 2007 Hey Jon, I had PM'd you a few weeks back about the Redwood. Any news on that? Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Posted September 17, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 17, 2007 I was browsing the rest of my massive pile in my workshop today and I still haven't found any flatsawn to those specs yet. Surprisingly most of the stuff is quartersawn. I was going to send you the top I cut for myself, but it's not lengthy enough on the right side. I'll be going out to storage in a week or so to check on those boards there (first time visiting in a couple months). I'm sure I'll find something that will match those specs. So if anyone is looking for quartersawn redwood, I may have what you're looking for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheIRS Posted September 18, 2007 Report Share Posted September 18, 2007 Alright, thank you very much. There is no rush for this but if you do stumble upon something please let me know. Thanks again! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orgmorg Posted September 20, 2007 Report Share Posted September 20, 2007 Here's some slices of cherry I brought home the other day. another pic I've been sawing cherry and walnut for a logal log buyer/seller and one came thu very burly looking. Graded as a #3 sawlog, so I paid them the princely sum of $9 for it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Posted November 28, 2007 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2007 Since my dad and I have the lumber storage on the side of the workshop near complete, I took the old Walnut stack apart and have been working on stickering a new stack in the new area. Sadly, some rats got into the Walnut stack and I spent about 2 hours cleaning off each and every piece of Walnut off. Nature does not like my wood, I always seem to have some issue with something crapping on my projects. Anyways, here was the first few pieces I took out of the stack and another I've set aside for myself. I'll have some more pictures of the stickered stack tomorrow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.