Tbone07 Posted October 13, 2016 Report Share Posted October 13, 2016 Hello everybody, I cut a large 3-4ft in diameter red oak burl off of a tree at my late grandfather's tree farm in North Central Ohio. It was 30-40ft above the ground on the side of the trunk. It looks like it was getting rotten on the one side, so I decided to cut the tree down before it went to waste. I'm glad i cut it down when I did, because carpenter ants were going to town on the softer, rotten wood on the inside. I had the burl cut up by a local Amish logging operation, as I did not have the cutting tools or knowledge necessary. I didn't want to risk ruining it by cutting it improperly. My question is.....how do I go about sealing and drying the pieces so it doesn't warp and/or crack and become useless? I have heard to use parafin wax or anchor-seal on all bare surfaces and to let it sit for 1 year per inch. The thinnest slices in the pictures are 1.5-2'' thick, and the others are 4-5'' thick. The thicker slices have some damage to inner portion, but there's some good chunks on the outside rim that are salvageable. Should I cut those good sections away from damage, and seal them separately? Thanks for any advice you could give. Please checkout the pictures I attached. ^^^In my truck before being cut ^^^The remains of the trunk and first slice ^^^A great slice with no soft spots or carpenter ant damage ^^^Two 1.5'' thick slices standing on end, two more stacked on top, 4-5'' slices on bottom Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JosephThomas Posted October 13, 2016 Report Share Posted October 13, 2016 I've no experience with burls in particular..but I think people only coat the entire surface in wax when dealing with blocks for turning, so that they're still green when turned. Other lumber usually just gets wax/paint on the end grain, to slow down the drying and reduce checking. If all your cuts were made to get crosscuts of the log, then I guess yeah you would coat both surfaces. Someone with experience with this will respond sooner or later and will give you some more info. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tbone07 Posted October 13, 2016 Author Report Share Posted October 13, 2016 9 hours ago, JosephThomas said: I've no experience with burls in particular..but I think people only coat the entire surface in wax when dealing with blocks for turning, so that they're still green when turned. Other lumber usually just gets wax/paint on the end grain, to slow down the drying and reduce checking. If all your cuts were made to get crosscuts of the log, then I guess yeah you would coat both surfaces. Someone with experience with this will respond sooner or later and will give you some more info. Ok. I thought the point was to seal it to let it dry as slow as possible to prevent cracking. But i'm just now reading on these techniques. At some point in time I think I might take a couple chunks out, glue them together and turn a bowl or two. I haven't quite figured out exactly what I want. Three of the 1.5'' slices would be perfect for a top to an end table, it has no abnormalities and has some awesome grain patterns. Thank you sir. It seems like this forum has quite a bit of activity so I hope more will chime in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..Kev Posted October 13, 2016 Report Share Posted October 13, 2016 Rough turning when green is fine. You still have to let them sit and dry before final turning but, the process is quicker because you removed so much of the material. A scale is a good way to monitor the process. Weigh the piece when you finish the rough turning. Then, weigh the piece periodically and when the weight remains the same for a couple of months, you know the drying is complete. The stuff you want to use for a table top, I would seal the ends, sticker, and wait. I'm sure others will chime in.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdwerker Posted October 13, 2016 Report Share Posted October 13, 2016 I agree with TIODS/Kev . Seal both sides and wait, especially on the nicest pieces. Weigh each piece as accurately as possible and keep track of the numbers. When the weight has stabilized you can look into using them, but investing in a decent moisture meter is probably a better idea in the long run. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tbone07 Posted October 13, 2016 Author Report Share Posted October 13, 2016 3 hours ago, wdwerker said: I agree with TIODS/Kev . Seal both sides and wait, especially on the nicest pieces. Weigh each piece as accurately as possible and keep track of the numbers. When the weight has stabilized you can look into using them, but investing in a decent moisture meter is probably a better idea in the long run. Thank you for the pointers Do you recommend sealing the entire exposed surface area on each slice? What about the bark? Parafin wax or anchor-seal? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..Kev Posted October 13, 2016 Report Share Posted October 13, 2016 Just the ends and anchor-seal would be what I'd do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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