Heartwood to Sapwood Ratio

[Mark J]

There's a parkway maple tree with a big ol' orange dot I'm lookin' at.  Literally.  I'm sitting on my porch and it's in the parkway across the street.  No idea what kind of maple, but the leaves don't turn red.  

Now I'm not a big fan of turning wet wood, but I do it sometimes.  Seeing as this is right across the street I was thinking of asking piblic works if they might cut a piece of the trunk for me.  I'm assuming the trunk is sound enough.

So here's my question for @Spanky and other friends.   How much of the trunk diameter is typically going to be heartwood?  That will depend on species, I imagine, and the difference between heart and sap is probably less pronounced with maple than walnut, but I'm just looking for generalities.  The tree is about 22 to 24 inches in diameter.  

Second question, how much of the center of the trunk do you have to cut off to get rid of the pith?

 

[Chestnut]

My bet is Norway maple. My Norway doesn't turn red and the bark looks like an ash tree.

WAG, probably 50/50 heart sap. Maple heart wood is a light to medium brown almost the color of fresh hickory.

The pith is very small 1/8" either side of center but that's probably more than enough. More if the pith wanders around but for the small stuff you are thinking about that's less likely.

[Spanky]

Mark that doesn’t look like any maple we have here. The Doyle Log Ruler takes a 4” x4” square out of the center of the log for the pith.

[Spanky]

If you are cutting 8/4 lumber and cutting  thur the pith you will have the pith in two 8/4 boards.

[Bmac]

Agree with Nut, definitely think it's a Norway Maple. I've obtained some logs in the past of that species. I think it works really well, I have had no issues with it as lumber.

Spanky, this is a street tree and yard tree, doubt you run across this much. It is listed as an invasive species though. 

[Spanky]

I have never cut a Norway maple.

[Bmac]

Well after working with your curly maple, you just stick to cutting that because it is sweet!

[Spanky]

I was at the log yard a few days ago, looking at all the hard maple log’s. Wanting to find a good curly hard maple, but you can’t see it with the bark on the log’s.

[Mark J]

The Village is OK with it if the contractor is, but I will have to catch them at it.  Public works says it's probably a Norway maple.  

Wood Database says its intermediate hardness for maples and (surprise to me) it's the sap wood that's most valued.  

I'm going to keep an eye out for the crew.  Depending on the trunk condition and the color change from heart to sap I may go for it.  

Maybe I can use this as an excuse to get a chain saw.  

[Spanky]

Mark, in maple the sap wood what you want. The white hard maple all sap wood. Soft maple lumber higher than hard maple and red oak now.

[Spanky]

On 10/29/2019 at 11:25 AM, Mark J said:

 

Maybe I can use this as an excuse to get a chain saw.  

Don’t go to Walmart to get one!