Logs to stock blanks question

[melsdad]

I have an opportunity to have some black cherry, and possibly some walnut cut into stock blanks for future use. My question is how should the blanks be cut to make the best stocks? Is the center of the log the best? I planned on having them cut 3" thick 10-12" wide, and 6' long, coating the ends with anchorseal and letting them air dry for a few years.

[gunmaker]

Generally stock wood is 1/4 sawn to expose the figure, if any. Stacked with 2X4 spacers for air circulation. Draw a circle on end of log, then a cross centered on it. Go off middle @ 45 deg. angle to get 1/4 saw blank.  ....Tom

[Swamp]

Cutt'em longer than 6', to avoid the checking when you go to cut out the blank. 7' is better in my opinion!! Even when you treat (coat) the ends, they will still check some!

[melsdad]

I think I am going to cut them 8' to be safe.

[Captchee]

1/4 sawn IMO is best but  i have also had some tree's slab sawn .
 paint the ends real well . let it dry and paint it again . do that a  few times .
 also dont forget your going to have  some dry time involved . so set them somewhere  that you wont constantly have to be  moving them

[melsdad]

Would the attic of my workshop be a good place to dry/store them? I was going to put them on the back wall of my shop on shelves up under my 24" overhang. They would be out of the weather, but still in the elements with air flow.

[melsdad]

One more question. Are there any advantages, or disadvantages to having the wood kiln dried? I can get kiln drying done for .39 cents a board ft. That translates to about 8 bucks for a 3" x 10" x 8' blank.

[gunmaker]

Much faster.  no wait time.  ....Tom

[melsdad]

Much faster.  no wait time.  ....Tom

I guess I am just wondering why you read so much about storing the wood and letting it sit for years before you even touch it. When the price of kiln drying seems so reasonable that you could have usable material in a few months or even less.

[Captchee]

because Kiln drying isn’t  as good as a quality seasoned wood  plank .
 unless you have a moister density tester you will have no way of knowing  at what  % of moister your plank is really at  . As such you still can be subject to shrinkage and warping .
 Back when I used to do a lot of floors , it wasn’t uncommon to have to sticker and dry Kiln dried  planks  well after  delivery .  Often times they would come in with a MD at near 20  even on maple . If that plank  got installed in a floor that was at 7.5% , you ended up with a gap .

 This isn’t to say you cant Kiln dry . You can . a lot of stock makers  today use kiln dried  planks .
 But IMO the best still  use  properly seasoned wood  as  the process provides for much better stability over the long run .
So if you chose the Kiln dried route , Just make sure you know at what % they are  finishing to  and what your Relative humidity is . Let the plank normalize to that  prior to starting your work

[melsdad]

That makes a lot of sense Charles! I am in no big hurry to get these blanks usable. So what if I kiln dried them and knew my moisture content out of the kiln. Then let them sit for say six months to a year. That would still speed up the process, but would that be enough time for the blanks to stabilize to your climate and humidity?

[Captchee]

depending on the density yes .  As long as you rotated  your stock  and checked it often
 Normally for a peace of 4 quarter  maple “ common “ it would take around 5-7 days for  the plank to  reach RH here .  Normally that’s dropping from 20%mc to 7.5 mc .
 Most profession Mills that do kiln drying , will also do a MD test . If its still to high  they may charge you to run the batch again

[Swamp]

From personal experience, you dont want them in areas like attics because it gets to darn hot and dry, and the planks will dry to fast and check like crazy! I put mine in the back of the garage off the floor with 1 X 2 strips, and stack evenly space for air to get all the way around them. Stack'em up and let'em go for a few years. They will be real nice.

I used to paint them, but I have better results now with parafin wax. Melt the parafin in a big enough pot or pan, and with the help of a friend, dip the ends of the planks into the melted wax. Let sit in the hot wax for 20 seconds or so to open the pores of the wood, and then remove. Works great!

BE CAREFUL MELTING PARAFIN WAX with flame! I use a hot plate!