china berry?

[Klayton]

so my buddy has a chinaberry tree we are thinking of cutting down and milling. Its in his yard and he wants it gone anyway i was just wondering if it was worth milling. it is huge at the base like maybe 3 1/2' across. and it looks like the very bottom is just a huge burl so i was wondering if it is worth the effort of milling as it is going to be quite the project to cut it to size to go into my 32'' max saw mill. ??

 

[abbott295]

Wikipedia says its a good lumber, in the mahogany family. Sounds like it's time for a bigger saw and a bigger mill.

 

[SDB777]

Couldn't help it.....


We don't get Chinaberry trees over 6-8 inches in diameter here locally....but the one's we have a full of colorful wood that bowl turners can't get enough of. So when you do get to milling, some thicker pieces would be nice in the marketplace.




Scott (oooo, the colors) B

 

[Peterson Miller]

Don't cut it down to fit in your mill! Get someone with a slabber to mill it and then sell the off cuts to wood turners!

 

[SDB777]

Don't cut it down to fit in your mill! Get someone with a slabber to mill it and then sell the off cuts to wood turners!

The number of people that could turn an entire 'chunk' that size would be very limited. Swing of 40+ inches is industrial sized! The majority of turners are using 12" swing lathes.....I can outboard swing 24" diameters, but then again - why? It's too big, too much waste, and then no one would want to spend the money to purchase a piece that big once finished.


Turners will typically purchase the pieces that will fit into a 'flat rate' box.



Scott (still no photo's....me thinks it's a fairy tale) B

 

[Peterson Miller]

The number of people that could turn an entire 'chunk' that size would be very limited. Swing of 40+ inches is industrial sized! The majority of turners are using 12" swing lathes.....I can outboard swing 24" diameters, but then again - why? It's too big, too much waste, and then no one would want to spend the money to purchase a piece that big once finished.


Turners will typically purchase the pieces that will fit into a 'flat rate' box.



Scott (still no photo's....me thinks it's a fairy tale) B

Sorry, what I ment was, slab up the tree and cut up the top and bottom flitches/slabs into say 1 or 2 inch blocks to sell to wood turners. Then you have a bunch of slabs for furniture and the turners will be happy with some burl offcuts.