Roadkill - woodburner style.

[BlueRidgeMark]

Well, why not? I was moseying on home with my last load of old, dry oak, when a recently downed tree caught my eye. Actually, I had spotted it a couple of weeks ago, but today I had time, so, I unloaded the oak and went back for some roadside scavenging. Most of the trunk proper was on private property (empty land, but still, privately owned), but there was a good pickup load on the right of way....


Front row:



Rear row:





Anybody have any idea what this is? The leaves look something like elm, but I don't know for sure.


Here's a better view of the bark, and a good way to move wood around. 1000# Milwaukee hand truck. 16 x 6.5 inch tires. Nice! With the wood staggered like that, it doesn't roll off. A light load for one of my boys...






Anyway, the price was right, it was close to home, and didn't take long at all! A start on next year's wood.

 

[Nailsbeats]

I can't get the pictures closer or bigger to get a good look, but it looks like Ash from here.

 

[thebeerman_2000]

I would say ash too

 

[woodbooga]

What they said - ash.

 

[mga]

ash was my first guess.

nice find!!!!!!!!

 

[wdchuck]

Got yourself some nice ash there Mark.

When we first bought this place I was confusing elm and ash alot until the Audobon Field Guide became my woodlot companion, and they are growing right next to each other , alternating rows, 70' tall.

 

[tcNH]

ASH. good job

 

[coog]

Elm vs.Ash

Not hard to tell the difference when splitting time rolls along,

 

[BlueRidgeMark]

Excellent! I had looked at ash as a possibility, but thought I'd ask the experts. I hear it's good burning wood. Guess I'll find out in a year or so...

Wish I could find a way to contact the owner of the property. It's just woods, no house anywhere within a few miles.

I'd guess a few woodworkers would love to have what's left. I left a crotch, but from there down to where it broke off I'd guess there's 15 feet of straight, solid trunk. There's a bit more to be dropped, too. Looks like it broke off about 20 feet up.

 

[BlueRidgeMark]

I can't get the pictures closer or bigger to get a good look, but it looks like Ash from here.

Nails, just click on the picture. It should open up in a new window. Shouldn't take too long to load, either. It's not huge.

 

[wdchuck]

Excellent! I had looked at ash as a possibility, but thought I'd ask the experts. I hear it's good burning wood. Guess I'll find out in a year or so...

Wish I could find a way to contact the owner of the property. It's just woods, no house anywhere within a few miles.

I'd guess a few woodworkers would love to have what's left. I left a crotch, but from there down to where it broke off I'd guess there's 15 feet of straight, solid trunk. There's a bit more to be dropped, too. Looks like it broke off about 20 feet up.

Why wait, split it now, it generally splits quite easily, and guess what?, its the one wood you can throw in green and still get all the heat from, so, you can enjoy the wood this year yet.

 

[BlueRidgeMark]

Really? Good! Thanks for the info. We may use it in the spring, then. I've got it bucked to length, so I'll leave it until I get some of my oak split. I'm way behind, and having my splitter in the shop ain't helpin' none!

 

[husky362]

grab your maul and split it

you will like ash it's easy to split by hand, grab as much as you can it burn's good

i would rather use a 6# maul or wedged axe to split ash it's faster than log spliter,,,,,,to me

 

[BlueRidgeMark]

I don't doubt it, but I'm nursing a bad elbow right now. Can't do any manual splitting, which really annoys me! I like swinging a maul.

I hope to be back in shape for next season, anyway.

 

[woodbooga]

I don't doubt it, but I'm nursing a bad elbow right now. Can't do any manual splitting, which really annoys me! I like swinging a maul.

I hope to be back in shape for next season, anyway.

Sorry to hear you're feeling the pain. +1 on all the glowing endorsements of ash. If you're behind and can score a few more piles of the stuff, you'll be in better shape supply wise.

All my oak, maple, gray birch, and beech have long been split and stacked and is ready to be moved indoors. Still have a few small logs of ash that I'll be getting to shortly. Saved it for last because I could, putting the priority on the wood needing longer seasoning.

 

[Zodiac45]

Elm vs.Ash

Not hard to tell the difference when splitting time rolls along,

+1 hard too tell from the distance but Ash is my guess. Split a few and you'll know right off. Ash is straight grained and very easy splitting, elm not so much..... Could also be a ubiquitous "popple" also. Around here, if it's on the side of the road longer than a week.......It's Popple.

 

[johnha]

Mark,

It looks like Ash, but so do poplars in this area. How is the weight of a round?

 

[Wood Doctor]

Really? Good! Thanks for the info. We may use it in the spring, then. I've got it bucked to length, so I'll leave it until I get some of my oak split. I'm way behind, and having my splitter in the shop ain't helpin' none!

If you split the green ash now, you can probably burn it in the early spring. Ash is preferred by some over oak because it's a little easier to burn by itself and dries faster. I usually mix oak with faster burning woods, like elm, which gets the oak going. However, ash doesn't really need a mix. Ash is also easier for me to split than elm, so given the option, I prefer the ash over elm.

Ash, the forgotten hardwood, also makes terrific furniture with grain that is a little more conspicuous than oak. Ash is terrific for turning and much easier on cutting and shaping tools than oak.

 

[woodbooga]

Ash, the forgotten hardwood, also makes terrific furniture with grain that is a little more conspicuous than oak. Ash is terrific for turning and much easier on cutting and shaping tools than oak.

+1 on that. Not a woodworker myself, but I like the look of the grain. Used a lot in late Victorian furniture. My old farmhouse is adjacent to an old water-powered tool factory that was going great guns in the late 1800s. They used ash for the handles and there are many around my property that are the children and grandchildren of the trees that made the first handles. Other side of town, there was a baseball bat manufacturer and many trees that away are the descendants of the originals.

 

[Zodiac45]

+1 on that. Not a woodworker myself, but I like the look of the graun. Used a lot in late Victorian furniture. My old farmhouse is adjacent to an old water-powered tool factory. They used ash for the handles and there are many around my property that are the children and grandchildren of the trees that made the first handles. Other side of town, there was a baseball bat manufacturer and many trees that away are the descendants of the originals.

+2 too that! Ash baseball bats were the bats of choice for many of the old power hitters. Light weight, but hard enough too crack a ball out of the park. It really is an excellent wood for handles of any kind due too the easy turning and straight grain. In a pinch you can burn "green" ash. It's the only wood I've ever seen that can do that. Obviously better when seasoned a bit but that ability has been a life saver over the cold New England winters.