A guy has walnut logs forsale

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cantcutter

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Advertised locally....."two large walnut logs. been down for awhile, but still heavy. I saved these for carving. one is 15' and the other is 18'. 15 inches diameter. Pickup for $600.00

I emailed him and said I would remove them for free if nobody buys them:D

I would like to know why people in this area think walnut is worth so much? I had a guy over the summer approach me about taking a walnut down in his yard..... nice big tree and when I said that I don't top trees down anymore, that he would have to call a tree service.....he wanted to know what I thought a tree service would give him for it? :jawdrop: I told him a 1500.00 lighter wallet. He said, but walnuts are worth alot of money..... that is like a 10.000 dollar tree!!! I want to know in whos lifetime A walnut is a 10.000 tree? I can't even get 2.25 a bf for a butt log at the veneer plant.
 
It's all about location and demand..... in this part of the country they can get any hardwood veneer logs they want. supply is high so demand is low.
 
For some reason or another some people think walnut is worth it's weight in gold.There has to be a demand for it.Unless it is log truck full in these parts you can't hardly give it away.Of course if you go to the mill to buy some ,it's a different story on the price.It just depends on which side of the fence you are on I guess.
 
Last week I saw half of a claro walnut (juglans hindsii)log that a friend paid $5.000 for. This log was 6' in diameter and 11' long and is very tight curl figure with a nice crotch flame in the middle. In California I can buy eastern walnut for $8.50/bf or the local california stuff for $16/bf these prices are from a supplier in San Jose and are retail. throw in some premiums such as a large slab and the price goes up and if it is figured it goes up even more. I have even seen some highly figured claro in the $100/bf price range. This is for true instrument grade stuff. The problem with all this is that many people with a walnut in their yard think that their tree is large because thay have never seen a 6' diameter walnut and their tree is much bigger than their neighbors so it must be worth $10K. There is a guy down the street from me that thinks his tree is worth 60K. the trunk is oval shaped and is 6' in diameter one way and 10' diameter the other. The reality is that there is a huge chance that it is hollow and there will be no 10' wide slabs, and it is going to cost well over 5K to get it out because it will require a crane. result is that the tree is still there and will be for a long time.

I don't think it is a myth that some trees are worth 10K the myth is that any walnut over xx inches is worth 10K. I have never paid for a log nor have I cut down a tree, so there is a huge amout of wiggle room between paying 10k for a standing tree and milling some premium 36" wide slabs
 
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Last week I saw half of a claro walnut (juglans hindsii)log that a friend paid $5.000 for.

If anybody brings me a log to mill and tells me they paid 5 k for it.......it isn't going on my mill:D I turned down a resaw job on some 200 year old oak timbers not too long ago..... I can't risk screwing something like that up....especially when the owner thinks its gold:dizzy:

I am sure that there are walnuts worth 10 k, but not standing...... the end product might be worth 10 k, but there is alot of work and along way to go to get to that point. I will not pay a red cent for a log I have to go and get myself...... if its good and they bring it to me I may pay .20 cents a board foot;)
 
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There is a niche market in figured walnut blanks for custom gun stocks.They do fetch a pretty good price.Actually any figured wood brings a fair amount but you have to have a buyer .

You can't base prices on what something sells for in Califonia.I don't know how anybody can afford to live there myself.
 
As was already alluded to, the worth of a tree, like beauty, is largely in the eye of the beholder. Location and supply and demand set market prices. Also, these things go in cycles. Back in the 70's in many parts of the east here walnut was very hot, and thus demand was high and supply was not keeping up. Prices got crazy and criminals were literally stealing them out of parks and woodlots in the middle of the night. I remember reading about a public park in Ohio where they dropped the walnut, topped it and lifted it onto a truck and were gone all in less than 10 minutes. That nonsense for walnut calmed down eventually but niche markets will always exist here and there for certain woods. If you want some of it, often you just gotta be in the right place at the right time or dig around to find what you're looking for and then be prepared to offer your first born child in exchange for it. :laugh:
 
I work with a guy who says that when he was a kid his parents sold some black walnuts to a guy who came out, cut them down and then dug the stump out of the ground to mill.... didn't have any intrest in the rest of the tree.
 
I work with a guy who says that when he was a kid his parents sold some black walnuts to a guy who came out, cut them down and then dug the stump out of the ground to mill.... didn't have any intrest in the rest of the tree.
That guy was looking for figured wood which comes from the bottom part of the tree,including the roots.

Oh,about that thievery of an Ohio walnut.Unless it has changed,the restitution for timber piracy in Ohio is 2 thousand dollars per tree.Doesn't make any difference if it is walnut veneer,flame cherry or fiddle back maple or even swamp willow. This state takes a very dim view of those activities.
 
Someone locally is taking bids on a walnut tree in his yard. Says' it is 8'6" diameter. I don't know what kind of money he expects.
 
walnuts worth

Well this is what ive learned so far in my parts, and we got walnut. Had a bunch of mine,(many of which i intamently climbed and trimmed) blow over in a tornado two years ago, good trees looking like cornbrooms one salvaged log 28" on the small end, any way its worth (kinda) a nickel to a dime a bdf to everyone who touches it hence, 5-10 cts-faller cutting the tree,skidder draging it to the landing,then the owner, then the trucker, the sawyer,gets at least 12cts , then the grader, And im leaving out the guy who drags the cable,to snach the log, the truck driver, if not owner operator, all the gas, guys who stac and sticker the graded boards, and lets not forget drying and storing. But the real money is in who the end buyer of the raw product, and the buyer who buys the logs off the landing, because that person alone knows (and is guessing) what grade will saw out of the log, and what, there current buyers will pay, and even more importantly, what the other buyers in the area are paying. So for the guy with the mill paying 20cts delivered logs, and pallet stock selling just over 30cts picked up, you can all see how slim the margin is, as for the guy with a great big walnut in his yard, even as a saw log on the landing its worth nothing unless he likes the look of it there, cause its not cost efective, for the trucker or anyone else, to deal w/ one tree,no matter what its potential ??? end (which) market value, Mabey the guy with the tree in there yard could make a deal with a ?(who) buyer, to put up the money for a helocopter and fly it to where it needs to go. As for the guys in Calli, lets talk. still got lots of big stuff left standing and its staying there for me to climb and nurture till the next big wind, or mythical prices come around. (Although menards gets about 40$ for one clear 1x6 6ft s4s srinkwraped board) bd ft $ = do the math
 
walnuts worth

Well this is what ive learned so far in my parts, and we got walnut. Had a bunch of mine,(many of which i intamently climbed and trimmed) blow over in a tornado two years ago, good trees looking like cornbrooms one salvaged log 28" on the small end, any way its worth (kinda) a nickel to a dime a bdf to everyone who touches it hence, 5-10 cts-faller cutting the tree,skidder draging it to the landing,then the owner, then the trucker, the sawyer,gets at least 12cts , then the grader, And im leaving out the guy who drags the cable,to snach the log, the truck driver, if not owner operator, all the gas, guys who stac and sticker the graded boards, and lets not forget drying and storing. But the real money is in who the end buyer of the raw product, and the buyer who buys the logs off the landing, because that person alone knows (and is guessing) what grade will saw out of the log, and what, there current buyers will pay, and even more importantly, what the other buyers in the area are paying. So for the guy with the mill paying 20cts delivered logs, and pallet stock selling just over 30cts picked up, you can all see how slim the margin is, as for the guy with a great big walnut in his yard, even as a saw log on the landing its worth nothing unless he likes the look of it there, cause its not cost efective, for the trucker or anyone else, to deal w/ one tree,no matter what its potential ??? end (which) market value, Mabey the guy with the tree in there yard could make a deal with a ?(who) buyer, to put up the money for a helocopter and fly it to where it needs to go. As for the guys in Calli, lets talk. still got lots of big stuff left standing and its staying there for me to climb and nurture till the next big wind, or mythical prices come around. (Although menards gets about 40$ for one clear 1x6 6ft s4s srinkwraped board) bd ft $ = do the math
 
Someone locally is taking bids on a walnut tree in his yard. Says' it is 8'6" diameter. I don't know what kind of money he expects.

People often get circumference and diameter mixed up. I doubt there is a tree of that diameter in PA.
 
I've seen some in VA over 6' in diameter. But if they do have it mixed up, 8'6 isn't THAT big in circumference. 32.5" minus the bark, so probably 28" or so. Still a good haul of lumber. Not that I know anything about grading or lumber prices. I've got a couple trees I'm going to drop this winter---actually one triple trunk with 18-20" diameter stems about 24-30' straight and clear, and a 5' high section about 30" (under the bark--was 115"circ.). I hope to keep half and sell half to a friend to do a little work on the farmhouse. I'll be sawing it, but I'm hoping to get 3.50 or 4.00 a bd. ft. b/c its a really nice straight, clear tree. Even has a little figure on the trunk section under the bark; we'll see about that. Its up in the woods, but I'm going to spend an afternoon getting as deep as I can with a shovel to get as much of the root ball as I can.
 
A 24" diameter walnut is a good size.If it's not grown in an environment where it has to compete for sun light it won't usually amount to too much.

I have never seen a 3 ,4 or 6 footer many people talk about.The only fat ones I've seen are yard trees which aren't worth a whole lot ,only in somebodies pipe dreams or dilusions of grandure.

The last I priced good walnut,fine and select,kiln dried,planned and straight cut one side,it was around 4 bucks a board foot.Oak was around 3 at that time,cherry a tad higher than walnut.That was 4 or 5 years ago and most likely is higher now.

I don't have a stick of walnut but I do have several thousand bd ft of oak and a tad less than a thousand of f and s cherry.
 
I've got a couple trees I'm going to drop this winter---actually one triple trunk with 18-20" diameter stems about 24-30' straight and clear, and a 5' high section about 30" (under the bark--was 115"circ.). I hope to keep half and sell half to a friend to do a little work on the farmhouse. I'll be sawing it, but I'm hoping to get 3.50 or 4.00 a bd. ft. b/c its a really nice straight, clear tree. Even has a little figure on the trunk section under the bark; we'll see about that. Its up in the woods, but I'm going to spend an afternoon getting as deep as I can with a shovel to get as much of the root ball as I can.

...you didn't say what kind of tree, can I assume walnut?
 
A 24" diameter walnut is a good size.If it's not grown in an environment where it has to compete for sun light it won't usually amount to too much.

I have never seen a 3 ,4 or 6 footer many people talk about.The only fat ones I've seen are yard trees which aren't worth a whole lot ,only in somebodies pipe dreams or dilusions of grandure.

The last I priced good walnut,fine and select,kiln dried,planned and straight cut one side,it was around 4 bucks a board foot.Oak was around 3 at that time,cherry a tad higher than walnut.That was 4 or 5 years ago and most likely is higher now.

I don't have a stick of walnut but I do have several thousand bd ft of oak and a tad less than a thousand of f and s cherry.

Got a 36" out of a yard a couple of years ago. Outside of some nails, there was no rot, and some of the prettiest grain I'd ever seen. Had a 40" last summer, but it had some soft spots and wasn't nearly as pretty. We get them north of 30" pretty often. Was eyeballing a 46-48" about 4 years ago with some big burls on it. About 10-12 ft before it branched out. No real access to it with a vehicle, however.

Mark
 
the reality of monster slabs

Claro walnut(juglans hindsii) is very different from eastern walnut(juglans nigra). Claro is considered by many to be far supperior in color and figure. if you do some internet searches you will find that on average the price of claro is double that of eastern. The tree My friend paid 5k standing for was indeed 72" in diamer. At that size grade never comes into play as the log was slabed with a chainsaw, and a 6'x11' slab is rare enough that grade dosen't matter. the log was never skidded but was hoisted from the home owners yard onto a truck and driven straight to my friends small specialty wood yard where he milled it with a chainsaw. do the math he is selling the slabs for $25/bf and half the tree was sold a week after he got it back to his yard. do a search and see how many places have slabs that big and check on their prices. Big walnut prices are not a myth but they only apply to a select few trees.
 

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