luvthetrobag
ArboristSite Member
Does pin oak have any value. I always liked its dark color. Also ive been wondering about sassafrass. I have a couple straight big logs.
pin oak?
- Thread starter luvthetrobag
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curdy
ArboristSite Operative
Well, first question would be at which stage are you inquiring regarding value...in log form, rough sawn green, rough sawn dried, or finished dimensional?
I'm assuming this is the tree you recently took down (pics from your other post). Looks like it was taken down several months ago given the clothes the guy is wearing and the lack of leaves on the trees---> have they been off the ground since then? Nice looking tree BTW (if its the one from your pics).
I would say the majority of people who post to the milling threads mill for their own shops. So a good portion of your answers may come from that perspective. I can tell you right now if you're planning on milling it for yourself, you've already answered your own question - because you like the way it looks! Go for it! I have some pin oak I can't wait to get milled!
If you're asking if you can sell it, I'll leave that one to the rest of the bunch to answer...I'm sure Woodshop will be along here soon, and he's also from SE PA and has a TON of experience!
BTW, where in SE PA are you?
luvthetrobag
ArboristSite Member
Im in west chester area. Unfortunetly the log in the picture wasnt my job and the homeowner wanted to burn it. But im finding out for future oppurtunities what the potential for this stuff is.
curdy
ArboristSite Operative
Cool! I'm 10 minutes up the road...I'll PM my cell.
BobR
ArboristSite Lurker
It's rubbish. You should bundle it up and send it over to me where I can dispose of it in an environmentally friendly manner
woodshop
Addicted to ArboristSite
It's rubbish. You should bundle it up and send it over to me where I can dispose of it in an environmentally friendly manner
<smile>... BobR I'll trade ya as much sassafras as you want for any of that dense rock hard stuff you grow so well down there.
Pin oak gets mixed in with all the other red oak species, and it would be hard to tell them apart mixed in with those other red oaks. More pinkish than white oak when fresh cut. Has a more acidic smell than white oak also when fresh cut. It's a great wood to work in the shop. Sassafras has a somewhat dull greenish brown color to it, and thus some folks don't like it as much as oak, cherry or walnut as far as appearance goes. I've made picture frames and a few other things from it. It machines well in the woodshop and had a pleasant somewhat spicy smell with you run it through the saws.
BobR
ArboristSite Lurker
This photo shows why I like sassafras, particularly the spalted variety.
woodshop
Addicted to ArboristSite
Interesting... beautiful piece showing off the spalting and variety of colors and grain. I wonder though if we aren't talking about two different woods here, or maybe you just got a very special log. All of the sassafras I have seen here is greenish brown, doesn't have nearly the variety of color and grain that piece has. Ive never seen that dark reddish heartwood in that piece in a sassafras here. I havn't worked with tons of it though, maybe there is more variety in the tree than I had thought. I'm referring to "sassafras albidum" and the tree has the distinction of having three very different shaped leaves on the same tree.
Did you make that piece yourself?
BobR
ArboristSite Lurker
Sounds like a different tree.The tree I am refering to is Southern Sassafras - Atherosperma moschatum.
Yes that box is one of mine. Camphorlaurel box with a spalted sassafras lid and american wallnut pull.
Yes that box is one of mine. Camphorlaurel box with a spalted sassafras lid and american wallnut pull.
luvthetrobag
ArboristSite Member
Every pin oak ive seen has a dark brown heartwood to it. However scarlet oak which has leaves very similar to pin oak and has a reddish color to it. So i am a little confused
woodshop
Addicted to ArboristSite
Don't be confused, you are probably correct, and I most likely have not been as careful as I might have been differentiating species when I mill oaks. I will say though, that depending on the soil and other conditions where the tree grew, I have seen dark brown heartwood in several red oak family species, including northern red and chestnut oak. I had a scarlet oak in my front yard I milled few years ago that had dark colored rings which made the quartersawn boards look almost like zebrawood. I think I have a pic of that... I'll try and dig it up and post to show what I mean.
Free wood - Thread hijack
OK - I was browsing here and saw you guys are in my neck of the woods so to speak. In in Phonixville, Trees in question are 1.5 hours away (2 hrs if you are pulling a trailer, I drive fast).
I would love a portable mill operator to take down a few trees for me in exchange for the wood. You can have most of it. I just want a couple hundred board feet for myself.
So far my options are to have a logging company come in, they would take 80 trees, hardwoods, various species. pay me $XXXXX. Second option, have an arborist remove only a couple specific trees and I pay him $XXXX. I'm looking for a middle ground. Ideally one where money is not exchanged.
Problem is that these trees may be too big for a portable mill, I don't know.
I'm not sure of the species of the couple of trees I need down. Oak maybe. I know some on the property is "black oak". I have no idea what that is but it was on our survey. We also have White Oak, Hickory, Maple, Poplar, Walnut, Cherry and other species on the property.
Any interest in talking further?
OK - I was browsing here and saw you guys are in my neck of the woods so to speak. In in Phonixville, Trees in question are 1.5 hours away (2 hrs if you are pulling a trailer, I drive fast).
I would love a portable mill operator to take down a few trees for me in exchange for the wood. You can have most of it. I just want a couple hundred board feet for myself.
So far my options are to have a logging company come in, they would take 80 trees, hardwoods, various species. pay me $XXXXX. Second option, have an arborist remove only a couple specific trees and I pay him $XXXX. I'm looking for a middle ground. Ideally one where money is not exchanged.
Problem is that these trees may be too big for a portable mill, I don't know.
I'm not sure of the species of the couple of trees I need down. Oak maybe. I know some on the property is "black oak". I have no idea what that is but it was on our survey. We also have White Oak, Hickory, Maple, Poplar, Walnut, Cherry and other species on the property.
Any interest in talking further?
Husky137
Addicted to ArboristSite
How about starting your own thread about your situation instead of hijacking multiple threads? You might get better answers.
treebucker
ArboristSite Lurker
Pin oak is considered to be one of the less desirable red oak species. The most important thing to be wary of is ring shake. You can inspect the ends of the log for any cracks that circle the pith. These are usually associated (but not always) with a dark ring. If you see that then turn the log into firewood as you'll end up with boards that split end to end. Another thing about pin oak is it smells like piss. However, the odor will completely dissipate during drying. Pin oak also suffers from a high percentage of drying defects. But it also makes the best red oak firewood I've used. All that said, unless it has ring shake, I'd use it.
