Standing Dead Black Walnut Logs

[Brendon Phillips]

I cut down a BIG dead Black walnut tree for a customer last summer. No bark, shaky, outer layers peeling off, just nasty. Until I cut into the trunk section, I thought it was all garbage. It looked pretty solid so I took a gamble I brought 3 large logs home to try out. Here's what I found inside.

 

[abbott295]

Welcome to Arboristsite. My Mama says a tree is like a box of chocolates; you never know what you're gonna get. Looks like it's going to be hard to top that in the future.

 

[Brendon Phillips]

Thanks! I dunno, in my back yard is a monster cherry log just waiting to be sliced into. Cut that sucker down a couple weeks ago. It should be b-e-a-utiful.

 

[RedArrow]

Very nice

 

[axe2fall]

It amazing how long a walnut log holds up. Even on the ground they don't seem to give up the ghost. Surprised you found one squeezed in down there in Loblolly country.
That one is a beauty. Don't let those slabs dry too quick.

 

[Brendon Phillips]

I'm being careful with it. Haha yeah, pines as far as the eye can see. Can't get my hands on a good sized cedar though. Went to visit my mother in TN a couple weeks ago, couldn't take a leak in the woods without hitting a big cedar.

Any tips on drying this cherry I'm gonna mill next?

 

[RedArrow]

Like Axe2Fall said: "don't let them dry too quick"
Keep out of direct sunlight, Anchor Seal the ends, keep them under weight.

 

[axe2fall]

No. I air dry everything. It takes time so it helps to have a thousand other projects.
But I have found that slabs from old logs want to check more if the process is rushed. No idea why
If you need a big VA cedar and you find yourself 3 hours north of home contact me

 

[Brendon Phillips]

I built a dehumidification kiln in my garage for some stuff, but I've never put any nice hardwoods in it. It's mostly for construction timbers. Can I use it for the walnut or cherry? I know it'll dull the colors of the walnut a little, and that's ok for the use I have for it. But I don't want it to honeycomb.

 

[Dave Boyt]

Nice walnut! I milled a dead walnut out of a yard a couple of weeks ago with similar results. Walnut is very forgiving when it comes to drying. Generally honeycomb and loss of color come from the high temps used by commercial kilns that push for maximum production. You can keep track of the moisture removal by monitoring the amount of liquid the dehumidifier puts out, but it would help to have a moisture meter. What thickness? It can be tricky to combine different thicknesses in the same kiln load. Looking forward to photos of the cherry.

 

[Brendon Phillips]

Its all 1" thickness. I've had it stacked in the garage for a few months, and it's down to 20% right now. I'm gonna mill the rest of the logs as well as the Cherry as soon as my ripping chain order comes in form Baileys. maybe some 2" stuff next. The kiln doesn't get super hot, there's just a dehu and a fan in it. Would I have problems mixing species in it? Like Cherry and Walnut?

 

[Dave Boyt]

Should be no real problem. Monitor the cherry, since it will lose moisture more slowly than the walnut. Rule of thumb is to us a drying schedule based on the slowest drying species, and thickest pieces, and take it SLOW. It should take at least two weeks to dry 2" cherry. If you try to take it too fast, you will get the thinner wood too dry, and that can be a problem.