Can someone please explain this to me.
How big does a walnut tree have to be etc. etc.
I am just kind of looking for a brief overview of the process.


My Sister and Brother-In-Law just sold the timber off their farm and they saved a couple of Walnut trees to make furniture out of.
Brother-In-Law said the stumps were still there and were a few feet above ground left.
Would their be anything there ?

Please excuse my ignorance.

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Brother-In-Law said the stumps were still there and were a few feet above ground left.
Would their be anything there ?

If you're referring to the stumpwood of a walnut tree it can be spectacular. Take it out with a backhoe and then once above ground set a hipressure water hose on it to wash off the dirt.

Cover the stump with a tarp and let it set in the dry sun for a couple years and then cut it to what you think will yield the best effect.

One thing I'd caution about. The stumpwood has a lot of sand nd dirt embedded in the wood and it'll be very hard on the saws. If nothing else this can make beautiful burled forend tips, grip caps and misc items like coin boxes. It's a lot of work and is expensive in the end.

quote:

Originally posted by duikerman:

quote:

Brother-In-Law said the stumps were still there and were a few feet above ground left.
Would their be anything there ?

If you're referring to the stumpwood of a walnut tree it can be spectacular. Take it out with a backhoe and then once above ground set a hipressure water hose on it to wash off the dirt.

Cover the stump with a tarp and let it set in the dry sun for a couple years and then cut it to what you think will yield the best effect.

One thing I'd caution about. The stumpwood has a lot of sand nd dirt embedded in the wood and it'll be very hard on the saws. If nothing else this can make beautiful burled forend tips, grip caps and misc items like coin boxes. It's a lot of work and is expensive in the end.

Which part of the tree is the best for making stocks ?

Generally stumpwood and crotchwood has the most figure though if you get a tree with good fiddleback that can appear throughout. Agree with above, if the stump is >3-4ft dia, its worth digging out, plan on dulling chains while breaking it down to managable size. You'll have to size up the stump and guess at the best way to make your initial cut. Attempt to maximize the quartersawn grain, anchorseal any end and crotch grain immediately to avoid checking. Mill good pieces 3" thick (to allow for planing and warpage) and around 3"long, larger than a finished stock by 3" in the other dimensions to be safe. Put up in a dry spot and give it at least a year dry time per inch of thickness. Lots of work but very satisfying.

quote:

If you're referring to the stumpwood of a walnut tree it can be spectacular. Take it out with a backhoe and then once above ground set a hipressure water hose on it to wash off the dirt.

Cover the stump with a tarp and let it set in the dry sun for a couple years and then cut it to what you think will yield the best effect.

One thing I'd caution about. The stumpwood has a lot of sand nd dirt embedded in the wood and it'll be very hard on the saws. If nothing else this can make beautiful burled forend tips, grip caps and misc items like coin boxes. It's a lot of work and is expensive in the end.

I agree. I have done this a few times for humidor wood and other boxes, most recently did some stock wood blanks. The wood in the stump has silt/sand in the fluid so it will dull saws very fast. Make sure and pressure wash the outside as much as possible and get the very botoom since some dirt and rocks get sucked up there.

I have preffered a chainsaw mill to get the stump into smaller pieces, then a band mill.

Agree on the Alaska/chainsaw mill. If you have a saw that will handle it (46-66 Stihl, Husky XP) a 48"bar and mill with a half skip chain will do most of the heavy lifting. If you have access to a bandsaw mill/wood miser type great. If not, you can do the whloe deal with the chain saw mill, losing the 1/4" kerf per slab. If you're going after gunstocks there is alot of waste anyway. For the hobby/low production guy you're best of to take your time and really maximize the best stock wood the tree has--you can still do this with a chainsaw mill. You'll end up with alot of marginal wood anyway that, if you have 20 great blanks in the barn, you'll not be too excited about working anyway. Get the well laid out quartersawn figured balnks right and worry less about the other. It will get used by your wood working friends for boxes, bases, and furniture.

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half skip chain

This really is a must when cutting with a lot of wood in the bite of the saw. It keeps the chain speed and power up on the saw and helps keep the saw from drifting.

I'm like Jarod and would like to know the SMALLEST tree that could be usable for a stock.
3 to 4 foot in diameter is a real large tree - 3 to 4 foot in circumference is a lot different.

All I can tell you is that I have gotten some very nice stocks from limbs <18" in dia. You may only get 1-2 really well laid out stocks per crotch but that's worth trying. With black, which I assume you have, you lose more to the soft outer sapwood than with other walnuts. It may also depend on the conditions that the tree grew in; wet favorable conditions and a small tree may have wide rings and less stress fuigure than a small gnarled one growing in tough, dry conditions. It would be impossible for me to resist working on a smaller tree if it was available, but walnut is so rare out here that they're all worth the work. I don't know at what point the root wood becomes too small to be worth the trouble.

snowcat, you are correct.
Guys, in referrence to the size of a tree in regards to figure..."what is the approximate age of the tree" should be the first question.

Size can often be a direct reaction to water, soil and yes age.

The first two questions that should be asked are....where in the country are the trees located and second...where on the property, i.e. on a ridge, or in a swamp bottom did the trees grow?