Hit the Jackpot

[woodtrapper]

My neighbors next to me recently cleared 2 acres for a new horse barn.They gave me permission to to take whatever I wanted.After the rain on christmas day, knots were sticking up everywhere.Agiant pile of logs to boot.Since I do not carve basswood I felt like I hit the lottery.No more hauling wood pieces through the dense woods.I felt the need to share this with my carving friends.Happy Davy

[Hi_Ho_Sliver]

You didn't say what kind of wood? You said you don't carve basswood so assuming its not basswood?Talking

[wade clark]

Davy,
Congratulations! Get some of each kind in several sizes just in case! Be sure to seal the end grain to reduce splitting. I'd recommend Anchor-seal or any other product designed for sealing the end grain. You can find a good deal on Anchor-seal by doing a search for Highland Hardware.
Wade

[woodtrapper]

Let me clear this up real quick so I don't offend anyone.I carve found wood and use it as a stepping stone (or as practice pieces).Hopefully after some time I can carve some of the characters that I enjoy seeing being posted from some of the pros here at WCI .The trees around me are mainly hardwoods.Some of the softer woods are tougher to find.Hey Wade,is the anchor seal better than wax and if so is it easy to get?

[Hi_Ho_Sliver]

Anchorseal is a liquid wax and much easier to use if you have a lot of wood to seal.....I use sealing wax from the kitchen because I usually just have a stick or two to seal and don't want to spend 30-40 dollars or whatever it is for anchorseal...Talking

[Kenny_S]

I would rather win the lottery Davy. no offense. but then to win, I have to buy a lottery ticket!

[wade clark]

I think I pay about $15 a gallon thru Highland Hardware and a gallon lasts a long time. You can buy it on ebay for about the same price, but they gouge you on shipping. www.highlandhardware.com
If you get enough wood, you can practice with your chainsaw and not feel like you're wasting wood!
Wade

[Thomp]

i heard if your in a pinch the exterior latex housepaint will seal the ends but you need several hevy coats, and check it pretty often for cracks developing

canning wax-perifine is great, heat it in a double boiler not in a single pan, unless you want to see a grease fire....

the wax is cheapest unless you have left over latex paint you dont know what to do with it...

cover the places where the limbs were cou off as well... make the water go out the bark....

[woodtrapper]

Boy Thomas, I could tell you a good story about a wax fire but I will save that for anothet subject.The reason I started this thread is because I was really excited about all this wood to pick from. I wonder if anyone gets as excited as me about a good wood find.

[Plain_Ol_Ed]

I used to make a lot of bows. To seal the end of the bodark, I'd carry a bottle of Elmer's glue in my pack. As soon as the stave was cut, I'd use the glue on the ends. Nothings perfect, but the glue and the way it was packaged made things easy.