Another Basswood Question

[jimp]

Hey All,
I have read the different posts about the varying quality of basswood. It seems that "northern" basswood is preferred. Heinecke in Wisconsin is often referred to as the place to get wood and I am sure that it is great stuff. I am in New York and have a lot of local basswood. The latitude here is similar to Wisconsin. Do you think there would be much difference? Is there something in the water in WI? Obviously, I could just order some and find out for myself (which I will probably do) but I have a barnful and was just curious what you folks thought about any possible differences.
Thanks!
Jim

[Mitchell]

Most likely you will not notice much difference except for the color - with the Wisconsin variety being 'whiter'. I know carvers that use basswood from PA and NY without any concerns.

I carve southern basswood occasionally and it's a ~little~ harder than that from Heinecke but definitely has more color and imperfections.

[davidinsarasota]

Not sure about location, but the most critical factors for Basswood quality are: A. When it was cut (winter is best), B. How it was dried (kiln is most consistent, but a well ricked rack is good too. C. How it was resawn (quartersawing is overkill for Basswood, but pith exclusion is desirable.)

Full disclosure: I rarely carve Basswood, and have never cut or dried it since there is none here in Central Florida. All of my info came from Everett Ellenwood's excellent, "The Complete Book of Woodcarving."

[Eddy-Smiles]

David speakest the truth! There's a lot more to wood than just going out in the field and lopping off a branch. An excellent example is the difference between the basswood that Woodcraft carries and the wood that you'll get from Heinecke. Woodcraft's basswood varies from lot to lot while as reported here on the forum Heinecke's is uninform from order to order.

[Donna_T]

My son-in-law cut a basswood (linden) tree for me in Vermont. Three years later, I started carving a piece of it and it is a different color than Wisconsin Basswood, a triffle bit harder (denser), but pretty much like good butternut to work.

I agree, how it cut and cured plays a good part. While you can carve any wood, some is just easier than others.

Donna_T

[susieq]

an old friend gave me some Maine basswood, years ago. That was some nice wood. Air dried though, so it had some "worm holes". Kiln dried would have killed anything in the wood. I did have to deal with that. Otherwise, it was great stuff.

I will add that I also got some North Carolina basswood and it was awful!!! It doesn't get cold enough for long enough time, to make a nice, tight grain. It was very crumbly and pithy. I had gotten 100 board feet of it green....ricked it, coated the ends of the wood with wax and waited for 3 years for it to dry. Ended up burning it in our wood stove in the winter.

[AlArchie]

I think I posted this before but it bears repeating. In addition to all the factors listed above there is another that affects the carving quality of "basswood".

There are actually three species of basswood that tend to get confused.

1. American Basswood (Tilia Americana L) The range of this tree is from the north American border down through Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio and Pennsylvania. Generally considered "Northern Basswood".

2. Carolina Basswood (Tiliana caroliniana Mill) The range of this tree is along the southern tier of gulf states and up the east coast into Tennesee with scattered populations up as far as Virginia. Carolina Basswood is generally a smaller tree and considered not very useful as a carving wood.

3.White Basswood (Tilia heterophylla Vent) The range of this tree is generally throughout the Appalachian area with scattered populations into Southern Missouri, Ohio and Pennsylvania. Not as good a carving wood but useful for making boxes, etc.

In addition to these three true "basswood" trees there are some areas where the European Linden tree (Tilia Xeuropeae) is not uncommon. This is a hybrid of two true Eropean species, Littleleaf Linden and Bigleaf Linden. These are cultivated species more common in the norhteast and the Pacific Northwest.

Add to all these factors, different growing conditions, soil and mineral content, and varying climate, it's no wonder that "BASSWOOD" can have highly variable characteristics when it comes to carving.

Anyway, it's not just "where it's grown", but actually "what it is"!

Source: National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Trees (Eastern Region)

Al

[JLWatson]

This is really helpful information. I got a block of basswood from Woodcraft a few years ago and while it looks fine, it's not that great for carving. Even with the sharpest tools the grain pulls open almost like it's crumbly in any direction but with the grain. Impossible to get fine details in grain the carves like that. The only way I have found to overcome that is to use a power carver and that works satisfactorily. I really like to carve teak and mahogany although even those can have unique problems. I guess that's just the world of wood carving.