Basswood questions.

[Marci MN]

I have a question on basswood branches or limbs. Will they be of the same texture as the main trunk of basswood?

The other day I was over to my Uncles place. I had shown him some of the bear carvings I had done. He asked about the wood and I told him I had ordered it and that it was basswood. His jaw dropped and he said "come with me". My husband and I followed him to his back yard and behind the barn. He pointed to some logs stacked ten foot high in his elk pasture. "thats all basswood" he said. WOW. But these logs are destined to go to a shredding company. They shred these logs for horse bedding. BUT the pile next to it I can have all I want. That pile is higher than a tractor and full of different sized branches. These were all cut down early last fall.

He said to just say the word and He will go cut me down a basswood tree. But I know there has to be some rules to carving wood right? Like moisture? Center cuts? Does it matter how its cured for carving? I could use any information I can on this wood before I ask for a tree to be cut down. I'm not sure..but he used to have his own sawmill, and if he does He may cut these logs for me. If he doesnt.. I'm not sure what I'd do with the larger trunk pieces.

He has acres and acres of basswood and ash back there and he's clearing part of that woods for his elk pastures.

Oh..and as a side note. I got to hold a pair of elk antlers.. boy are they heavy. And longer than I am tall. wow. Its possible I can have one for carving on..but thats beyond my comprehension at the moment. LOL I passed on that one.

[AlArchie]

Marci, those branches, if they are large (2" to 4"+) should be fine for carving, and smaller straight ones will make for good walking sticks. Basswood, like most all wood, has a center pith that may be a bit softer, or harder, than the rest of the piece, depending on growing conditions and the health of the tree at the time it was cut.

I'd have thm cut to the length you want, strip the bark and seal the ends with either paraffin or paint, and set them aside for 3 to 6 months. Branches that size shouldn't split or check very much, so you should be able to salvage some decent carving material. with those smaller diameter pieces, though, you probably won't be able to square them up for pattern transfer, so you'll have to carve "from the hip" so to speak!

If you manage to get a tree, get it milled to the size carving material you want right away. Seal the ends and let it dry for about 1 year per inch of thickness, (general rule), but I've had some much thicker ready to go inside of a year.

At the very least, strip the bark, and quarter the wood lengthwise. If you leave it "in the round", even with sealing the ends, it will split in very unprdictable ways.

You don't need to have a saw mill do your milling, if you have access to a chainsaw or a chainsawyer. I cut mine that way. Rip 4' lengths of 18" dia, logs in half, then rip carving sized blocks from that, avoiding the center 2". Chainsawing like this wastes a lot of wood, but hey, if it's free and you don't have to pay a mill to do the work................

Al

[rales]

I've used the last method that Al described with great success... Last spring I had a couple of 30" diameter x 36" logs that I sawed into 6"-8" x 10-12" x the length of the log. For sealing the ends - I tend to use whatever old latex paint I have laying around - a couple of heavy coats will do it. Another thing to keep in mind is temperature and air circulation. Make sure air is able to move around and through your stack by "sticking" it with small (1" x 1") stick that keep the blanks apart. Try to keep your stack in a cool area (not the attic of your garage). If you need to leave it out in the open - loosely cover it with a tarp. Check it in a few weeks - if you see any mold developing - you aren't getting enough air (a bleach solution will stop whatever has started and won't harm the wood)...

Your uncle should go into business!

peace,

rales

[Marci MN]

Thank you. We havent been over to pick the wood up yet. Its been raining all week and to drive out there we may get stuck. I'm going to try to take my camera with and take some pix.

This uncle had or has a wood mill. He built his place from wood out of his woods. I'll have to ask him if he's interested in going into the basswood biz.

I'm anxious to get it all home.