Questions about Pecan...

[Frank Trinkle]

I have just been given pretty much unlimited access to as much pecan wood as I want. A good friend has over 500 acres of pecan trees and they just stack all the fallen and cut limbs... many of which are quite large. They'll let me get as much as I want, which I can resaw into whatever...

Having never worked with pecan, I am curious as to its handling properties, and what others have used it for. This is true pecan (my friend produces the nuts), not hickory.

Any special care, considerations, usage I should know about? (Most of the wood has been sitting air drying for at least one year)

[Mike Henderson]

I've used pecan. The first time I used it I said I'd never use it again because it was so hard. But over time, I've come to like it. It is a bit harder than many other woods but with power tools you can work it easily. It's a good looking wood (IMO) and strong. I've made chairs and tables out of it and used it in turnings.

And your pecan is the best kind of pecan - FREE. You can't ask for more.

Mike

[Maurice Ungaro]

Pecan is also some of the best wood to use in a smoker.

[Dennis Peacock]

Pecan and Hickory and pretty much interchangeable woods because they look and finish almost the same. Both are hardwoods as well as "hard" wood. ;)
They machine well and pecan is what a lot of the older furniture pieces were made from in some parts of the country because that is what was locally available.

Like Mike said, it's hard, but it does make some very fine furniture pieces.

[Paul Ryan]

I did my kitchen out of it a few years ago, well out of hickory, which is very similar. I love the grains, dark, light, real grainy. It is a woods wood. Completly opposite of maple. Like others have said it is really hard, really hard. It is a pain to sand, and burns easy because it is so hard. As a matter of fact the fence on my sled for the table saw is being made out of hickory. Just be prepared to work your but off. But it is a beautiful wood.

[Danny Hamsley]

Pecan is harder than Hades. Sometimes when I plane it, you can see sparks. It is bad (very bad) to dull your planer knives. When drying from green to dry, it is very prone to cup on wide boards. Also, it will stain very easily if there is not excellent air flow over the stickered boards. The stain is a gray stain and penetrates all through the boards.

However, it is beautiful wood if you have the patience to deal with it. It would be ideal for small projects because you don't have to deal with too much of it at one time!

Limb wood is not really suitable for furniture lumber because there will be a lot of tension wood that will cause the lumber to twist, warp, and cup. However, if you are using short lengths of 2 feet or so, you can work around the twist and warp. For furniture, I would want lumber from the staight section of the lower bole of the tree.

The last time I planed 150 feet, I swore that I would never do that again. I don't have the heavy industrial equipment to do it, and it took forever and dulled 2 sets of knives. We will see if I can manage to stick to that oath (and there were a few oaths uttered, let me tell you!).

I think that I showed you some when you were over here last week. If the wood is free, I would give it a whirl, but be warned! It is hard to work with. However, that new SawStop table saw will handle it just fine!

[David Freed]

The American Hardwood Information Center says - "Botanically they are split into two groups; the true hickories, and the pecan hickories (fruit bearing). The wood is virtually the same for both and is usually sold together." Click below to see their complete description.

http://www.hardwoodinfo.com/species_guide/display_species.asp?species=hickorypecan