Old wood identification...

[Harold Burrell]

Here is a picture of a board that I got from an old church pipe organ. At first I thought it might be pine. However...now I'm not so sure...

To the left of the pic is some maple. On the right, some white pine. The wood I am interested in is in the middle.

ANY info you can give me would be helpful. Thanks!

[Jason Beam]

Cedar ... spanish or western red, i'd say. Eastern red or aromatic is the stuff most people think of when you say cedar. This is not that stuff - This is fantastic for humidors!

[John Coloccia]

Kind of looks like oak to me.

[David Keller NC]

That's highly likely to be old-growth white pine. The resinous heartwood of old-growth pine aquires that pinkish cast after a few years exposure to oxygen. You can narrow it down by density - white pine, even old-growth white pine, is very low in density, and while the old stuff is harder than the fast-grown new wood, it can still be easily dented with a thumbnail.

[Rick Fisher]

3 different opinions.. lol.

No point on a 4th..

Is it really soft? I wont ask you to describe the smell..

It looks like larch to me.. Or it could be spruce..

[Maurice Ungaro]

I second the old growth pine. Try boring a hole in it, and if the chips smell like turpentine, it's old growth pine.

[Harold Burrell]

I second the old growth pine. Try boring a hole in it, and if the chips smell like turpentine, it's old growth pine.

Hey...I appreciate all of the responses. Thanks.

Maurice...thanks for the input. I have a problem, though. 1. I have a cold and can't smell anything. 2. I have no idea what turpentine smells like...

:o

[James Waldrup]

Any idea who made the organ? I could probably tell you the wood species just from knowing the organ maker.

[Mike Cruz]

He may not know who the organ maker is, but he knows the organ donor!:D :D :D I KILL myself!!!!!

On a more serious note, funny how pictures can skew color and totally fool the eye. Before I read what the OP wrote, I looked at the picture and immediately picked walnut for the wood on the left. After reading his post, I took a second look and realized that, yes, it is maple...but it looks dark and almost purplish on my screen. Maybe I need to do some calibration. :rolleyes:

Anywho, if you hadn't mentioned the organ thing (still laughing at my own witt) I would have thought it was hickory. But somehow I don't think they would have used hickory for an organ...or would they?

[Cody Colston]

I would guess Pine, too for the center board but pics are really deceiving.

If asked to identify all three boards with no input, I would have said, L-R: Walnut, Pine, Poplar. :)

[John Coloccia]

I would guess Pine, too for the center board but pics are really deceiving.

If asked to identify all three boards with no input, I would have said, L-R: Walnut, Pine, Poplar. :)

I also guessed walnut and poplar for the left and right.

[Chris Tsutsui]

Looks like those antique heart pine boards i've seen in flooring.

The left looks like very dark maple that I think it looks like walnut, and the right looks like regular pine.

I've got one to add...

The flooring looks like OSB. hehe

[David H. Jones]

When I first looked at the picture I thought hickory. The small white flecks are typical of hickory. But, the weight and feel of the piece should tell you whether it is hickory--Is it heavy and hard? Also hickory has large vessels that are similar to oak so it will have a "course grain" appearance.

Can you get a clean surface on the cross section and take a clear close-up picture?

[Mike Cruz]

HA! That's 2 for hickory...

[phil harold]

Hey...I appreciate all of the responses. Thanks.

Maurice...thanks for the input. I have a problem, though. 1. I have a cold and can't smell anything. 2. I have no idea what turpentine smells like...

:o

go to the hardware store and find some turpentine open the can and sniff the lid


you will never forget the smell

not a bad smell just distinctive

I would say spruce or cedar


what we really need is a scratch and sniff picture

[Harold Burrell]

Any idea who made the organ? I could probably tell you the wood species just from knowing the organ maker.

I found out that the organ was made by a William King in 1892. However...I am wondering if these pipes are original. The nails that I am pulling out of this thing are rather modern looking finishing nails.

[Harold Burrell]

HA! That's 2 for hickory...

No. I'm rather sure it is not hickory. It is not heavy enough. The hardness actually seems to be somewhere between the pine and the maple. I can dent it with a fingernail...sort of...but not any where as easily as I can the pine.