Recently cut walnut log

[Herb Mulqueen]

Cut a dead walnut tree near the house last weekend. Got a solid log about 18 inches by about 7 foot. Also have another piece about 30 inches long also solid. Not rot or voids.

What do I coat/paint the ends with and I store them in the barn.

Since the tree was near the barn lot----i assume there are lots of metal in the log.

Regards and thanks,

Herb

[Prashun Patel]

Anchorseal.
I have a homebrew that's been working well for me. If you have access to a soft wax then you can mix 50/50 with mineral spirits and paint it on. I've also used (don't laugh!!!) petroleum jelly and it's been working ok. But if you want to be certain, I'd go with a proven product. The Anchorseal gets great reviews, and seems to last forever in the can.

[Michael Weber]

Anchorseal.
I have a homebrew that's been working well for me. If you have access to a soft wax then you can mix 50/50 with mineral spirits and paint it on. I've also used (don't laugh!!!) petroleum jelly and it's been working ok. But if you want to be certain, I'd go with a proven product. The Anchorseal gets great reviews, and seems to last forever in the can.
laughed .....

[Herb Mulqueen]

I go look for some Anchorseal.

Next weekend I will move the rest of tree to the woods. If anybody is in Eastern Virginia ---it is free---lots of turning pieces. I am 2 hours from Northern Virgina---one hour from Richmond and Fredericksburg,

[ken gibbs]

Why are you painting the end grain of lumber to be air dried? so you can SLOW (not eliminate) the amount of moisture that is leaving the piece of lumber through the end grain. So what you coat the end grain with is not as important as what you are trying to do. I use old latex paint to give a temporary seal on the end grain before I air stack lumber to air dry. Use the one inch per year rule and try not to stack your lumber in direct sunlight. One year for each 4/4 piece. Use the overhead in a barn or shed if you have access to a place to store.

[Josiah Bartlett]

It is best to immediately slab the logs if you can, at the very least cutting through the middle to relieve the stress in the pith of the tree. This controls the inevitable cracking that occurs. It is going to crack as it dries, what you want to do is control it.

Storing the logs as logs is a bad idea unless you can keep them thoroughly wet until you are ready to saw them. This is why sawmills have mill ponds.

[Mike Cruz]

What logs? I don't see any pix. No pix, no log...

[Frank Drew]

It is best to immediately slab the logs if you can, at the very least cutting through the middle to relieve the stress in the pith of the tree.


Sound advice -- if you want blanks for bowl turning, at least cut the logs down the middle as Josh suggests; if you want boards, of whatever thickness, it would be a good idea to have the log milled sooner rather than later, even though you did say it was standing deadwood. Coating the log ends is always good insurance against excessive checking and splitting.

[Dewayne Reding]

Regular parafin wax or any old candles laying around worked for me. Have to heat it up of course. Very little checking after two years. I did cut the oak and walnut logs into various thickness slabs with my chainsaw mill immediately. In addition to the cracking, an 18 inch log will take 37 years to dry.

[george wilson]

I'll tell you that the old timers used to tie chains around walnut stumps and sink them in a pond for a year or 2. This prevented the figured wood in the stumps from cracking badly after they finally let the stumps air dry.

I know you don't have stumps,but just gave some general info on treating walnut.

[Frank Drew]

the figured wood in the stumps...

I don't know if the veneer manufacturers or anyone other commercial interests actively seek out this wood, and it's not the easiest to get to, but there can certainly be some great looking material right at that area where the roots meet the trunk.

[raul segura]

I was once told you could place a fresh cutting in manure.
They make something for bread slicing logs that helps stabilize the wood to, cant remember the name I think it was a little more than anchorseal though.
I used acrylic paint, Ill be ripping next week, my first time.
For some of my tooling or storing, I use toilet bowel ring wax, cheep and spreads like butter. It could be cut down or used as is. Applying some saw dust so it wont stick to your garments may be a thought to. This stuff will fill voids and vacillate with the woods grain. I don't think it'll penetrate much so Id cake it a little.

[Glenn Crocker]

I use "Henry" #107 emulsified roofing cement, the water cleanup variety, from Home Depot as well as other building supply stores. Doesn't dry sticky and no problems gumming up saw blades. The black surface works well with a white paint stick for marking the cut date.
Seals as waterproof as anchorseal at about half the price. Quart can about $6.00, gallon can about $12.00, 5 gallon about $36.00