An offer I might not be able to refuse

[Roger Chandler]

Last evening after church, one of my leaders happened to see a NE cherry bowl that my wife had taken from the house here to church and put a centerpiece arrangement in for the communion table. He asked what kind of wood that was............I said, "that is part of that cherry tree you gave me about a year and a half ago........"


He said, "I have another and it has those burl things all over it"..........and he held out his hands to make a gesture of how big some of them are. Then he said......."even some of the limbs have them on it." I have given his wife a couple of pieces for their new home, and she has them displayed .........

He seems interested in me getting this next cherry tree..............now my question:

If I go get this tree while it is green, what is the best way to handle these burls off it for storage over the next year or so? should I leave the bark on, and seal the burls whole, or should I just seal the ends that are cut with the chainsaw?

Unfortunately, I have no storage room inside..........they will have to be placed under a tarp and remain outside off the ground underneath. Any good ideas on this will be much appreciated!

[Scott Hackler]

If your going to have to wait that long, I wouldn't use anchorseal (expecially the less effective new version). I would be ordering some parafin wax pronto! And dip the whole thing in wax a couple times to seal them up good. As long as they are in the shade, no wind and off the ground.... I would thing a waxed blank will stay wet for quite some time.

If there is just too much then you could anchor seal part of them and I will send you my address! :)

[Dan Hintz]

From my (limited) experience, dipping the wood in Anchorseal (rather than painting it on with a brush) gets a thick enough coat to act as good as any other seal. It's a thick wax coat after the stuff dries.

[David E Keller]

Don't waste your time, Roger! Those burls will be full of bark and voids... I don't want to see you disappointed again! I'll cover the shipping to Oklahoma!

[Scott Hackler]

Back off Keller! The UPS man is already bribed to stop in Kansas first! :)

[David DeCristoforo]

Well, you go ahead and litter up your yard with that stuff. Or send it to Keller or Scott. I would not want any of it around here. No, not at all. Those "burl things" are nothing but a big PITA. Not worth the bother...

[Tony De Masi]

Roger, I still have your address.:D Otherwise, will it really be necessary to cut the burl off of the trunk/limb? See if it would be feasible to keep the burl intact without the log itself being too large to handle and seal those ends. Then, cut the burl off when you are ready for it.

[John Keeton]

I am going to offer another alternative. Cut them into pieces that will work for the type of pieces you anticipate doing from them and lay on a couple thick coats of Anchorseal on all sides. Last year, JD Combs gave me a fairly large chunk from a walnut burl, and rather than leaving it whole, I cut it into HF size pieces, and sealed it heavily. So far, they have done very well. I realize cherry cracks worse than walnut, but you might want to consider that for at least some of the burls.

[Rick Markham]

I'm in the "send it too me camp" as well Roger. It's far easier to box that stuff up and let other's deal with it.... As David pointed out, those burl things are nearly worthless. :D Congratulations on getting a stash!

I would personally go with John and try to get as close to individual blanks as possible.

[Mike Cruz]

Roger, storing them at my place is the best thing for them... :D Or is that for me? :rolleyes:

[Roger Chandler]

Wow! I come back in this evening.............and all my friends here on the "creek" have such generosity and helpfulness, that I think when I read all your responses, that I got just a little teary.......:rolleyes::rolleyes::p

Mind you, I have not seen the tree as of yet............just got told about it last night. I did talk to my friend and he said after deer season is over, and it gets cold..........the sap will be down in the roots then, and it will most likely be better for the wood in the long term.

I will just have to see where I stand with this in a few weeks..........then if possible, I might send out a chunk or so, across the country.........on this one, if I do get to send some out, I will contact you with shipping info request and get you to pay for shipping ............that is provided that there is enough to be able to ship......

I won't make promises on this, I am a man who keeps his word.........so I am giving some caveats.......and it all depends on what is there, and providing it does not cause hard feelings with my friend.........he is a generous man, himself, but I do not want him to think I am trying to take advantage of his generosity.

So ............do I read things correctly.........two coats of anchorseal on the ends for ones that are small enough to handle and if I have to cut some up into blanks, then coat them all over?

[Ken Hill]

leave thinsg as long as you can, AS everything etc.

dont call me for help. im in firewood mode and wouldnt want to see you cry haha!

[Bill Bolen]

Roger. I would not think you would need to seal any of the bark area but 2 coats of new or one heavy coat of old Anchor Seal and keep out of the sun should work fine. An early congrat's if this comes true!

[Baxter Smith]

Since its an offer you won't refuse, how about a suggestion you won't take.:) Take your chainsaw and girdle the tree at the base to kill it. Wait 5-10 years and let all the bark and most of the sapwood rot off. Go back and harvest them at your leisure.

In all seriousness though., I have had pretty good luck with cherry burls that I have found on dead stubs in the woods in the condition I just described. The half dozen or so burls I have found and turned like that have been surprizingly solid and moved very little when turned. Cutting some up for hf's and anchorsealing them on all sides would be something to try. I would also leave some with as much wood on either side of the burl as you could move, then just anchorseal the cut ends. As long as they weren't in constant full sun, I think the burl itself would be ok for quite a long time.

[Rich Aldrich]

Roger, I leave about 6" length of tree on each end of the burl and seal this end grain. I dont cut them in half until I want to turn them. I would try to leave the tree stand as long as possible until you are ready to turn them. I have had good luck with cherry burls doing this. Some sat all summer and I turned them this past fall without issues. I do soak them in DNA for about 48 hours which sometimes turns into a week if I put them in on Sunday evening (I sometimes dont get back to them until Friday night or Saturday).