Red Maple

[Chris Tedford]

Hi all,

My dad called me tonight saying that he had just taken down two Red Maple trees and my mom was harassing him that I could use the wood. He currently has them cut into 8' sections. I won't be going down his way until Christmas. I asked him to put them in the back and we can deal with them at that time. My question is: if the logs are left as is, 8' sections, will there be any issues when we cut them into blanks? I will be getting some Anchor Seal and taking that with me. My assumption is that we can cut off the first 1' or so and then make blanks and seal them up nicely for the long drive home. Does this sound doable or do I need to explain to him how to process the logs? Any help would be appreciated. I think my mom may get a bowl or two out of this if she plays her cards right.

Thanks,
Chris

[Faust M. Ruggiero]

That's the perfect way to store them. You will cut away the first four inches or so when you are ready to cut blanks. In fact, a great way to use them up would be to cut pieces only as you are ready to turn them. Pile saw shavings against the freshly cut end. That will keep the end checking from going too deep. If you have to cut the logs to move them home, just cut the 8' logs into 4' pieces for transport.

[Fred Belknap]

They will be ok. You might have to cut a few inches off the exposed ends but 2" or so should do it. If they are laying on the ground the part of the bark that is on the ground might come off. I do quite a few NE bowls with bark so it would matter for me but just regular bowls shouldn't be an issue.

[Bernie Weishapl]

Sounds like a good plan. If you cut them into bowl blanks I always cut the 4 or 5 inches longer that the width. That way if there are any cracks I can cut the end off to fresh wood when cutting the blanks round. Put two coats of anchorseal on each end.

[Montgomery Scott]

I would seal up the ends then throw them out into the elements over the winter. Red maple, unless figured, is going to make for a very unintersting bowl. Let it spalt until spring then you will have something more interesting to work with.

[Harry Robinette]

I'm with Bernie on cutting them for blanks, I have always said leave 1 1/2 times the width for the length.If the log is 12" across then the blank should be about 18" long. Like Bernie's 4 to 5" it all works out. It leaves enough to cut off checks and make the blank round.

[Steve Schlumpf]

Chris - only suggestion would be to store the wood off the ground if at all possible. You picking them up in December - snow, ice, etc - might just have a problem if they are frozen to the ground! Other than that - have fun turning!!

[Rich Aldrich]

That is my favorite way to store wood in the cold months. Steve is right, you should get them off the ground. If it was warmer, it would be a way to get some spalted wood.

[Chris Tedford]

Thanks all for the replies. Seeing as how the logs are currently in Georgia, I'm not sure how much snow and ice they'll be getting before Christmas. My dad may have just gotten a chill. :) I was thinking the same thing about spalting. How would I go about getting it to spalt? Leave on the ground uncovered? I probably won't be turning them until next spring anyway as I have way too much other stuff going on this time of year. Thanks again for the help. This is a new process for me, but one that I hope works out well.

Thanks,
Chris