Japanese Flowering Crab Tree Salvaged

[Al Launier]

A couple years ago I had to take down a Japanese Flowering Crab tree (don't know what kind) because it was getting too big to safely prune it. So I cut up the trunk into two sections & left it outside. Just decided to cut it up to see what it would yield, particularly what grain it would have. I forgot to take a picture of the bottom, straighter section, but got the upper section & some resaw pics. Because of the twists, I cut the upper section into three sections, each longer than 12" so I could plane them. The wood looks/feels like it could be dried a lot more, but I think I can put these to use in the future???

[Jim Andrew]

Now you need to stack the pieces so they will dry straight. Put down 3/4"x 3/4" strips, 16" oc, put one layer of boards down, then more strips directly on top of the first, then put another layer of boards, and so on until all the pieces are stacked. If you have some concrete blocks laying around, put them on top of the stack, to keep the pile under pressure. Weight is a good thing on top of drying wood.

[Al Launier]

Actually the boards are stacked with 1/2" & 3/4" sticks (on different layers) at ~ 16" OC. Hard to see because the sticks I had were a bit shorter that the widt of the stack. Hadn't thought about adding weight & I do have a few CBs. Thanks for the suggestion.

[Al Launier]

Well it's been a few months since I started this project. I decided to make a horizontal knife block. However, during the process I got burnt out with woodworking, so I took days off to refresh, plus I had health issues that delayed things further. But, it's finally done. The wood used in this project were from the flowering crab tree that I cut down, and which I found to have an unusual grain character. It's not a wood that I would use again, but my daughter liked it, so once started it had to be finished. I will use better quality wood in the future.

I drilled 1/4" hole in each of the cork pieces & used a 1/4" dowel to string them together & used a sheet of cork as flooring on each level to prevent them from sliding out (cork has good friction). The bundled strings can be pulled out if any of the individual cork pieces get damaged & needs to be replaced. There were extra pieces made for this purpose.

I think I'm done with woodworking for a while and have to find something else to do to prevent boredom, especially during the winter months.

Thanks for looking.

[Ted Calver]

That came out really nice, Al. Great job!

[Al Launier]

Thanks Ted!

[Stan Calow]

That's a great feeling, going from standing tree to finished project.

[Chris Padilla]

Excellent job, Al! And that is a cool idea for a knife rack.

[Mel Fulks]

Nice looking and unusual design. I think that's crab apple ,don't think the wood is much different from regular apple except generally smaller. Pretty.

[Al Launier]

Thanks Guys!