Wet lumber for legs....or not.

[David Ryle]

So, thanks to the generosity of a saw mill owning friend, I took possession of two slabs of white oak5" thick and quarter sawn billets approx 6"" square,and yes my intention is to build a Roubo style bench.
I know that common wisdom says to go right ahead and work up the top even though the two slabs are only a year standing,and so far no troubles with jointing or glue-up,other than the usual head aches with oak to say nothing of the weight.I m turning my attention to the legs but in the back of my mind there's a warning flag going up regarding shrink. Didn't someone post a while ago about shrink in bench legs as a result of using wet lumber?should I carry on or scrap this lumber in favor of something I know is dry and stable.

[Lee Schierer]

You might be thinking of this post. Timbers for workbench (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/archive/index.php/t-143201.html)

[William Fretwell]

I made 4 legs for my bench from 'air dried' white oak. They ended up 4x6". I stood them on end in my workshop that I keep at 61F. They all had some knots but the leg with the largest knot decided it wanted to be a banana. Luckily I had some extra to replace it. For a Roubo bench you need to be sure about the leg before you cut it's mortise! Shrinkage would be a disaster.

[Brian Holcombe]

I would want them dry, same with the benchtop. I think you're asking for trouble using wet wood. The top of a roubo is sort of locked in, since there is a stretcher near the floor. This ok when using dry timber since you're maybe going to see 1/4" ~ or less of movement. This is also the reason why one uses the radial edge as the face for a roubo bench.

[Stanley Covington]

I have never made a workbench with wet lumber, but there is a timber framing technique that might be applicable. In the case of lumber where shrinkage and cracks are anticipated, a saw kerf cut to the center of the timber, centered on one side, and perpendicular to the rings will relieve drying stresses and reduce cracking, splitting and warping. I don't see why it wouldn't do the same for legs. You need to plan your joints carefully.

Stan

[Jim Koepke]

This is also the reason why one uses the radial edge as the face for a roubo bench.

To be clear, does this mean the outside of the tree should be on top?

jtk

[Brian Holcombe]

To be clear, does this mean the outside of the tree should be on top?

jtk

Jim, not so much. I am always looking to put the inside of the tree to the outside of furniture, but I don't really concern myself so much with it when planning a radial edge.

[David Ryle]

So, thanks to the generosity of a saw mill owning friend, I took possession of two slabs of white oak5" thick and quarter sawn billets approx 6"" square,and yes my intention is to build a Roubo style bench.
I know that common wisdom says to go right ahead and work up the top even though the two slabs are only a year standing,and so far no troubles with jointing or glue-up,other than the usual head aches with oak to say nothing of the weight.I m turning my attention to the legs but in the back of my mind there's a warning flag going up regarding shrink. Didn't someone post a while ago about shrink in bench legs as a result of using wet lumber?should I carry on or scrap this lumber in favor of something I know is dry and stable.
Soooo....the general consensus so far is not a good idea,hmm Schwarz et al,nwould appear to give the impression of the opposite, lots of differing opinions, I should say that my shop is unheated and this lumber has been stored there for the last year,don't know if that changes things.

[Kees Heiden]

There is a blog from CS about this, just posted this week. https://blog.lostartpress.com/2017/05/04/the-plate-11-bench/

It reads like a honest report. Not immediately ideal, you have some extra work flattening and reflattening the bench in the first few years, but then the wood stabilises when it has reached a moisture level suitable for your shop.

[Jerry Olexa]

I would let them dry...Element of uncertainty if you use them "as is"....Just my thought.

[William Fretwell]

Storing lumber for a year is good but in an unheated shop drying can be slow. A year for an inch of thickness is bandied about but clearly conditions vary a lot. I weigh my large pieces with a bathroom scale and write the weight on the wood with a lumber crayon starting at the end. Every few weeks or each month I write the new weight on the piece. It tells you how 'dry' is was and when it stabilises.
For example: Two ash boards from the mill were cut from the standing year old dead wood for me. Both were 10"x2" about 7' long. Each board weighed 55lbs, after 3 weeks 50lbs, after 7 weeks 45lbs. My shop has in floor heating at 61F, the boards are off the floor standing on edge. Already they have lost almost 20% and 1/4" in width. The very dry Canadian winter certainly helps but the final 10% may take far longer as the very humid Canadian summer is like trying to dry wood in a sauna.

[Adam Cruea]

Oy!

While I would be in your boat of wanting to use lumber that I had a hand in ASAP, it's best to let it age/dry out as much as possible.

Get one of those things that can read the humidity in wood, or if you don't have a solar kiln, have someone stick it in a kiln if it's not the ideal humidity.

[Scott T Smith]

So, thanks to the generosity of a saw mill owning friend, I took possession of two slabs of white oak5" thick and quarter sawn billets approx 6"" square,and yes my intention is to build a Roubo style bench.
I know that common wisdom says to go right ahead and work up the top even though the two slabs are only a year standing,and so far no troubles with jointing or glue-up,other than the usual head aches with oak to say nothing of the weight.I m turning my attention to the legs but in the back of my mind there's a warning flag going up regarding shrink. Didn't someone post a while ago about shrink in bench legs as a result of using wet lumber?should I carry on or scrap this lumber in favor of something I know is dry and stable.

David, oak will shrink approximately 12% tangentially, 6% radially, and 1% longitudinally from green to 8% MC. As others have mentioned it has a higher potential to warp near a knot.