Dealing with crook in a board

[Tony Wilkins]

Need tips dealing with a crook. The board is for a dining table that needs to be 7 1/2’ long so the main way of dealing isn’t much good. Right now the board is about 12’ long. It is on it’s side with the crook in the middle facing down and there is 1” of space between the edge and the floor. The board is 8” wide for the most part. Can I even use it for the table top?

[John K Jordan]

Need tips dealing with a crook. … It is on it’s side with the crook in the middle facing down and there is 1” of space between the edge and the floor. …

Just to be clear, is the board warped like the crook in the drawing?

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[Kevin Jenness]

Cut it a bit long, straighten one edge and rip the other parallel. That's not an outrageous crook over 12', though it does suggest some tension in the log, perhaps from growing on a hillside. I would use it if it's suitable otherwise.

[Maurice Mcmurry]

Bow or Crook? It is unclear to me as well. Thanks John for the image!

[Luke Dupont]

Need tips dealing with a crook. The board is for a dining table that needs to be 7 1/2’ long so the main way of dealing isn’t much good. Right now the board is about 12’ long. It is on it’s side with the crook in the middle facing down and there is 1” of space between the edge and the floor. The board is 8” wide for the most part. Can I even use it for the table top?

If I'm understanding correctly and "crook" matches John K's example, you can use it if you don't mind planing it down to 6" wide... Or 7" if you don't mind a crook in the middle on the edge (one edge will need to be planed straight assuming it's an even width and matches the curvature of the "crooked" edge)

[Maurice Mcmurry]

I use what I call a partner board and the table saw to remove a crook, run the crook board and a straight board through the saw together. Then flip the crook board over and saw again. Sometimes it takes several passes. Sometimes the board ends up too small for your purpose. Sometimes the board is so unbalanced that I do not use it.

[William Fretwell]

Stand it on edge on a flat surface and measure the largest gap position. Assuming it’s not in the middle use the better end for your board. You may only then have to deal with 1/2” to 3/4” on each side so you loose 1 to 1&1/2” of the board.
You salvaged 6 & 1/2” to 7” of the board. That’s as good as it gets, a twist is far worse!

[Tony Wilkins]

Just to be clear, is the board warped like the crook in the drawing?

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yes, that is what it is.

[glenn bradley]

"on it’s side" and "space between the edge and the floor" Pretty clearly describes crook to me(?). When I mill stock I follow the FEE method; Faces, Edges, Ends. I would follow these basic steps.

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Cut to rough length (Cut #1).
- This is where you pick your best appearance section of the blank.
Joint one face.
Plane to thickness.
Cut or Joint one edge (Cut #2).
Rip other edge to width Cut #3).
Cut ends to length Cuts # 4 and 5).

[Scott Winners]

I am finding boards with crook, when squared and left to settle, crook again, but not as much. Haven't fooled with maple, but in birch and hickory I find crook comes back less severely.

If you can use that board for other things, I would do that. If you need to use it I would take just enough material off to make it square, then let it rest, a couple weeks at least. Then look again to decide if you really have to use it.

M2c. Well jointed and well clamped during glue up it might not be a problem in maple, I dunno.

[Tony Wilkins]

I am finding boards with crook, when squared and left to settle, crook again, but not as much. Haven't fooled with maple, but in birch and hickory I find crook comes back less severely.

If you can use that board for other things, I would do that. If you need to use it I would take just enough material off to make it square, then let it rest, a couple weeks at least. Then look again to decide if you really have to use it.

M2c. Well jointed and well clamped during glue up it might not be a problem in maple, I dunno.

Just an FYI, my board is actually walnut. I’ve come to the conclusion that I’m going to try to avoid it or use it for the shortest components as you say. Would using it for bread board ends pose any special problems?

[John C Cox]

If there's twist or warp on boards - I really like to observe them over several season changes to see what they will do. Sometimes, they behave fine when they're cleaned up, sometimes they don't. Unfortunately, that's not always practical.

Now that the season of unpredictable spring weather is upon us, any way you can straight-line the board and let it acclimate, and then watch it for a week or three to see what it does. If it goes squirrely, shifts side to side, or picks up humps, I wouldn't use it for things requiring long, invisible glue joints... Maybe do something where you can include room for movement in the design, rather than risking it in an 8' long, 3' wide monolith where shifting wood may split joints. Just my opinion without having the board in hand.