Crotch Shots

[Rob Luter]

Greetings to all,

Short story: A few months ago, the city cut down a large Mulberry tree in my neighborhood. It was in a utility "right of way" area so they just left the logs pretty much where they dropped. Always on the lookout for firewood, I stopped by a few weeks ago to see what was available. Nothing really great for the fireplace, but low and behold a nice crotch about 30" long is staring me in the face. Always the opportunist, I picked it up and a guy that works for me sawed it up at the family sawmill (I'm gonna keep this guy). I wound up with a nice stack of slabs. They're not quite dry yet but tonight I got impatient. I selected a "plain" one ane planed it smooth to see what I might have. Pic's attached. I'll never look at cut trees the same again.

[mike holden]

Rob,
Nice stuff! There is a bit of shine in the photos - did you wipe it down with mineral spirits for the pic? or is the wood that beautiful dry?
If it were me, a couple cabinets with this as the panel would be in my future.
Mike

[Rob Luter]

Hi Mike,

Nothing but nice smooth wood. I planed the slab down with a #4 Bailey that is REALLY sharp. The wood has a bit of moisture in it yet but from what I've found Mulberry is full of color even prior to finishing. A couple pics are attached that I found on line illustrating the color and grain. I was knocked out at the appearance of the surface. I can't wait to get a finish on some of these. The log was about 20" in diameter below the crotch so I got myself a good stack of eye candy. Now I need to figure out what to build. I may make my Wife and Daughter each a nice jewelry box. I've got four projects in the works now so I'll have a while to decide.

[John Schreiber]

Just to think there was all that beauty hiding inside some tree.

[Jim Becker]

Yummy stuff!!! That's going to be wonderful to work with once it's dry and ready to go.

[Tom Sontag]

I don't want to rain on your parade or anything becuase this kind of score always yields the warm fuzzies, but drying those babies slowly enough to avoid checking is tough; I know. That first one on the left looks like it might have been cut close to the pith, which gives the best figure, but also almost guarantees degrade.

I presume you coated the ends. This is key with shorter stock. But you should also smear a thin layer of Anchorseal over the crotch figuring too; this is essentially end grain. Not too much or it will never dry that part. I have not had too much trouble drying mulberry - it seems relatively well behaved. Just take the figured stuff slowly.

Congratulations on the score!

[Matthew Platt]

Stunning stuff! :D:D:D:D

Great drying tips Tom, I've never heard of anchorseal before though, is it the same as marine antifoul?

Cheers,

M

[Rob Luter]

Thanks for the advice Tom. BTW - This is the same slab, I'm just showing both sides. There is a little checking near the ends but so far so good. The log was on the ground for 6 months before I got a hold of it and I figured coating the ends was an opportunity long missed. Tell me about anchorseal. I want to do whatever I can to preserve the looks of these pieces. Near as I can tell these slabs will take another several weeks to completely dry. I have them stacked with 3/4" spacers in between slabs. The environment is about 65 degrees and 70% to 80% RH (basement floor).

[Tom Sontag]

Well, Anchorseal is a waxy paint to retard drying. Available from the manufacturer, although Woodcraft or similar might carry a suitable substitute. I have seen shellac used too, but Anchorseal is the standard to measure by. And yes, while anything is better than nothing, leftover latex is not really suitable.

Since we are talking about a half dose coating, try a few coats of shellac over the figured part to slow down the drying there.