Cypress?

[Rob Luter]

Good morning to all,

A coworker (bless his heart) gave me a nice piece of lumber on Friday. It's a slab of crotch wood over 2" thick, 18" wide at the trunk end, 30" wide at the crotch end, and about 5' long. When he got it he was told it was cypress. It was the top of a coffee table at one time and has one side finished with clear finish of some kind. The opp. side is still rough sawn. It's been in his barn for over 20 years.

I've looked at some pictures of cypress on line and have to say that it doesn't really look like cypress. To my eye it looks more like walnut, but not real dark like black walnut. I'll try to post a picture tonight so someone smarter than me can help identify the species.

Anyone have any experience with cypress?

Update - Pics attached. The new slab appears more red/orange in the photos than in person. It may be the finish as the raw side looks pretty accurate in the photos. For a gut check on color, the crotch wood on the floor behind this slab is mulberry (small pieces) on top of black walnut (long pieces). I'm getting quite a stash built up.:D

[harry strasil]

Cypress is very light and has a distinct smell when worked. pictures of bottom and top would help. Its a light brown or tan wood.

[Paul Greathouse]

Rob

Living in Louisiana, I have seen and worked with alot of cypress. Try to post a picture and I will let you know what I think.

[Rob Luter]

Paul - I'll get a picture posted tonight.

Harry - This stuff is hard, dense, and heavy! It does however look similar to these slabs (link - http://www.dogtrot-general-store.com/lumber/sinker/sink_cypress3.htm)

[Todd Burch]

Looks like walnut from here. Walnut is one of the few woods that lightens with age. I would guess an amber shellac finish. Test with alcohol.

Todd

[Hank Knight]

Rob,

From the looks of the unfinished side, particularly the close-up shot, your piece could well be cypress. I've seen old, varnished cypress paneling age to a dark redish color, similar to yours. It's hard to tell, though, from the photos. Cypress is considerably softer and lighter weight than walnut or other hardwoods. You can dent it pretty easily with your fingernail. A new surface on cypress feels slightly waxy to the touch, but I don't know how this is affected by age. I think the weight and density (hardness) will be your best indicators.

My $.02

Hank

[David Epperson]

Paul - I'll get a picture posted tonight.

Harry - This stuff is hard, dense, and heavy! It does however look similar to these slabs
Dried in a barn for that long, I've never heard of cypress being heavy. We had a full size picnic table (8'x4' and then benches in addition to that) of 6/4 rough cypress that 2 young kids could carry around all day. Probably weighed less than 100 lbs - probably 50 to 60 sq ft of lumber in it. Until it got wet - unfinished it would soak up water like a sponge it seemed.

[Rob Luter]

Dried in a barn for that long, I've never heard of cypress being heavy. We had a full size picnic table (8'x4' and then benches in addition to that) of 6/4 rough cypress that 2 young kids could carry around all day. Probably weighed less than 100 lbs - probably 50 to 60 sq ft of lumber in it. Until it got wet - unfinished it would soak up water like a sponge it seemed.

This slab alone weighs about 50 pounds and it's pretty hard. No one would mistake it for a softwood species on first examination. That said, I've worked with old fir (I think), true 2" x 4" lumber from an old house I owned and it was hard as concrete.

[TYLER WOOD]

I just cut some of that stuff up for some offering trays I'm turning. Look just like the stuff I have, about the same age, same color, graining. The table top i had was about 3'X3' natural edges. It weighed in at about 25 pounds. Not the hardest of woods, but still not able to dent easily with finer nail. Maybe a easy poke with a nail would scratch it. I was told by the person who gave it to me, as well as a wood turning friend that it cypress. I'll put my vote for cypress. Just my $0.02194561413 worth in exchange value compared to the euro, so really my opinion is worth nothing.

[Paul Greathouse]

Rob

Sorry for taking so long to get back to you. The finished side looks more like cypress than the unfinished side. The wall that I am looking behind my computer monitor (which is cypress) looks very similar to the finished side but the unfinished side looks more like some kind of hardwood.

As others have said dry cypress will be very light weight and it will have a distinct smell when worked. I'm not sure what you plan to do with it but if you do cut into it or even plane it some, you will probably be able to smell it.

Wish I could tell you more. I'm not very familiar with the northern hardwoods, maybe it is something else that resembles cypress.

The cypress on the interior of my house has been there since 1989 and you can still press your fingernail into it. Soft and light.