Hello,
I have a friend at work who is new at running a sawmill. Woodmizer LT15.
He has a Black Locust tree he is going to mill.
He was wondering if Black Locust makes for good lumber. Any tips on milling, How well it does air dried etc...........
[OP]
Member
Hello,
I have a friend at work who is new at running a sawmill. Woodmizer LT15.
He has a Black Locust tree he is going to mill.
He was wondering if Black Locust makes for good lumber. Any tips on milling, How well it does air dried etc...........
"Remember back in the day, when things were made by hand, and people took pride in their work?"
- Rick Dale
In Memoriam
How the log is milled depends a lot on the size, any sweep and mostly, intended use of the lumber. I like to saw a combination of 4/4 and 8/4 stock 8 1/2 ft. long. I ususally saw everything to 8" width as that's the width of my jointer but lots of folks like wide boards/planks. They can always be ripped narrower and glued back for a seamless look.
Black Locust saws ok if green. It is highly resistant to decay and dries well. I've seen some amazing figure/grain in Black Locust.
Cody
Logmaster LM-1 sawmill, 30 hp Kioti tractor w/ FEL, Stihl 290 chainsaw, 300 bf cap. Solar Kiln
Contributor
You've been able to get it to stay flat as it dries? I've wondered about black locust rather than pressure treated for outdoor furniture and structures but it's not readily available around here (SE. PA.) One reason I've heard is that it's difficult to dry flat & straight.Originally Posted by Cody Colston
In Memoriam
I've had no problems drying it flat. Seal the ends, sticker and air dry a couple of months before going to the kiln. The big problem with Locust is that once dried, it's almost impossible to drive a nail into without pre-drilling first. The stuff is harder than a woodpecker's lips.
Cody
Logmaster LM-1 sawmill, 30 hp Kioti tractor w/ FEL, Stihl 290 chainsaw, 300 bf cap. Solar Kiln
Contributor
This is yet another thread where I'm tempted to say, "It's terrible wood and you should send it to me right away to dispose of it for you." haha! Actually it's very good wood and I have even seen people use it to replace teak for boat decks. It is very rot resistant, and highly prized for boatbuilding.
Contributor
Well, this might be why Black Locust lumber isn't readily available:
Damaging Agents- Black locust is severely damaged by insects and disease, probably more than any other eastern hardwood species. Ubiquitous attacks by the locust borer (Megcallene robiniae) and by the heart rot fungi Phellinus rimosus or Polyporus robiniophilus make growing black locust for timber production impractical. Locust borer larvae construct feeding tunnels throughout the wood, and the holes serve as entry points for heart rot fungi that cause extensive wood decay.
Locust borer attacks can begin at a young age and damage can be so extensive that trees are not suitable for fence posts. Many plantations planted in reclamation projects were seriously damaged, but more trees could be used if cut as soon as they reach post or mine-prop size. Slow-growing trees on poor sites are most susceptible to borer attack. On sites where tree vigor is low, repeated attacks often reduce black locust to sprout clumps. Damage to the sprouts is often as severe as in the original stem (37).
Outbreaks of the locust leafminer (Odontota dorsalis) occur almost yearly. Black locust trees throughout an entire region are often defoliated, and during years of low rainfall many are killed. Attacks by the locust twig borer (Ecdytolopha insiticiana) occur over a wide area and in heavily infested areas seedling mortality may be high. Black locust is attacked by a wide variety of other insects that cause some degree of damage (3).
Common diseases are heart rot and witches' broom disease, caused by a virus, Chlorogenus robiniae. In the southern Appalachians most large trees are infected with heart rot and decay of trunk wood is extensive. In the Texas root-rot belt, black locust is extremely susceptible to Phymatotrichum omnivorum (21). In New Brunswick, plantings of black locust are not recommended because of high mortality and dieback of branches caused by Nectria cinnabarina and because of superior performance by conifer species (40).
More: http://www.na.fs.fed.us/pubs/silvics...eudoacacia.htm
Contributor
It is TERRIBLE wood!
Your friend should send it to me!
HAHA, just kidding - its great wood for outdoors, beats pressure treated. For some real fun, mill it at night under a black light or several black lights. You'll be impressed.
Bud
Contributor
I milled some with my chainsaw mill several years ago and had no trouble drying it. There were some ends checks, but no worse than white oak. I milled some 4/4 all the way up to 10/4. I let it air dry 2 years, maybe a little more, then made this garden bench from some of it. It's not nearly as hard to work as some people claim. White oak seems harder to me.
20090707_0002.JPG
John
In Memoriam
John, I've seen that bench before, either here or on another forum. Have I commented that it is nice? Really nice!
Cody
Logmaster LM-1 sawmill, 30 hp Kioti tractor w/ FEL, Stihl 290 chainsaw, 300 bf cap. Solar Kiln
Member
Spruce and Locust trees is the hardest logs to make lumber out
of on my mill...
Member
When i was in Maryland and shopped the SE PA sawmills I was told that the Amish used up most of what was available for fence posts, but I was usually able to buy some from Groff and Groff. It was always a delightful wood to work with. I have never been able to find any here in Tallahassee and wish I could.
I never did the rough milling myself, but the rough planks were always straight and true and the pieces i broke them down in to remain so. Yes it is hard, but when you want hard and weather/rot resistant it is hard to beat.
Moderator
Black locust grows everywhere around here, the next best thing to osage orange which I can't find. I've sawn and dried some but mostly for woodturning.
Contributor
I'm happy to see this thread come alive. I have a question about gluing black locust for outdoor use.
Something more than TB III I presume?
Contributor
I don't know that Black Locust is oily like some tropicals so I'd think gluing is not that much of an issue. I don't know, though.
Member
When black locust gets to any size here, it has rotten and hollow spots in side. For a wood that holds up as fence posts, there isn't much large enough for lumber. My local Lion's park has some very tall 18 to 20 inch black locust trees that need to go, perhaps a dozen or more. No body has been interested in them, even just to have for free. We are afraid they may fall and take out our pavilion. Even one tree service said they were too dangerous to climb for topping. At least two of them have large dead branches (widow makers) Such a job is not for the faint of heart or the foolhardy. This predicament seems to be common for any black locust over 40 ft high.
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