pictorial milling of American elm crotch log

[jeff...]

[FONT=&quot]Started milling a 32" dia 15' long American elm crotch log today, wanted to make a pictorial. American elm is some of the prettiest wood I ever seen. And we won't see much of it either; Dutch elm disease has just about wiped out the entire United Sates population. American elm of any size is a rare find. This tree somehow survived the disease, but was no match for a powerful thunderstorm that rolled through earlier this spring. Best I can tell by counting the rings, this tree is a little over 100 years old.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]
After slicing off a few slabs I'm starting to hit the heart wood, it's looking like dancing fire with a hint of splattering. After two slabs we're already at 16" wide boards and I just stared to hit the heart wood. My nephew will be very excited to receive a 9/4 by 16" by 24" electric guitar blank of dancing fire American elm.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]I'll keep post pics as I go...[/FONT]

 

[Ray Martin]

Jeff,

That really is beautiful wood. It's all the more precious since it's American Elm. I hope all of it goes to projects that display its beauty. Keep the pics coming.

Ray

 

[michaelgarner]

thats awesome wood friend,,

 

[jeff...]

After taking off a 9/4" slab for my nephew. The heart wood and crotch is Starting to take form and becoming more interesting. Were now at 20" wide almost time to rotate this bad boy 90 degrees. Don't let the picture sizes fool you, the heart and crotch at this stage of the game measures about 12" and were just getting started.

Thanks

 

[rbdoby]

Jeff,

Do you feel like a kid unwrapping Christmas gifts? That is some beautiful wood.

 

[jeff...]

After one more 9/4 slab comes off, we're at 24"s wide. and Man on Man what beautiful wood this is . It's better than unwrapping a Christmas present :lol: @ 9/4 this will make awesome electric guitar blanks or be resawed to 4/4 for book matching. The best is yet to come this is only the first side, we're just getting started, 3 more to go. I'm having a blast... can't you tell?

Time to rotate the log 90 degrees, this is about as wide as the wood mizer will cut and I got a lot of heart wood showing now. Filiiping this bad boy will require the assistance of a few of America's finest, the US Marine Corp.

 

[jeff...]

Log has been turned 90 degrees, this is now side #2. Not only took a few Marines but a 350 GMC truck and some chains to get this bad boy turned. I really need a bobcat to handle logs, oh well one of these days perhaps...


Pictures after first and second 9/4 slabs. We're at 16" wide at the narrowest point. This is some really pretty lumber.

Time to rotate another 90 degrees, but not today - I've had enough fun for one day... :-D


Thanks

 

[jeff...]

Couple more pics, this is second side after second 9/4 slab. More flames , this time up around the crotch. I may take one more 9/4 slab off this side so I'm down in the heart wood real good before I rotate it again. I just don't know yet – decisions, decisions :eusa_thin

 

[erasmussen]

Thats some nice wood:eusa_danc

 

[jeff...]

Cut one more 9/4 slab off the second side, this leaves me with approx 18" width on both milled sides. Now it's surely time to rotate the log and mill the 3rd side. I'm thinking we'll be looking at atleast a 12"x12"-15' cant of mostly heart wood when all is said and done. My camera is not doing this lumber much justice, it's truly some pretty lumber.

A few more pics, this is the 2nd side of the log after the 3rd 9/4 slab has been removed 8-O

 

[Ray Martin]

Jeff,

I think this story needs its own sub-folder in your photo album. This is really beautiful wood.

Ray

 

[jeff...]

Ray it really is some nice stuff. Not saying that because I'm milling it, I'm saying it because it's the truth. I don't know about it being a story and all, it's just unusal lumber and a felt it would be good to share how a big ole log becomes lumber. I hope everyone enjoys the pictures.

In all honesty, I'm slicing electric guitar blanks out of this. American Elm is high in demand for custom electric gutair makers. I mean wouldn't it be cool if some big name rock star was ripping out some serious leads from a guitar blank that I cut in my back yard? I may never know, but then again I just might know too ;-)

Anyways custom made electric gutairs blanks are required to be no less than 14" wide preferred 16" (solid piece) so once that cant falls below 14" some lucky person will be able to buy what's left over. It's looking like the heart wood (which is the most pretty) of this log will dress out at 12x12, it should yield around 150 BF and I will be taking offers when it gets to that point.

I don't like counting my chickens before the eggs are hatched, if you know what I mean.

 

[dtomasch]

hey jeff...
Nice wood youve got there. I don't know if you're interested in selling a guitar blank, but I've been designing my guitar body for about a year now and have been looking for the right piece of wood to build with. This looks like a great chunk. Let me know if you're interested in parting with some of this gold! PM me if interested
dave Tomasch

 

[Ray Martin]

Jeff,

Is it just the beauty of the wood, or does this species have some other quality that makes it a good guitar?

I agree, it would be cool to be able to follow the blank through production and into a musician's hands. It would be nice to know where it went.

Ray

 

[clowman]

Wow.. that stuff looks like it has some wonderful figure to it.

 

[jeff...]

Ray honestly I'm not really sure why it's so high in demand for electric guitars. However I can say it's freaking heavy and hard as a rock. The sapwood reminds me a lot of maple, so it most likely has some acoustic quality that sets it apart from other woods. A guitar player knows by the way a guitar sounds whether it's a plywood or real wood body electric guitar. From what I'm told this wood has that "unique" sound, whatever that means. I don't think it has much to do with the playability of the guitar persay but more of the sound the wood produces. Then again I could be all wet too. :roll:

 

[Ray Martin]

I once heard Dr Bose say that in order to get all of the sound out of a speaker (and out of the speaker box), that the box had to be a very hard material. He offered the example of making a great sounding speker out of bricks. Maybe if the body is harder, it will absorb less so more of the sound energy is available to the pickups. ... and since I know nothing about musical instruments, this is all wild guessing on my part.

but thanks for the photos... the wood is beautiful and I didn't know just how much went into cutting up a big log.

Ray

 

[jeff...]

Ray, What your saying makes perfect sense to me...

I felt it would be right to let everyone know the remainder of the lumber from this log has been sold. I'll end up slicing a few more 9/4 slabs off the two remaining sides, but after that the rest has been spoken for.

If someone is looking for 24" long, 14 - 16" wide and 9/4" thick guitar blanks, I will have lots of them forsale. Or I could resaw 9/4 into 2 4/4 book matched sets too, however those would need to be sold in 2' increments starting at 4'.

Thanks

 

[jeff...]

Some more pics this is side 3 with slab 1 and 2 removed

 

[jeff...]

Another view of side 3 and side 4 with slabs removed. Not much intrest on side 4, other than a hint of splattering. The cant is now 12 1/8" by 12 1/2", usally in logs this old there is a little heart rot near the butt, but I have not seen any yet :-D

Now I'll go back and look through the pictures and study all 4 sides. I need to determine which side to face up to produce the best lumber. I'm kinda favoring side 3 at the moment.

Please help me determine the side to fcae up, is it 1, 2, 3 or 4?

Thanks for looking...