Black Walnut Root

[Barry W]

I am much out of my pay grade discussing this subject, but here goes

First, a little history . . . In February 2013 a building on our property burned down and the fire badly damaged a nearby black walnut tree that was probably 75 - 100 years old. It looked as if half of the tree was undamaged. We had hoped the tree would overcome the fire damage, but it did not. We felled the tree this weekend thinking we would have a good saw log to sell to the local sawmill. That did not work out either, the trunk had suffered badly from the fire. I now have a good supply of black walnut firewood!

Now the question. Is it possible that the stump\roots of this tree could be used for wood working?

Thanks much.

 

[Michael Mathews]

I'd use whatever is left of the tree! Even if there is fire damage, there should be usable wood!

 

[Berta]

It might be some interesting stuff.

 

[Mark Gottesman]

I know that gun stock makers utilize blanks cut from the root mass. From what I have been told, all this is 3rd hand, the stumps were uprooted with a bull dozer or front end loader. Then they were sprayed down with a high pressure washer to get as much debris out of the root mass as possible. Get a lot of chains for the saw and sharpening gear as you are sure to run into embedded stones. due to the wild grain I do not think that splitting is viable, but again, no practical experience. Guessing the slabs would need to coated with anchor seal and then a long slow dry.

Sort of like cutting diamonds. Good Luck, post photos of your progress.

 

[scsmith42]

I know that gun stock makers utilize blanks cut from the root mass. From what I have been told, all this is 3rd hand, the stumps were uprooted with a bull dozer or front end loader. Then they were sprayed down with a high pressure washer to get as much debris out of the root mass as possible. Get a lot of chains for the saw and sharpening gear as you are sure to run into embedded stones. due to the wild grain I do not think that splitting is viable, but again, no practical experience. Guessing the slabs would need to coated with anchor seal and then a long slow dry.

Sort of like cutting diamonds. Good Luck, post photos of your progress.

Mark does a great job of describing the process. BW Root wood can be very striking, but the costs to recover the lumber are significant. Plus, due to the swirling grain directions you usually need to dry the lumber very slowly and for a long time.

 

[Barry W]

I know that gun stock makers utilize blanks cut from the root mass. From what I have been told, all this is 3rd hand, the stumps were uprooted with a bull dozer or front end loader. Then they were sprayed down with a high pressure washer to get as much debris out of the root mass as possible. Get a lot of chains for the saw and sharpening gear as you are sure to run into embedded stones. due to the wild grain I do not think that splitting is viable, but again, no practical experience. Guessing the slabs would need to coated with anchor seal and then a long slow dry.

Sort of like cutting diamonds. Good Luck, post photos of your progress.

​I am having some dozer work done later this spring and can have the stump/root pushed out and then clean it with my pressure washer. I also have access to a high-power commercial washer that may do a better job. Should the roots be cut free of the root before applying anchor seal and should all be under cover during the drying process? I am not familiar with anchor seal and will have to do a little research.

Thanks.

 

[Barry W]

Mark does a great job of describing the process. BW Root wood can be very striking, but the costs to recover the lumber are significant. Plus, due to the swirling grain directions you usually need to dry the lumber very slowly and for a long time.

Scott, can you please describe the drying process in more detail?

 

[scsmith42]

Scott, can you please describe the drying process in more detail?

Typically you would first mill the stump as soon as possible after removal (and I recommend a back or track hoe instead of a dozer). Get it out of the ground, trim it up, pressure wash it and then treat the cut ends with end sealer. Then mill it.

Just about all stump wood is quarter/rift sawn, with the prettiest figure coming from the portions that follow the roots emanating away from the trunk. Gun stock blanks are usually milled at 3" - 4" thick in order to allow for wood movement and shrinkage during the drying process.

If you cut your blanks out with a chainsaw, smooth the cut faces in order to improve drying quality. You can do this with a planer, jointer, belt sander, etc. After that I would suggest applying end sealer to the two ends of the blank and then packing it in shavings in a bag (the same way that bowl turners pack green rough cut bowls). This will allow it to dry slowly. If you apply end sealer to the complete blank you will prohibit drying; the trick is to just apply end sealer to the exposed end grain of the wood. End sealer is available in small quantities from Woodcraft, or you can order it by the 5 gallon pail (much cheaper) from U.S. Coatings and Baileys. I would recommend Anchorseal Classic from U.S. Coatings, but the Bailey's is fine too.

Wood dries best in board form and not in log/stump form. Usually the stumps will have dirt, sand, rocks, etc embedded inside the wood, so it is pretty abrasive on your tooling.

Stump wood can also make really pretty veneer.

 

[CrealBilly]

And... Just be sure and keep some extra chain on hand and some good files to sharpen the chain. If you have a pond toss the root ball in it and fish it out after a couple of weeks this will make power washing much easier but you still want to power wash it really good. And like others have said dry slowly... Sealing the slab ends and wrapping in burlap then placing in a root cellar or under your house for several years is also good just keep it cool and you may have success.

Calm seas never made a good Capitan

 

[Jeff]

Good information above. Here's a couple of relevant discussions that are informative.

http://www.woodweb.com/knowledge_base/Cutting_and_Drying_a_Walnut_Stump.html

http://www.woodweb.com/knowledge_base/Sawing_a_Black_Walnut_Root.html

About Anchorseal.

http://www.uccoatings.com/Products/Anchorseal

 

[chris_goris]

Could be some great stuff to turn!!!

 

[Barry W]

Typically you would first mill the stump as soon as possible after removal (and I recommend a back or track hoe instead of a dozer). Get it out of the ground, trim it up, pressure wash it and then treat the cut ends with end sealer. Then mill it.

Just about all stump wood is quarter/rift sawn, with the prettiest figure coming from the portions that follow the roots emanating away from the trunk. Gun stock blanks are usually milled at 3" - 4" thick in order to allow for wood movement and shrinkage during the drying process.

If you cut your blanks out with a chainsaw, smooth the cut faces in order to improve drying quality. You can do this with a planer, jointer, belt sander, etc. After that I would suggest applying end sealer to the two ends of the blank and then packing it in shavings in a bag (the same way that bowl turners pack green rough cut bowls). This will allow it to dry slowly. If you apply end sealer to the complete blank you will prohibit drying; the trick is to just apply end sealer to the exposed end grain of the wood. End sealer is available in small quantities from Woodcraft, or you can order it by the 5 gallon pail (much cheaper) from U.S. Coatings and Baileys. I would recommend Anchorseal Classic from U.S. Coatings, but the Bailey's is fine too.

Wood dries best in board form and not in log/stump form. Usually the stumps will have dirt, sand, rocks, etc embedded inside the wood, so it is pretty abrasive on your tooling.

Stump wood can also make really pretty veneer.

The earth moving equipment will not arrive for a couple of months. Should I seal the top of the stump to protect it until removal?

Scott, thanks for providing such a complete explanation and how-to.

 

[Barry W]

Good information above. Here's a couple of relevant discussions that are informative.

http://www.woodweb.com/knowledge_base/Cutting_and_Drying_a_Walnut_Stump.html

http://www.woodweb.com/knowledge_base/Sawing_a_Black_Walnut_Root.html

About Anchorseal.

http://www.uccoatings.com/Products/Anchorseal

Jeff, thanks for all the reading material . . . as I have said before, I have much to learn!

 

[scsmith42]

The earth moving equipment will not arrive for a couple of months. Should I seal the top of the stump to protect it until removal?
to.

Yes.


Scott

 

[Gabfurniture]

I'd use whatever is left of the tree! Even if there is fire damage, there should be usable wood!

That would make a beautiful end table .

 

[Gabfurniture]

Awesome any left ?

 

[Barry W]

Awesome any left ?

Well . . . I've not had time to begin working with it yet. I learned yesterday from a friend that I may be able too buy Anchorseal from a local wood dealer. That would be a starting point.