Beech tree coming down in my garden, what is beech good for?

[Kryten]

Complete newbie here. I've got to take down a 60ft beech tree in my garden and it's a shame to just burn it in my woodburner. The trunk is 24" diameter. So what is beech particularly suited to? Trouble is I don't have any specialist woodworking tools other than standard DIY stuff, but I'd like to be able to get something useful or pleasurable out of it, for example chess pieces, backgammon stones or a bowl / plate etc... Any suggestions very welcome. Does anyone want some, in exchange for making something for me for example - just a thought. I am in Northamptonshire and could deliver in need be.
Kryten

 

[Shultzy]

Beech is good for many types of projects including all your proposals. I made my workbench, some tables and boxes. The first thing you need to do is have it planked, each plank then needs to be placed between sticks and air-dried under cover. This takes about one year for each one inch thickness of plank.

 

[matthewwh]

Mmmm, Beech, none too flash but nice for just about anything, furniture, plane bodies, turnery, all round good stuff and anything you don't use will burn bright and strong, especially if you burn it against itself.

I have had a good experience with the nice man at Helmdon sawmills if that's any help - he kindly planked a walnut bole for me for a purple drinking voucher. Hiring the 7.5 tonner to take it there cost 5 times as much as the sawing, but I brought the boards home in two or three car loads so there was only one day's truck rental.

 

[motownmartin]

Beech is excellent for chopping Boards, but it does need to be planked and dried first.

 

[Kryten]

All good stuff Gentlemen - thank you all for your advice. The tree's not down yet but it's imminent. Planking the trunk first stage then. If I was to make smaller objects such as chess pieces or backgammon stones for instance, could these realistically be made from smaller limbs from 4" - 8" say? And would planking these still be required for best results?

 

[matthewwh]

A sawmill will not look at anything less than 5-1/2 feet long so for the branchwood you may be better off choosing relatively straight sections, planking it roughly with axes and wedges whilst green and then drying it. A little more wasteful but if it would have gone in the fire anyway there is no real loss. for chess pieces you can probably cut them roughly to size and microwave them after a few months of air drying.

 

[acewoodturner]

Hi
Beech is a good utility wood for a lot of items for the kitchen that come into contact with food.

You dont say why the beech is having to come down. Is it due to being too big for the garden now or is it approaching the end of its useful life. Is it standing dead and in imminent danger of falling over of its own accord in the next storm. Is there rot at the base. All these question's answers will lead to clues as to what the timber's colour and figure might look like. It could be spectacular flaming or just plain old ordinary beech.
Are you taking it down yourself or employing tree surgeons to do the job? Lets hope when it hits the deck that it doesnt shatter and is only fit for turning small pieces.
I plank trees regularly with a chainsaw mill and dry the planks in my workshop kiln. I then make furniture and other items. The vast majority of trees that I plank are windblown and it is disappointing to end up with a tree that is full of shakes and only fit for the workshop stove. Thank goodness that only happens in about 1 out of 25 trees.
Just now me and my mate are awaiting permission to plank an oak which came down in the storms here a week past Tuesday. The oak trunk is about 45' long and 3.5 ' dia so there will be plenty to keep us amused for about a week and my half of the timber will fill my kiln about twice easily. I did here yesterday ther was an oak that came down in Edinburgh which is over 5' in dia and about 60' of trunk. The council cant cut it up as they dont have enough manpower as they are all too busy removing the other trees and are trying to find tree surgeons to tackle it urgently! Its a pity I dont own a hiab otherwise I would have taken it.
You could always ask around if anyone has a chainsaw mill and would be willing to plank it for you for a half share of the timber.

Mike

 

[Kryten]

Thanks for the replies gents. It's coming down because it is right next to my septic tank, about 4 feet away from the manhole and the roots may already have done some damage. I would do anything to keep the tree, but the alternative would cost £thousands - digging up most of the garden to re-site the tank and re-route all the pipework into and out of the tank. I can't think of any other solution. The main trunk is only about 4 ft before the main branches begin to appear, so planking may be a problem if 5.5ft is the minimum.

 

[Richard T]

If whoever is doing the felling would be amenable to cutting the 24" trunk separately and then putting chainsaw notches in a straight line along it, it is quite an easy matter for you to split it in half with wedges and a small sledge hammer. Beech cleaves quite easily, especially when green.
This would be considerably cheaper than organising a mill to cut full width green boards that may (will) cup. You'll take lots of tension out with splitting and when the halves are dry you have the option of quarter sawing some boards, or chunkier pieces or whatever.
The half rounds must be stored with the same care as planks - off the ground and under cover.
There's also the option of cutting shorter lengths of straight trunk, cleaving them in half, then splitting off thin, quartered boards with a froe. Very stable; good for panels, boxes, etc.
The bough wood will have more tension in it so is really best used for turning (after cleaving) as planking this usually leads to some very interesting shapes indeed.
Though there may be lots of bemoaning about merely Beech handles on planes around here, no one would say no to a beech bench. It's dead useful for all sorts of jobs.

But whatever you do or don't do, it's very good firewood so no loss really. The more I write, the more jealous I'm getting, so I'll stop.

 

[Kryten]

Thanks Richard. The more info comes my way, the more I realise I am actually a bit out of my depth. I do have chainsaws, a log maul and an alloy wedge for splitting. But after that I don't really have any tools to finish the job with what will be left. Would it be a sin for example to just store the trunk and bigger boughs whole, for later treatment? I may by asking around, find a local enthusiast to help me out in return for half the timber or whatever.

 

[Richard T]

Well, the risk you take when storing wood to dry out in the round is that it will shrink in its circumference. This causes the the heavy cracks that open up at the ends of round logs. They can eventually run so deep that they can run end to end. This would be fine if they split exactly where you wanted them to, but they never do...
When you halve a log this shrinkage will pull the split face into a slight convex curve rather than pulling apart the other side of the log as that isn't there any more.

If you did want to do some cleaving, you already have one wedge - I don't think steel wedges cost much. You will need quite a few, at least three, to rescue others that may get pinched. A couple of jemmys or longer bars can help too.

 

[Kryten]

Thanks Richard - very helpful. I have a couple of weeks before I need to act, but I know more than I did 2 days ago. Thanks to all for their time.
Kryten

 

[Chems]

You'll have to wait years for it to dry before you can use it, a year per inch of thickness. If you wanted to turn items from it that can be done from green wood. In that year+ you can get yourself a planer thicknesser and work the wood yourself when its dry. Whereabouts in Northamptonshire are you?

 

[Kryten]

Thanks Chems, I'm near Kettering.
K.