Elm.????

[Paul.J]

Right.I have been offered some Elm that is been cut down today and can have it all if needed delivered.
Now the tree is said to be about 20-30 years old and the trunk is about 20" dia.
My question is-Is Elm of this age any use.Will there be any good heart wood on it do you think.Will it be worth having:?:

 

[Bodrighy]

You don't often see elm that big nowadays Paul, at least not in this country as far as I know. It usually succumbs to the disease before it gets anywhere near that old. Go and have a look, see what the centre's like. Worth a try as it's getting rarer all the time

Pete

 

[Paul.J]

No time to go and look Pete as it is now down and on it's way here :shock:
So i will have to have a look when it's here.
I've been told that the tree has been dead for some time but the inner is still solid so it seems to be ok.There might be more than one :? :shock:
No doubt some piccys will be added if it is any good.

 

[wizer]

Some guys get all the luck...

 

[John. B]

Yep, bit-of-a-trek to Birmingham :? :? :?

John. B

 

[plymouth pirate]

Some guys get all the luck...

Yep, That's so true, only the other day Ken Bruce was talking about the guy who won the lottery and just two days later found himself a beautiful wife.

Some people are just that lucky. :wink:

John

 

[Bodrighy]

Some guys get all the luck...

Yep, That's so true, only the other day Ken Bruce was talking about the guy who won the lottery and just two days later found himself a beautiful wife.

Some people are just that lucky. :wink:

John

That's not luck (he said cynically)....withthat sort of money I am sure you would find your list of friends etc gets very big very quickly :lol:

Pete

 

[RATWOOD]

Hi Paul
if you do not want it give me a shout :lol:

 

[Paul.J]

Well the two trees were dropped off about half two this afternoon,but the logs/trunk were only about 8" in dia.The tree surgeon meant 20cm not inches :roll:
Every inch/cm of it was covered in thick Ivy,which was a real pain to get off,and some of the logs have quite big holes in,and some rot.
But the bulk of it seems to be ok still with some spalting that i can see,so i will just have to see how it is when turned,when i have had chance to sort it out properly.
Good news is,is that there are more Elms to be cut down soon,and a promise of some big Oak Burrs
Think i would still prefer to win the Lottery :lol:

 

[Bodrighy]

Aah that's more like it. I was wondering if some disease resistant species had been developed. Still all free wood is good wood.

Pete

P.S. You can turn Ivy you know

 

[Paul.J]

Carrying on from where i left off yesterday,i had a good day sorting and cutting up the elm logs.Managed to do most of it on the bandsaw,which coped really well with all the cutting
Most of it still seems to be good solid wood,but quite a bit had some sort of infestation,which didn't seem to go too deep into the wood,some only into the bark.

Here is a piccy of the sort of holes i mean.They are about 3/16" in dia.
Anyone any idea what might be buried inside,and if it will effect any of the other wood i have stored :?:

Even found an Elm leaf growing from a new shute growing out the side of one of the logs :shock:

This what i managed to save ranging from about 5" -10" dia.
Most of it also has splating in it.

And here are a couple of smaller logs cut in half,showing a lovely golden colour

So all in all not a bad stash me thinks.Just can't wait to turn some of it

 

[Steve Jones]

Hi Paul,

can't help with the what's in the holes but certainly looks like a nice stash of timber that you've acquired. :lol:

Steve

 

[duncanh]

Still all free wood is good wood.

Pete

Not entirely true. If the wood has been down too long it may well be full of cracks and splits which could be dangerous if not seen.
Even if you spot the faults it might take you quite some time to process - donning chain saw gear, setting up, sharpening saw, sawing, band sawing all takes time and if you're left with a turning that's got cracks, holes, filled voids etc. and is, when viewed in the cold light of day, ugly, was it time well spent?

The same applies to freshly felled wood- I recently rescued a decent sized (~25cm) log of laburnum from a bloke at the tip. When I got it home it was rotten throughout it's length and even the sound looking timber had splits in it. I've chopped it up but all it will be useful for is pen blanks at best.

Just because a piece of wood can be turned doesn't mean that it necessarily should be.
There's something to be said for advising learners to start on sound wood.


Sorry if this sounds a little harsh

Duncan

 

[The Wood Doctor]

Hi Paul,

The holes are from the Elm Bark Beetle (Scolytus species). It is this beetle that will have carried the disease to the tree that killed it.

The process is fairly simple, young beetles emerge from the larva chambers under the bark of the elm tree by boring through the bark making the holes you refer to and carrying the fungal spores of the disease. They start feeding on the new twigs of other elms and in doing so infect it with the fungal spores. Thus, when adults then lay their eggs under the bark of this tree the new larva will hatch into a tree infected with the disease and will carry it with them when they pupate and emerge as young adults.

Ultimately, its a bit more involved than that, but thats the outline in a nut shell.

The fungal disease is Ophiostoma novo-ulmi if you would like to search for more detailed information.

Ben[/i]

 

[Bodrighy]

Duncan, you make sense and not at all harsh. I was putting it badly and agree with what you are saying. Also I have a wood burner so for me free wood is either turning or heating. I started, ignorantly, using any old wood I could including bits of pine etc and learnt a lot...the hard way.

Pete

 

[Paul.J]

Duncan H wrote

There's something to be said for advising learners to start on sound wood.

This is true Duncan,but even what appears to be sound wood can still split.
I think if you are inclined to produce your own timber as i have done here,it is a good way of learning and finding,detecting faults in timber.
You soon get to know if a log is sound or not just by listening to a cut,and even the feel of the cut.Even bouncing the log on the floor gives you some indication.
All the logs i cut up i do try and give it all a thorough check,so much so as in this batch i have about six bags that i have discarded as not safe to use.
Even when the log is put on the lathe several months or years later,it is still wise to give it another good checking over,as it can still split while it's been drying.

 

[Paul.J]

The wood doctor wrote

The holes are from the Elm Bark Beetle (Scolytus species). It is this beetle that will have carried the disease to the tree that killed it.

Thank you Doctor Ben
So if i put these logs with my other logs they should be ok :?:
As i think there are a couple that might still have the holes in :?

 

[Lightweeder]

The same applies to freshly felled wood- I recently rescued a decent sized (~25cm) log of laburnum from a bloke at the tip. When I got it home it was rotten throughout it's length and even the sound looking timber had splits in it. I've chopped it up but all it will be useful for is pen blanks at best.

Duncan

Bad news about that Laburnum Duncan. It had great promise

LW

 

[The Wood Doctor]

So if i put these logs with my other logs they should be ok :?:
As i think there are a couple that might still have the holes in :?

Paul,

These beetles will only go for other elms (and one or two very closely related species that are few and far between) but they will need to be living trees. The technical problem with logs of elm is the larva may still be under the bark and so it is possible to spread the disease by transporting the logs from one location to another.

Legally, if you have infected elms on your land you must fell them, burn them, and if storing the logs or trunks for any length of time strip the bark. It is down to local government to enforce this and I have never heard of an enforcement or prosecution for failing to fell the trees or storing them with bark in tact.

There is no risk to other timbers in your wood pile, although if kept slightly damp the spalting might be encouraged to spread.

Ben

 

[Paul.J]

Thanks Ben.