Cherry tree milling

[Dampierre Dave]

Hi 

I’m a newbie here and am asking for advice. I’ve recently felled a cherry tree. I intend to make planks or table runners from them. 
my question is do I have it milled and stacked straight away
or

leave it whole and have it milled at a later date, if this the way how long does need to dry in my garage?

 

many thanks in advance 

 

Dampierre Dave

[ucoulddoit]

It needs to be milled into planks as a whole log will stay wet for years and probably split badly. It would be better to dry the planks outside with plenty of airflow and shaded from the sun instead of in a garage with little airflow. Rule of thumb for air drying is an inch thickness per year. So 2 inch planks need to be stacked for about two years outside. But, air dried planks will dry further in a centrally heated house which runs the risk of shrinkage, distortion, splits, etc. occurring in a finished piece of furniture if the moisture content hasn't been reduced further before making it. If you haven't access to a kiln, simply stacking the planks in the house for a few months works fine to 'condition' it, provided no one minds a stack of planks in the house.......! I run a dehumidifier in my workshop and planks stacked there are fine to use after a few months following the initial air drying.

 

What size is the cherry tree? The first tree I had milled many years ago was a cherry my parents had planted and I made the mistake of milling the planks too thin. As cherry can distort a lot during drying, I had to scrap most of it as it was useless which was a shame as it had sentimental value. I now tend to mill cherry at 2 inches and re-saw it into smaller sections if necessary after drying. It's a lovely timber and well worth   using. My avatar picture is a cherry tree I cut down in a garden.

 

Andrew

Edited September 14, 2020 by ucoulddoit
Forgot something

[Dampierre Dave]

Andrew, thanks for the advise

[KWarb17]

3 hours ago, Dampierre Dave said:

Hi 

I’m a newbie here and am asking for advice. I’ve recently felled a cherry tree. I intend to make planks or table runners from them. 
my question is do I have it milled and stacked straight away
or

leave it whole and have it milled at a later date, if this the way how long does need to dry in my garage?

 

many thanks in advance 

 

Dampierre Dave

Hi mate,

I don't know where your based or if your interested in doing this yourself or not but let me know if your interested in a milling service?

[David Cropper]

52 minutes ago, KWarb17 said:

Hi mate,

I don't know where your based or if your interested in doing this yourself or not but let me know if your interested in a milling service?

He's over in France near to me. I ground out the stump this morning.

[trigger_andy]

Keep in mind Cherry will warp and split like a SOAB. Strap it down and weight it too. Won’t stop it but might minimise it. The last Cherry I milled was 20-24” diameter. Even weighted with tractor weights and dried slower in a barn the slabs cupped and split badly. I’d mill street 2” minimum with the hope of getting 1-1.5” usable slabs outta each.

[KWarb17]

1 hour ago, David Cropper said:

He's over in France near to me. I ground out the stump this morning.

Ah??I'll have to charge two weeks labour for two weeks quarantine 

[David Cropper]

36 minutes ago, KWarb17 said:

Ah??I'll have to charge two weeks labour for two weeks quarantine 

Come over, he can afford to pay you!

[KWarb17]

2 hours ago, David Cropper said:

Come over, he can afford to pay you!

Great...get two weeks holiday paid for?

Anyone need any milling done..just leave on my doorstep and I'll do it in the hall??.

That'll keep me busy?