milled walnut trunk

[Dave the dog]

Very nice Walnut planks, i had a woodmizer in last weekend,i had some Burr Elm,Yew and Oak to mill before it went rotten, i was well pleased with what we ended up with.

[Ben Ballard]

amazing wood dave the dog nice one

[Big J]

Absolutely stunning elm burr - really quite spectacular!

[WADKIN]

Nice elm

 

Out of interest how do you approach the log, do you take off a good slab for turners, for natural edge work, then then take 2" for slab tops? And have you consider sound pieces for veneer cutting?

Down here in the south there is almost bugger all elm about.

[Big J]

Sorry to take the thread off on a slight tangent, but it has been suggested to me that I make a truck run down south with elm from the next kiln - worth doing? I should be a able to bring down about 70 cubic foot on the 308D.

[tommer9]

I supply specialist timbers or source for others. I import some, such as figured maple from the states for guitar builders. Here in the uk I buy walnut and other figured timbers, burrs etc. People either purchase directly or i charge a sourcing fee for finding what they are after.

So it always pays to know what is around, and who will pay the best money for what purpose, which discounts most wood turners, nothing against them, just that it is a very wasteful process and they struggle to get any money for the end product. Walnut with a large percentage of sap in and little colour, can find a home with them however, no makers want it, cut to give a good mix of sap and heart, goes down quite well, as it makes a nice contrast.

In the case of walnut, i buy good material when it comes up, as i always have a number of buyers wanting the stuff, and who will pay top money for the best material. Because of the market i sell into, i can afford to pay way over anything a log buyer will for the right stuff. Finding the right material of course, is not that easy.

I agree on the Wadkin comment, the workshops are kitted out with a few old lumps of iron which came from them, many moons ago and they are still earning their keep.

 

Thanks for the reply- you must see some fine timber.

[tommer9]

Stunning burrs there.

 

i had a pretty nice lump a while back..

 

 

 

Theres a couple of threads- it was an exciting project that ended up at the eden project!

http://arbtalk.co.uk/forum/picture-forum/9936-route-work-today.html

 

http://arbtalk.co.uk/forum/picture-forum/12348-burry-burry-oak-oak.html

[WADKIN]

Hi

 

Regards running elm down south, whilst there is not huge amounts about. There are large commercial suppliers/sources such as Wests in Sussex and others, who seem to maintain a steady supply, most of which all comes north of the border, they endeavor to keep stuff in widths big enough for 1 piece bottoms on Windsor type chairs. So i would say unless it is something special, such as the burr above, then after factoring in your costs, i do not think you would get any better return back then selling locally, or to make it worth all the effort. Unless the price is at a point which offers sellers such as myself a good margin. and gets you a quicker return the selling 1 or 2 boards every few weeks. In which case 70 cube is a nice sized parcel for smaller sellers such as myself where if the log in keep in order and of good grade, it then appeals to makers.

 

Good burr is a different kettle of fish. And to get the best return i would always advise to keep a natural edge all round, where ever possible. i have not had anything decent for god knows how long.

 

Yes i do get to see some nice pieces, i have a shipment of Australian Fiddlebacked blackwood, amongest other things, due to get into port in the next ten days. It will be cut for the instrument trade in the main, the offcuts go to turners and various hobby buyers. When it gets in i will post some images of some when it is cut.