Sad, Sad day at the Kelly Creek Cattle Co.

[Dorf]

A friend had a large oak that was well over four feet in diameter. Since there was no one locally who could saw it into lumber, he took a slice off the stump end and made a (very heavy) table of it. when it was finished as a table, he started counting the growth rings from the outside in and marking important family info (births, weddings, funerals, etc) on the appropriate ring. Makes a pretty impressive "family tree". Hope this helps, Stan.

[Leslie Sapp]

Outside the shipbuilding industry, there's not much use for it. It does make good blocks for anvils and such to sit on in a shop. Don't try to cook on it, it tends to add a strong tannin taste to the meat, especially if it's still a little green. It makes a decent, long lasting stove wood if it's really, really dry.
I have seen large timbers for mantles cut out of it, but they must be sealed on all surfaces with paint and go through years of slow drying in order to avoid seasoning cracks. All in all, you can spend a lot of time and money on that log, and end up with something of little or no value.

[gravel]

too bad it can't make a few end tables, or coffee tables. no local woodworkers interested?



will any part of it be suitable for a totem pole?


speaking of the USS Constitution and oak,

http://www.insideindianabusiness.com...m.asp?ID=53427

[mold maker]

I had 2 water oaks and a white oak cut in Oct of 2010. The smallest was 42" chest high, and the white oak was 49". Counting the rings at the base showed them all to be 90-119 years old.
All three were mature, and dropping limbs. Twice they fell on my, then almost new, pickup. After over $3000. in repairs, I decided to protect my house, and property from further damage.
I'm still splitting and stacking wood from them. My Son hauled 14 cords and I've sold several dump truck loads. I have a wood furnace for emergencies, and have managed to burn about 2 cords, to save on gas, but the weather has been exceptionally warm, and no need for much supplemental heat.
No doubt the exercise hasn't hurt me, but The time spent could have been better used shooting, casting, and reloading.
The first few weeks were painful, to this 70yr old, out of shape body.

[BD]

There may be a small niche market for live Oak as mallet and beetle heads for the timber framing industry. These are typically Hornbeam and Oak respectively, and harder is better.

BD

[BoolitSchuuter]

I took the liberty of googeling "Live Oak". Seems it is well suited to Ship building. You might contact someone associated with Old Ironsides to see if they might be interested in that log. I don't know anything about ship building, but just looking at the curve in that log it seems it would be ideal for replacing part of the keel if needed. A clear solid log of that size would be a shame to just use for fire wood. I got some contact info. Maybe they can direct you to a person that could help if you chose to offer it to Old Ironsides.

Command Master Chief:
CMDCM (SW/AW) Roxanne Rhoades
Contact information:
E-mail - constitution.cc@navy.mil

[felix]

MOISTURE CURE PolyUrethane might indeed work if it can be applied thick enough for a 3 inch thick section. Worth a try. More than 100 bucks per gallon? ... felix

[x101airborne]

I emailed pics and a letter to Mrs. Rhoades at the Constitution. I would be real proud to donate it to the cause. Great idea.

[bearcove]

I took the liberty of googeling "Live Oak". Seems it is well suited to Ship building. You might contact someone associated with Old Ironsides to see if they might be interested in that log. I don't know anything about ship building, but just looking at the curve in that log it seems it would be ideal for replacing part of the keel if needed. A clear solid log of that size would be a shame to just use for fire wood. I got some contact info. Maybe they can direct you to a person that could help if you chose to offer it to Old Ironsides.

Command Master Chief:
CMDCM (SW/AW) Roxanne Rhoades
Contact information:
E-mail - constitution.cc@navy.mil

I think its just for the knees. Where the branch joins the trunk you get a piece that reinforces a corner.

[Just Duke]

Someone say they had some wood to donate?
That type of wood is what the locals in Texas call Post Oak. It is a very tight grain due to slow growth.
Looks like it wood take this Oregon transplant (me) 3 hours to cut through and considered to be a sapling up our way.
If it's that hard it would be to brittle for ship building. Wood ships take a massive amount of flexing. That type of wood would be good for dry docking supports and wedges.
Meet my future little friend. http://www.timberking.com/1400

Here's a trig of a tree out around Humptulips WA. most are 4 times bigger.

[Plate plinker]

Uh. Duke you are gonna need a larger sawmill.

[Just Duke]

Uh. Duke you are gonna need a larger sawmill.

They don't get that big at my primary home in OR besides I would need a yarder and spar pole the size of house to drag that bad boy out . lol 45 minutes NW out by our hill billy shack in Vernonia you can also find the big ones in the pic also.
Most my way are third growth timber and scrawney 3 and 4 footers. Humptulips is just east of Moclips as the crow flies and in a rain forest. I don't think we have any members out that way but feel free to chime in though Barbie's from Olympia which is close sort of.
My Vancouver WA place looks like a Kansas corn filed though. Now I wonder how that happened?

[geargnasher]

Dang, time flies. I didn't know the USS Constitution was ready for another overhaul already, but this might be timely.

Gear

[x101airborne]

Well, I was hoping they would stockpile the wood or something. Since I still havent heard, I guess not.

[Just Duke]

Dang, time flies. I didn't know the USS Constitution was ready for another overhaul already, but this might be timely.

Gear

Last I heard she was ship under weigh.

[Just Duke]

This is they call a tree around Olympia. Just add 160 inches of rain a years and this is what you get.

[Just Duke]

Well, I was hoping they would stockpile the wood or something. Since I still havent heard, I guess not.

Holy Smokes! You guys get 37 to 40 of rainfall a year! That's as much as Portland OR.
Your lucky because the rest of Texas is dry dry.

[725]

Keep searching. Think furniture. Big round table tops, custom bar tops, desk tops, GUN CABINETS. No end to the possibilities. There's a guy in Cockeysville, Md. that does exotic lumber/woods. Might be worth a call for information & ideas. Josh 410-561-9444 He does wood from all over the world.

[bowfin]

The nickname "Old Ironsides" was given to the U.S.S. Constitution by a British sailor during a battle after several cannonballs bounced off her sides. This was due to the use of live oak in much of the building, as well as the hull being 25 inches thick in places.

John Morgan, the man tasked with procuring the live oak, made sure trees were cut according to how their bends and curves would match up with designs of the ribs and posts, much like a good stockmaker would do with a fine piece of walnut. The men cutting the oaks in South Carolina suffered terribly from malaria, and if that wasn't bad enough, one ship carrying a load of wood was lost at sea.

Here's a good link to the building of the Constitution and her sister ships:

http://www.tutorgig.info/ed/Six_orig...tates_frigates

As an aside, the British coveted the Eastern White Pines found in the United States for masts, since their weight to strength ratio made for fast ships, and the fact that they grew straighter and taller than anything comparable in England. The Crown claimed the best trees in the Colonies for the British Navy, and when they lost the colonies, they lost a valuable strategic resource.

[bowfin]

two commercial log buyers have told me to burn it. It is worthless

That's too big a piece of wood to burn up without giving a little more time to find a home for it.

Put it on Craig's List at least.