Can I use a tree branch for wood?

[Bob Flint]

I have a big red maple tree that has a horizontal branch that is threatening to rip the tree in half, so this spring after the sap runs I'm going to cut it off. It is over 1 foot in diameter at the tree, and extends straight out for about 20 feet before bending up a bit and going another 20 or 30 feet. I cut its twin off last year, and just an 8 foot piece is too much weight for me to carry!

Shame to just cut it up and burn it, can it be used somehow for useful maple wood?

Then the question - how do I process it?

[Tom]

Bob Flint wrote:>I have a big red maple tree that has a horizontal branch that is threatening

Bandsaw, jointer, planer, and tablesaw. Cut slabs on the bandsaw, let it dry for about a year per inch thick, joint a face and an edge, plane the opposing face, and rip the opposing edge. Good luck! Tom Someday, it'll all be over....

[Michael Daly]

I thought it's better to cut back a tree _before_ the sap runs, while it's dormant?

Mike

[Silvan]

Better to cut it off now, *before* the sap runs.

Yes and no. At 1' diameter, you're not going to get much lumber out of it under the best of circumstances. It's also branch wood. I'm going to guess that the pith is off-center, and the wood is much more dense on one side of it than the other. This will almost certainly spell trouble when you try to dry and subsequently use the wood, because it will be fairly teeming with stress.

If it were me, I wouldn't even try to make lumber out of it. Then again, I have a lathe, so it's a no brainer what *I* would do with it. It sounds like perfect turning wood.

If you don't want to see it go to waste, and you don't want to fool with trying to make lumber out of it, then why not find a woodturner in your area and make a friend? :)

Where do you live, BTW?

[George E. Cawthon]

the tree in half, so this spring

tree, and extends straight out for

twin off last year, and just an 8 foot

Why would you wait for the sap to run? Better off cutting it when it is dormant. If you don't want to do much processing, then cut it in blocks and cut the blocks for various uses, e.g., bird houses, bird feeders, walkway lights, rustic furniture, etc.

[Jeff Gorman]

"Bob Flint" wrote : : I have a big red maple tree that has a horizontal branch that is threatening to rip the tree in half, so this spring : after the sap runs I'm going to cut it off. It is over 1 foot in diameter at the tree, and extends straight out for : about 20 feet before bending up a bit and going another 20 or 30 feet. I cut its twin off last year, and just an 8 foot : piece is too much weight for me to carry! : : Shame to just cut it up and burn it, can it be used somehow for useful maple wood?

Branch wood contains tension and compression wood, making it unstable, even when dried.

It might be welcomed by a woodcarver.

Jeff G

-- Jeff Gorman, West Yorkshire, UK Email address is username@ISP username is amgron ISP is clara.co.uk Website

[Edwin Pawlowski]

You can always smoke some meats with it.

[George]

There's usually a reason why some things are not done, just as there are reasons why some are.

The reason branch wood is not harvested as boards is that it makes horrible boards. A nice beam, perhaps, or as Mike and George C.said, some nicely figured bowls or other smallwork pieces. Prepare it in resawable short slabs, occlusive coat on the ends for minimum loss to checks and let it warp as desired.

In my experience, it is also important to resaw such wood oversize, give it a few days to work out newly unbalanced stresses, then process for use.

For lumber, cut before the sap's up, certainly. For the health of the tree, you might want to wait so it can muster healing prior to mold gaining the upper hand. I'd ask a tree surgeon.

threatening to rip the tree in half, so this spring

at the tree, and extends straight out for

cut its twin off last year, and just an 8 foot

[Phisherman]

the tree in half, so this spring

tree, and extends straight out for

twin off last year, and just an 8 foot

It is better for the tree to cut it off while the tree is dormant. Of course you can use it! A lot of woodworkers process fallen trees. Drying it without splitting is the trick !

[BIG JOE]

A tree trunk grows under gravitational pressure running down the grain. If that pressure is "relieved", there is no natural tendency to warp. A horizontal tree branch grows with pressure running across the grain, and thus the tendency to warp once that stress is relieved.

Joe

the tree in half, so this spring

tree, and extends straight out for

twin off last year, and just an 8 foot

[Sbtypesetter]

First my apologies for all the uninformed answers. A lot of people here are eager to be helpful, but the information can have a tendency toward being inaccurate.

1. Cut before the sap rises.

2.Branches contain "reaction wood". This can cause severe movement during drying. If reaction wood is used for woodworking projects it is often best to keep the pieceds small. 3.Processing a branch is the same as for a bole from the trunk. A. Fell B. quarter. This is simply using a maul and wedges to split the log into four sections. Always best to split as the split will follow the grain line. The grain line will be convoluted in a branch so be prepared to use short sections. A branch should be quartered since "through & through milling will only exacerbate the problems caused by reaction wood. C. Have the quarters cut by a sawyer. D. Stack the wood on a flat platform, sticker (horizontal spacer sticks laid down on the boards to keep air movement between the boards) and spacer (same as stickers but are placed on the vertical between the boards). E. Band or bind the stack. Banding is a steel strap that is pulled around the stack, binding is chain, cable or rope tightened around the stack. F.Cut a small section of a board and weigh it. Continue to weigh this section during the drying process. When the piece has stopped losing weight, it is as dry as you will get by air drying. Keep dates, and weight records. G. Kiln dry if necessary.

Best to keep the wood in a dark place when drying, and always keep the binders as tight as possible during the drying process. You will need to tighten periodically. This was a quick "Readers Digest" version of how to process, but you get the idea.

-Rick

[Bob Flint]

I'm not sure... maybe I should check with an expert... I cut a branch off another maple a few years back, in the winter, and in the spring the amount of sap that came out of the 'wound' was astonishing! I thought the tree would bleed to death... so I figure if I cut after the sap is up, it will heal in the summer, and the sap won't be lost. Thats what I did last time to this tree...

[Bob Flint]

Thats an interesting idea... I've always wanted to get a lathe and play with turning... I'm in Montreal, Canada...

Hey could I get some veneer out of it?

[Bob Flint]

rip the tree in half, so this spring

tree, and extends straight out for

twin off last year, and just an 8 foot

As I said in another post, I've cut big branches off of maples in both winter and summer, and the winter cut caused more sap to be lost in the spring. The summer cut lost almost no sap. It's also been my experiance that maples are F&^%$& hard to kill!! At least the seedlings growing in the flowers are.... I once sprayed one with laundry bleach I was so frustrated with it... the damn leaves turned white but it just kept on growing!! Had to dig down 4 feet to extract it...

Hey another good idea!! I could even make little speakers....

[Bob Flint]

mmmmmmmmmmmm I can taste it.... but thats illegal in the city limits... pity...

[Bob Flint]

the tree in half, so this spring

tree, and extends straight out for

twin off last year, and just an 8 foot

Ya... tell me!! I installed a de-humidifier in my shop (basement) and have the level down to 35%. I usually have to bundle together the wood I buy with these big steel double angle irons, and 1/2" x

12" bolts... and wait a few months before I use it... still get some twisters...

[Bob Flint]

So I've heard.... so either a full piece to retain the stress, or a veneer to eliminate stress...

[Bob Flint]

Did you read my other answer to this? I've found the sap is lost out of the wound. That tree is still alive, however, so I guess there is no real harm.

Since a lot of my projects are small furniture and stuff, I could limit pieces to 4 feet or even less. If I made a small cabinet, even 2 foot pieces are good, no?

I imagine. I once ripped a board into 2 propellers! Lots of stress in there.

Was hoping to keep this in my own hobby world... I've had very bad luck with the 'pros' around here screwing up my projects...

I already have a system of heavy steel double angles and bolts...

Thanks a lot!

[Scott Lurndal]

maple a few years back, in the winter,

thought the tree would bleed to

the sap won't be lost. Thats what I

Collect the sap and boil it down into maple suger. It's been done for centuries and doesn't harm the tree.

scott

[dave]

maple a few years back, in the winter,

thought the tree would bleed to

the sap won't be lost. Thats what I did last time to this tree...

Maples put out a lot of sap, think maple syrup. The trick is to cut it at a joint and then paint the end with a latex paint to seal it. Should take care ofd the problem. If it leaks, save the sap and pour it over snowballs. Memory lane. Dave in Fairfax