I cut down a juniper tree yesterday. Mainly for firewood but I did cut a couple of pieces of the trunk into longer pieces thinking to slice em up and try to make something out of them.
Anyone know what I can expect from juniper wood for use in woodworking?
I already know that it makes for fine firewood.
Is there any reason why I can't do the rough resawing on a table saw, mainly cleaning off the bark and attempting to square the trunk off/
I don't own a bandsaw yet.
John
-- John Emmons COG IBA
"when hatred calls with his package, refuse delivery..."
Easern Arinatuc Red cedar, the stuff used to line closets, drawers and chests is a juniper.
If the juniper you have is similar it will have a very sharp aroma you will have already noticed, the wood wil be soft, brittle and have a busy colorful figure. It will probably also be rot-resistant.
Like all rot-resistant wood it will be toxic, much more so than most wood and prone to inducing or exacerbating alergic reactions, asthma and contact dermatitis (skin rash). So sensible precautions like respiratory protection (breathing mask will be important. This is not much of an issue when cutting down the tree as the sawdust is coarse and damp, it is the finer particles produced in the woodshop and by sanding that will get you.
Shellac will probably be a good finish. Should make some nice small to moderate sized boxes, chests, window boxes and such.
Squaring logs on a table saw can be done but is pretty dicey, if you can flatten one side with a jointer, jointer plane or a draw knife first that will help a lot. The bandsaw is the preferred tool for making boards (resawing) but the juniper will be soft enough that the table saw should be able to handle it. You can also make a sled for securing the logs for ripping on either the table saw of the bandsaw.
This kind of thing is lots of fun. I've done this with Bradford pear and arborvitae (a decorative cedar. The latter made my eyes water when resawing, just from the odor.
I do not know how the wood works. However, you would be better off finding someone with a band saw to cut it up. It will be easier to cut and much safer.
The sawdust is highly allergenic , it might not bother you at first but trust me many people develop an allergy to it , sometimes reacting severely to it. So take precautions and wear a real good mask with fan blowing the sawdust away from you.
The wood itself is very often twisted and full of knots so clear straight lumber is not the norm. >I cut down a juniper tree yesterday. Mainly for firewood but I did cut a
You're not maximizing your opportunities. The correct procedure is: Turn to wife and say, "This is a great piece of wood, but it wouldn't be safe to cut it on the table saw. I'm going to have to get a band saw as a safety measure. You wouldn't want me to lose a finger in the table saw, would you?".
Yeah I know, I tried the more subtle approach, "let me try this without a band saw, of course a band saw would make it much safer...;^)"
Truthfully speaking, as much as I'd like some more big electric tools, I still need to tear down the existing shack that I'm using and then build the real workshop before I start thinking of new iron.
There's a guy in Mitchell, Oregon, who works mostly in juniper and his stuff is quite striking. My dad's been making walking sticks from juniper for years-- with just an oil finish the wood looks great. I've never had a large enough piece to actually work with, but I imagine that if you do there'd be no reason not to make something from it. Small box? Table top? Finish it with super blond shellac or just BLO and I bet it would look great.
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