Group,
>
> I am kind of new at this but pretty good with my hands and have some wood
> that my wife's uncle, who died last year, had in his garage (my aunt said
> he always talked about it being something that sounded like hart select half
> cut something or other, maybe cheery?).
>
> Anyway most of it is about 3" thick and 12" wide and there are some boards
> about 10 feet long. Problem is that it is all rough as hell and doesn't look
> like you could use it for anything inside the house. The kids have been
> after me to build them new swingset and playhouse and I was wondering if
> this kind of wood would be OK for outside use? What would I paint it with
> the would make it last longer outside?
If its rough, that's because it hasn't been surfaced yet. Many woodworkers prefer to purchace wood "in the rough", as it costs less that way.
Its possible to get a very nice, smooth surface on virtually any wood. And you'd be very surprised to see how different any wood looks when properly surfaced, vs. rough.
You'll need to know the exact wood species before you can decide how to use it. Cherry (if that's indeed what it is) is not very well suited to an outdoor application without a tough, water and UV resistant coating, and it would be a shame (some think its a crime!) to cover cherry that way.