Old chestnut

[John Good]

I have just acquired a fair amount of old American Chestnut wood - it was probably cut around 1890. The small pieces are 3" thick x 8" x about 6', and included are a couple of huge beams measuring 12"x12"x16'. There are some worm holes and just a few nails (so I'll have to be careful).

Does anyone have experience turning old wood like this? It seems very hard and dense, so I expect it may not behave all that well. Are there any tricks for dealing with this stuff?

There's a lot more here than I'm likely to use. Do you think any of my woodworker friends would be interested? Or is this kind of wood just too much trouble?

 

[Andy Hoyt]

John, I've got some very recent experience in this sort of thing. A number of things must be considered - one of which I did not!

Do not assume like I did that just because the wood was sawn ages ago that the moisture content is adequate for finish turning. Mine was not and the piece suffered big time as a result. It was brittle and dry to the touch, but just wet enough that the rim was a nightmare to maintain.

Be very wary of chucking, vacuum or otherwise. It works but you'll have to be gentle. Tenons are not as good as recesses. Vac works but the bugger will be light, so make sure you're sealed really well. And stock up on thin CA glue. And take light light cuts with a super sharp gouge.

Worm holes, nail holes, or any other defect just ads character. Exploit them. Just remove the iron first.

Another consideration is more in terms of marketabilty. If you know the history of wood ( I think this is called its "provenance"), or can determine it; and can provide this to prospective owners the value of the piece will increase. Even more so if your marketing effort is targeted towards those that will likely make a connection to the wood. EG: It came from great-granpa's old barn.

"Marketing" does not imply a commerical effort on your part. It can also imply a friendly promotional gig with friends and family.

As an example. I just turned a small bowl from a chunk of long leaf pine that came from a railroad depot canopy in New York State. It was built in 1905 from timber that had previously served in the same capacity at Grand Central Station in NYC for sixty-odd years. I now have a number of organizations fighting amongst themselves as to which deserves the bowl more.

Good luck! And yeah! I'd love some of that chestnut. Send me an email with about 20 gig's worth as an attachment.

Thanks, Andy Hoyt

 

[dkulze]

Hi John,

Old chestnut like that can actually be pretty valuable. There are a number of wood reclaimation businesses out there who do nothing but strip old lumber out of turn-of-the-century buildings and structures for finishing and resale as flooring, cabinetry lumber, panelling, etc.

American Chestnut is particularly unique in that the American Chestnut was pretty much wiped out by blight so no new lumber exists. There are efforts going on to find a blight resistant American Chestnut but pretty much the only wood available is from Asian/American hybrids (someone out there correct me if I'm wrong on this).

So, what you've got there is unique and irreplacable wood that not only is beautiful but is very possibly quite valuable also. Provenence would be a real extra bonus, with rare wood like that.

All this being said, be careful and take your time like Andy said and turn away. Gifting and trading the wood to other turners will probably be extremely appreciated. Might even have raffles with local turning clubs, proceeds to go to the club, the hurricane victims, etc.

Have fun and congratulations,
Dietrich

 

[Erwin Nistler]

There are some American Chestnut trees living. I have a few on my farm in MN. I received, about 10 years ago, a few seedlings from a friend associated with the preservation of these trees. Some are doing fine. They vary from 14 ft tall to 2 ft. Some die back in winter and some don't. I started with 12 plants. I still have 6. Hopefully the blight won't find them up here in MN.

 

[TEK]

Thanks Erwin

There are some American Chestnut trees living. I have a few on my farm in MN. I received, about 10 years ago, a few seedlings from a friend associated with the preservation of these trees. Some are doing fine. They vary from 14 ft tall to 2 ft. Some die back in winter and some don't. I started with 12 plants. I still have 6. Hopefully the blight won't find them up here in MN.

Thanks Erwin for trying to save the American Chestnut. I hope that someone succeeds. My disappointment is that Chestnut will not be readily available in my lifetime! I’ve turned a platter out of a piece and have seen furniture made from Chestnut. I think it is a really attractive wood. It is hard to imagine that it was once one of the most common trees in the Eastern United States. So common, it was used for making charcoal and tanning leather.