Air Dried Walnut for Furniture/ Workbench Question

Your wood needs to be acclimated to the environment that it will be kept in. Do you have a wood moisture sensor? On the low end they can be purchased for as little as $30. on up to hundreds. The wood might look dry but there is nothing worst that spending time working on a piece that looks beautiful at first until the moisture leaves & along with it makes vacant gaps in the wood.

Jeeez men, buy some pine to make your bench and save the walnut for something better. Those are some awesome boards, why waste them on something that is going to get nicked, scratched, etc? If you plan to use your bench for wood work, buy some cheap wood, if you plan it to be for show, then go buy some maple as well so it makes contrast with your walnut… ;-)

-- Just because you’ve always done it that way doesn’t mean it’s not incredibly stupid.

I agree with Melanie, it needs to acclimate. Also be prepared for some movement when milling the lumber. When you first cut it, cut it over size by about 1/2” to allow for movement. There is a good possibility that when milled you will release tension in the lumber and it will warp, twist etc. I would also let the boards sit for a few days after the initial milling to allow for more acclimation.

-- My job is to give my kids things to discuss with their therapist....medic20447@gmail.com

If it’s only been air drying for a year, it probably isn’t dry enough. As a general rule, you want it to air dry one year for every inch of thickness. Of course, the moister meter will either confirm or deny this.

So if you need a bench now, perhaps Jorge is right. I personally prefer benches made of hardwood over pine, but there are many nice benches made of SYP that function perfectly fine.

-- "hold fast to that which is good"

The wood is probably not dry enough. If there is a board you could cut about a foot off of and then use a moister meter on the center of the fresh cut that would give you a useful reading. You want 6-8% moister.

I agree with Jorge, save the walnut. Buy some dense heavy pine 2x?? and mill them down and glue them so that the 2” edge is up. This will form a thick workbench top and you have the more valuable walnut for projects.

-- Jesse, Saint Louis, Missouri

Just to be clear here, when you bought the wood, was it air-dried, and then you stored it for a year outside? Or did the sawyer say that he had air-dried it for a year when you bought it?

The supposed disadvantage of darker-colored work benches is that you don’t get as much light and contrast on your workpiece.

-- ian | "You can't stop what's coming. It ain't all waiting on you. That's vanity."

Air dried wood is the absolute best kind. Lumber that is properly stacked, covered and stickered outside, will dry slowly down to equilibrium with the climate. In my climate that is about 12-15% moisture content. From there I put them in a home dehumidification kiln, which is nothing more than a space heater, box fans and a home dehumidifier in a confined space. Run that for about two weeks, and you will have nice dry lumber at 6-8% MC.
If your workbench is destined for a a non-heated shop, you can get by with drying to about 10% MC. Bringing the wood into a heated / air conditioned home for a month will accomplish the 10% MC.

Best of luck!

-- Willie, Washington "If You Choose Not To Decide, You Still Have Made a Choice" - Rush

I wouldn’t use walnut for a bench (top) for two reasons. One is it isn’t all that hard and the other is its dark color will be a real pain.

-- Dwight - "Free legal advice available - contact Dewey, Cheetam & Howe""

Sounds like you got some thick walnut. Awesome. Save it for some furniture. Air dried walnut take on a much more beautiful appearance than kiln dried. Kiln dried walnut just looks muddy. Depending on you part of the country, souther yellow pine or Douglas fir are great materials for benches.

-- The expectations of life depend upon diligence; the mechanic that would perfect his work must first sharpen his tools. Confucius, 经过艰苦的努力的梦想可以成真

I’m in the “don’t use the walnut for a bench” crowd. I also agree a 3” piece is probably not dry.

-- There is nothing like the sound of a well tuned hand plane. - http://timetestedtools.wordpress.com (timetestedtools at hotmail dot c0m)

You also want to check it very carefully for any small holes that would be an indication of an infestation of boring beetles. You don’t want them in your house or shop. they love walnut. walnut that is stored outside is especially vulnerable to them.

-- Oldworld, Fair Oaks, Ca

After reading what you have planned, I had to make an emergency appointment with my therapist. Up here in the Pac. N. W., walnut is rare, exotic, and very espensive.

I can’t see where you are located but if you are close to Southern California, I would be happy to trade some hard maple for some of that Walnut

-- Ken

Thanks everyone for the reposnses. I believe I’m going to use this for my next furniture project instead and contact the mill to see just how long it’s been air drying. The bench is going to have to be made out of pine for now. They have a bunch more of this at the yard so I think I’m going to pick up a few more boards for some future projects. I calculated it out and I got it for a $1.64 a board foot. Maybe I will make the front vise and tail vises in walnut for some contrast.

Pintodeluxe, I’m going to take your suggestion on get it dry once I find out how long over a year it’s been sitting.

For those of you who asked, I’m on Long Island in NY.

Thanks,
Dan

wow, that is a great price…...you better get as much as you can.

-- Just because you’ve always done it that way doesn’t mean it’s not incredibly stupid.