# Black Walnut to the Sawmill



## joshtank (Apr 5, 2010)

Saw on Craigslist this morning someone taking down 5 black walnut trees and offering them as firewood for whoever wants to pick them up. All about 20-22 inches across and an easy 10 feet of trunk. I found a sawmill 10 miles from the lot being cleared.

We figured a fair price for him to drop them off at the sawmill, and the mill said they'd do $75 a log.

It's a bit south of me, and another 40 minutes south from that is my parents property where there is space to stick and stack the boards.

I guess when it's all said and done, we'll see how it goes. I'm a great mix of excited and nervous all at once.


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## Bertha (Jan 10, 2011)

^I'm jealous. I'm in a similar situation but without the sawmill part.


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## joshtank (Apr 5, 2010)

He had red oak too, but I've only got so much money to put towards this. I feel like getting the walnut is the better bet here.


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## WDHLT15 (Aug 15, 2011)

If the tree are yard trees, they ALWAYS have metal in them. Make sure you understand what the sawmill will charge you if they hit metal and ruin their blades. It is customary that if a sawyer hits metal, the customer pays for a new replacement blade. That could get expensive if the trees end up having a lot of metal in them. Not to scare you off, just to let you know what to look out for.

I went to look at a walnut tree that a guy had to cut down, walked up to it, and wire was sticking out at about 4 feet up the butt log. I got back in the jeep and went back home.

Black walnut trees from a yard are not equivalent to forest grown walnut for a number of reasons. Commercial sawmills will not buy yard trees. Small sawyers like me will under some circumstances, but you have to evaluate the risks.

Good luck with your project. It would be cool to have a nice stack of walnut lumber drying. I currently have about 7500 BF that has been air dried. I love walnut. It is the King of Wood in my opinion.


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## joshtank (Apr 5, 2010)

Hmm. Got cutting and mostly white all the way though. Tiny bit of heartwood. Lookin at around $80 for a 20" by 8 foot log into boards. Worth it? It looks nice, just not a brown walnut I was thinking.

Advice would be nice. I have 12 more logs.


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## RussellAP (Feb 21, 2012)

You'll come out on top of this deal for sure. I just hope the trunk sections aren't hollow.


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## joshtank (Apr 5, 2010)

Thingsbegunneverdone.tumblr.com

I can only add pics at this link from my phone. Tell me what you think.


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## dhazelton (Feb 11, 2012)

I traded some labor at a friends sawmill for cutting up a 20 inch 8 ft long black walnut trunk from my yard (that did not have metal in it, thank you). There was sadly very little heartwood in it, enough to maybe make a small hanging cupboard. That said, I'm still looking forward to checking on the stack come fall. A lot depends on the sawyer - if they just plain saw it to go quickly they waste a lot of heart wood.


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## Dusty56 (Apr 20, 2008)

Are you sure it isn't Butternut ?


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## pintodeluxe (Sep 12, 2010)

$75 per log! That is a great deal.


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## joshtank (Apr 5, 2010)

Posted a pic of leaves too. I'll have to look up butternut. Book looked like walnut the closest.

If it is butternut… Did I just get a whole lot of firewood?


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## joshtank (Apr 5, 2010)

I'm in Florida…


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## Dusty56 (Apr 20, 2008)

count how many leaves are on the stem….look for "hair" on the leaves …look at the edges of the leaves for serrations.

http://www.hort.purdue.edu/ext/senior/fruits/blackwalnut5.htm


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## joshtank (Apr 5, 2010)

http://www.extension.purdue.edu/extmedia/FNR/FNR-280-W.pdf

Hmm butternut not found in Florida. I mean, anything is possible. Sawmill guy mentioned a few times how it was hard wood though, butternut is pretty soft.


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## joshtank (Apr 5, 2010)

Oh I just saw your link. Def black walnut. I was just expecting more heartwood. Wonder what factors make more or less..?


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## KPW (Dec 1, 2011)

Looking at the pic of the log it should have a lot more heartwood for that size black walnut. I took down some in maine n the 3" dia. stuff showed some heartwood. Just my HO.


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## a1Jim (Aug 9, 2008)

I don't think it's walnut either.

these might help

http://jrscience.wcp.muohio.edu/edge-farm/Woods/odnr-property_walk_Jan_20_2009/TOC.html

http://www.hobbithouseinc.com/personal/woodpics/


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## grizzman (May 10, 2009)

if those first few pictures of what you have on the web site to gave here, that is not walnut, i can guarantee you that is not walnut…im not sure what it is, but its not walnut..sorry to tell you that…but ive cut plenty of it down and that is not it….so you need to get some leaves and also the bark, your sawyer should know what it is, if he doesnt, hes a poor sawyer…good luck…


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## joshtank (Apr 5, 2010)

Looked around online more, butternut it is.. Now… To get more cut or not..

Anyone work with it..?


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## Dusty56 (Apr 20, 2008)

"Sawmill guy mentioned a few times how it was* hard wood* though, *butternut is pretty soft*."

Any tree that is deciduous is considered a "hardwood" , no matter how hard it actually is : )
No two species are the exact same hardness / density.
Butternut is also known as the Poorman's Walnut . I have used it in the past on a couple of small projects.The grain patterns are very similar to walnut and it can be stained to match it as well.


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## a1Jim (Aug 9, 2008)

Josh
You have to decide if you want to mill the rest or not. I guess if it were me I would try to determine what I was going to do with it, keep it for projects(that means you need storage for it)Sell it(how much per BF are your cost is verses the market value) Either way you will have to store it until it's dry(a year for every inch of thickness) or pay to have it kiln dried .


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## WDHLT15 (Aug 15, 2011)

You have hickory, walnut's cousin.


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## Cole23man (Nov 13, 2013)

do you know how many board feet you got out of that? did you seal the ends?


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## PaulDoug (Sep 26, 2013)

Could it be English walnut instead of black walnut? Actually it just doesn't look like walnut to me, but I'm certainly no expert in field.


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