# Chestnut wood



## 12strings (Nov 15, 2011)

Apparently, someone decided to plant a chestnut tree in our yard back when our house was built. Dumb, in my opinion, since it renders half the yard a mine-field of razor sharp spiny balls lying everywhere! Anyway, We'd like to have it taken down so it's safe to walk barefoot…we have 2 young children.

So…When we have it cut downShould I attempt to salvage some of this lumber? Is it good for building things? I haven't heard much about people using chestnut for projects. The trunk is probably 2 feet in diameter, maybe 2.5 near the bottom… no branches untill you get about 12 -15 feet up.

Also, If I decide I don't want it, is it valuable, would a lumber-yard pay me for it?


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## 12strings (Nov 15, 2011)

Also, I'm only guessing it is a chestnut from pictures of the spiny balls I found online…It might be something else…any ideas? (The balls are much sharper than those found on a Gum tree)


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## chrisstef (Mar 3, 2010)

Well its probably not an American Chestnut tree, i believe that there are on 12 remaining amercian chestnuts in north america. You might have some sort of hybrid chestnut, but if it is indeed and american chestnut … wow that would be amazing.

American chestnut was very abundant in early amerciana, prior to 1910 or so, then the chestnut blight was introduced to this conuntry and it wiped out almost every last one. You can still plant them but they will only grow to about 6"-8" in diameter before the blight gets em. Chestnut was used for framing lumber and is fairly similar to oak in looks. Reclaimed chestnut goes for a good sum of money, $12/ft -ish.

Id urge you to do some more investigation on the tree you have in your yard. With a few pics some of the folks around here could probably identify the tree.


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## Sirgreggins (Apr 12, 2012)

Horse chestnuts are crazy. The spikey ball is nothing to mess with. My older brother used to throw them at me. I'm a newbie wood worker so i say salvage whatever wood you can. let it dry out for a good long time


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## Doss (Mar 14, 2012)

I'm going to guess a sweetgum since no one else is 

They have these things which cover the ground (I have this tree in my backyard and it drops hundreds of these things):










Otherwise, if it's not those, it's probably a chestnut of some sort.


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## Oldtool (May 27, 2012)

If it is chestnut, it's worth a good deal of money. Here in Pennsylvania there are saw mills that would love to take that off your hands, and you would be handsomely reimbursed.
Golden rule number 23, never let go of any wood in your possession, unless of course you are paid enough for it so as to be able to purchase plenty of the type you prefer.


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## bent (May 9, 2008)

buckeyes have a spikey nut that looks simiar to chestnuts. have you ever opened one up?


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## Finn (May 26, 2010)

"Liquidambar" is another tree with those kind of spikey fruits.


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## Milo (Apr 24, 2009)

Can you post a picture of the tree and the nuts?

If it IS a chestnut, I will sacrificially offer my time and talents to come to your yard an *meticulous* remove it for you! Won't cost you a sent, and you won't have to worry about A THING!


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## Chrrriiis (May 24, 2012)

Traditional chestnuts aren't so spikey as furry i think, with smaller more densly packed spines than those in the photo.


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## 12strings (Nov 15, 2011)

After more online research and leaf comparisons, Here's what I know:

-It's not a Sweetgum or horsechestnut, it's definitely some kind of chestnut,
-the outer burs are razor sharp, with sometimes multiple smal nuts inside…I haven't found any with what look to be good quality nuts, they are all somewhat smashed and seemed pretty small. The nuts I found were kind of fuzzy, didn't look good for eating. 
-The tree is at least 30-40ft tall (Not a good estimator, probably about 15 feet higher than the peak of my one-story house. Probalby 18-20 inches diameter at the bottom.
-The stems have some tiny white bumps on them right now, as well as long 3-4 inch bud-type things extending from the twigs among the regular leaves. 
-Right now I'm leaning toward either chinese chestnut, or some chinese-american hybrid.

Do you think a local lumber yard would come get it? I know of two in my area.


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## bluekingfisher (Mar 30, 2010)

Chestnut trees are abundant here in the UK, both Horse chestnut and seet chestnut. looking at the fruits it is not a Horse chestnut (we used to play conkers with the hard bean type nut encased in the spiney husk), it could be a sweet chestnut though.

The tanins in the timber corrode iron tools, so don't leave you tools without cleaning them off before you put them away. The timbner It looks similar to oak, I actually think it looks better because of the colour variations, dark, yellows, light/dark browns with wilder grain patterns

*Horse chestnut*http://www.google.co.uk/images?hl=en&q=horse%20chestnut&gbv=2&gs_l=hp.1.0.0l10.2312.5531.0.8375.14.9.0.5.5.0.125.611.2j4.6.0...0.0.To2Efkcz7iI&sa=X&oi=image_result_group

*Sweet chestnut*http://www.google.co.uk/images?q=sweet+chestnut&hl=en&gbv=2&gs_l=hp.1.0.0l10.2312.5531.0.8375.14.9.0.5.5.0.125.611.2j4.6.0...0.0.To2Efkcz7iI&oq=sweet+chestnut&aq=0&aqi=g10&aql=


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## Howie (May 25, 2010)

Your county extension agent could probably have someone come over and positively I>D> the tree. They could also tell you if anyone would be interested in buying it. If it is a true Chestnut(not likely) it would be valuable.


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## 12strings (Nov 15, 2011)

I'm assuming by "true" chestnut, you mean american…if so you are right, it seems they are very rare…I'm pretty confident now that it is some kind of chestnut, either Chinese, european, or hybrid. Definitly not Horsechestnut.

I e-mailed one lumber mill, so we'll see what they say.


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## Howie (May 25, 2010)

Yes 12, you are correct I meant American. Should have clarified that.
What kind of 12 string you got?


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## davidroberts (Nov 8, 2008)

what Howie said. Your local agent should know immediately. Or send a sample leaf or two and fruit to your State University College of Agricultural Science, or Forestry. Free and accurate identification.


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## chrisstef (Mar 3, 2010)

I did some poking around and there are 27 mature american chestnuts in the us and they are all owned by the government. Removal of an american chesnut can earn hefty fines too. Id call the local agricultural atation and have them come out to take a peek. You got me interested 12stringer.


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## MichaelR (Oct 1, 2011)

Before you cut it down have it positively identified. If it's native American Chestnut and healthy it's worth an awful lot from a scientific standpoint. I'll never see large stands of Chestnut but I would like for my grandchildren to have access to that lumber.

http://www.acf.org/find_a_tree.php


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## derosa (Aug 21, 2010)

Chrisstef- is the government just claiming ownership of all american chestnuts or are all the known on government land?
A local here has a chestnut tree that has been hit with the blight badly enough that it should now come down. He believes that he will get one last load of chestnuts off of it though. He's already agreed to turn over a bag of chestnuts for replanting, I figure for it to have made it this long it must have some degree of resistance and is worth planting the nuts. A local conservation group will be getting most of them for this purpose. I hope some of the wood will be useable when it comes down but I don't know what the cankers do to the quality of the trunk. If anything can be salvaged I'll be doing so even if it is just some turning pieces.


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## 12strings (Nov 15, 2011)

I will probably need some time to figure out exactly what I have, but I will update you all, even if it's a few weeks or more…

btw, I play a yamaha 12string guitar, an Ibanez Acoustic 6-string, congas, egg-shakers, piano, euphonium, and 6 irish tin-whistles…


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## chrisstef (Mar 3, 2010)

derosa - im pretty sure they claim ownership wherever they are standing, i think i got my info off of wood web, im gonna do a little hunting. I will admit it was internet info so reliability is as such.


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## Milo (Apr 24, 2009)

Absolutely make sure you save as much of the fruit from that tree as you can. I blight resistant chestnut is worth it's weight in gold to researchers.


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## WDHLT15 (Aug 15, 2011)

If the leaves are fuzzy on the bottom, it is chinese chestnut. I don't suspect there is a market for it, especially as it is a yard tree, and most sawmills will not buy a yard tree because they always have metal in them. You could take it to someone with a portable sawmill and have them saw it up for you.


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## Doss (Mar 14, 2012)

Or they could take the sawmill to you. Just be ready to pay if they hit metal and damage a blade.

It's why I have a metal detector in my toolkit. 180 link .063 chain isn't cheap to replace.


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