I have on opportunity to get a xxxtload -3500 bdft of spruce, 8/4 x 8 x 16, air dried 4+ years. All for basically bupkis.
Never used any spruce. How is it to work with?
What have you used it for?
BB
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If it is Sticka Spruce it is great for sound boards and such.
Tons of info out on the net for spruce.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2210/2083884377_1f44197db3.jpg
sitka spruce is highly prized not only is it great for musical instuments it can be used for building airplanes. It's light, strong, and easily carved and worked..
Blue spruce etc. is fairly worthless, valid only for building houses etc.. but it lacks the strength of douglas fir etc. So it's marginal for even that application.. (another words don't plan on building any mansions with it)
Now don't let that make you avoid it completely There are many things that can be made with spruce which don't require massive strength or the fine grain of a hardwood..
Just be aware that spruce is not good outside since it rots easily..
Edited 7/4/2009 8:06 am ET by frenchy
Frenchy and Will,It's Sitka. that would be a lot of fiddles! and we have the Spruce Goose just down the road and I think one of those is enough. It's just such a beeuutifool stack, it's hard to resist :)BB
boilerbay
sitka is the preferred wood for the tops on most acoustic guitars and other instruments. I'd look into how to turn your find into suitable lumber for luthiers and then you might find a good market for it.
I envy you.. I want to buy enough sitka spruce to build my own plane (A Pitts S2) so someday I intend to head your way (probably many years from now) Let me know if you sytill have it and I'll bring you some of my local hardwood to trade <grin>
bb,
I cut parts for a few guys building airplanes over the years .
John , my thought on this stack of wood depending on the quality of the logs and lumber may be best suited for oars and paddles for kayak and boating uses . I don't really know much about Spruce from experience only cut some and have read about the properties .
Besides Airplanes ,
It's strength vs weight factor is high often used for oars and such , so I don't know how we could really say Spruce is not good outside .
Ash , Spruce , Fir , Koa are a few of the most common woods for paddles and oars . Koa has an extremely high flotation as far as the woods go.
now you know the rest of the story
happy 4th
regards dusty , and hot in the valley
Hey young fella,
Around here straight spruce are prized for flagpoles.
Not concerned about my age 1 iota,Bob @ Kidderville Acres
A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!
Old Timer ,
So , I suppose those flag poles are out side , huh ?
What is the best finish for these flag poles uncle Bob ??
Did you start the BBQ yet?
young and dusty
dusty,
The wife has been on a rampage to get the outdoor fireplace going. Mother Nature has seen fit to grace us with random scattered showers all day long. At one point it was amusing watching her but it has become, well something I don't talk about. I scrambled up the stairs once to check on the drywall mud.
:-)
Most if not all spruce flagpoles around here have the end(s) sealed with epoxy and are lacquered, white of course. The twin posts that hold them are usually made from cedar and rather than go through all the shenanigans of trying to keep them from rotting we replace them when necessary.
Not unusual to have a flag raising party after replacing the posts. Put a grille out front and start working on it and the next thing you know neighbors start appearing.
HAPPY JULY FOURTH!
Regards,Bob @ Kidderville Acres
A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!
Dusty,Hadn't thought of oars. Now there's a cottage industry. If it was Port Orford Cedar I would think about a boat!
Was in the valley yesterday - hot 93. took 4 hours to get back because all of Portland wanted to come to my house. 66 with a nice off shore breeze here. Something in between would be good.
Happy 4th to you too.John
Port Orford Cedar ! WOW Wish I had a lot of that! As to boats.. I made one long ago from straight grained Fir. Old growth I would assume because the grain was so tight.
I sold the boat long ago and as far as I know it is still 'in the water' and at least useable. Made mostly with hand tools from Craftsman (Sears). I really like working that wood! But I was just a very young adult (OK, I'm still a kid at heart). The boat was all Fir except for white oak 'runners' for the engine mounts and prop shaft housing. Direct drive. Actually the direct drive worked very well because that engine idled very well.. Made a very nice Ski Boat!
I 'think' the engine was a Rover V8. The engine I got for free. A boyhood friend was into drag racing and he moved onto bigger engines.
In the NW (Oregon & Washington)and in British Columbia, Spruce of all types is a really common wood. It is generly logged then headed to the mill and cut into dimensional lumber. When we buy 2 X's for framing, you look at the grade stamp chance are it will say SPF otherwise called Spruce, Pine, Fir.
I can't begin to tell you how many cords of Spruce we have burnt as firewood.
Sad but, True!!
Taigert
I can't begin to tell you how many cords of Spruce we have burnt as firewood.
Sad but, True!!
BUT I think the Trees had no problems keeping you folks warm!
Since it is Sitka, doesn't the decision boil (word chosen carefully) down to whether you have space to store it properly? For an initial outlay of almost nothing, even building a shed for it might easily make sense. Build the shed half the size it needs to be, though, so you can send the rest of the wood to me. ;-)
Since its Sitka, if it is quartersawn, you can resaw it into a bunch of bookmatched sets, 1/4" thick x 8" x 30" and eBay it as guitar tops. Especially if the growth rings are 15+ to the inch.
As for other uses, FWW had a frame and panel box a number of years ago that used Japanese hemlock (softwood, I'm betting). I would think about using it as the panels in various frame and panels, maybe a large tansu installation?
Chris
a hobbyist's journey
I have used a lot of Sitka spruce for a variety of projects around the house: open shelving for the kitchen, stair treads to the loft with a nice wane edge, new vanity tops for two bath vanities.
Vanity tops covered with several coats of wipe on poly. Stair treads with varathane. I think I had a coat of Watco natural before anything else to warm up the color just a bit. The wood is beautiful, easy to work, lots of nice streaks of salmon colors.
After a year the stair treads are looking fine, despite being a relatively soft wood. The vanity tops have been on for only a couple of months and we try to be careful about not letting water pool on top. I will likely put a few more coats of wipe on poly just to give more protection.
I have a bunch more in 2" x 12" x 10-12' all kiln dried. I have plans to use some for a trestle table for the dining room.
all of it came to me from salvage logging of dead trees killed by spruce bark beetle on the kenai peninsula in Alaska. Some of it is really clear with 25+ rings to the inch. Love it.
go for the spruce and enjoy it.
Randy
Since it's 2 0r better clear, old growth, other than oars:), I might use some for a few long country tables and for my daughters new love for southwestern "rustic" furniture but as for the rest, it's way too much for me so I may send it on to my future Son-in law for their house additions.Thanks allBoiler
The wood makes beautiful decks and pergolas and such also .
I made some large raised panel doors and cabinet faces and fronts out of it.
d
Dusty,Have does it handle our weather? re: pergolas. Getttin to old for on going outside maintenance. Better stuff to do.(fish to be got- might even get involved in community theater
-stage not acting)BoilWinding it down on the coast
John ,
Cedar is commonly used for decks fences pergolas and many exterior projects here in the PNW . Typically the wood is allowed to naturally turn Grey from oxidation and UV rays .Much gets clear coated and stain is most common .
The wood holds up average but the finish is less durable with the Salt air you have by the coast , so the very best exterior finish you can afford will be the lowest maintenance imo .
dusty , headed towards Crater Lake for some Trout fishing and mountain time
Boil (?),
Man you are slowin down. Yur down to just Boil.
Hey man, eat some wheaties or sumpin. I just stacked 3 cord of firewood today, painted the bedroom and went fishin for brook trout. Tink (the guy I bought the firewood from) just dropped off another 1/2 cord in his pickup. He worked all day, came home and split and loaded the 1/2 cord hisself, he's 70. Me I'm just 63.
For gawd sakes don't try to keep up with that young fella dusty.
:-)
Regards,Bob @ Kidderville Acres
A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!
Bob, Sometines it's just
perk...
B
LOL at "perk".If you slow down too much, we'll have to call you Luke (or, Mr. Warm). ;-)
Edited 7/28/2009 5:23 pm by RalphBarker
came home and split and loaded the 1/2 cord hisself, he's 70. Me I'm just 63.
I in-between! both of you.. My Mother is about 90 years old and calls on ocasion.. To piss me off. I still love her..
Hey wait a minute ,
It was pushing 110° here yesterday , since 1978 that is as warm no as hot as I care to recall .
I slowed down after about 1:30 yesterday , no wood splitting or cord stacking , no it was a float in the pool then out of the sun for this lad .
regards dusty, keep your dry side up
bb let's make some super paddles for Kayaks and Canoes with that Spruce , my son the Kayaker can be the tester , the river is calling us
dusty,
Now slow down man, yer gonna give yesef a hawt attak. Seventeen days to respond! It's ok, just go back out to the pool and cool down.
Oh sorry, didn't mean to wake ye.
So, whatcha been up to? Did you catch any fish on yer trip? Careful with any fishy pics, Shoe may be watchin.
:-)
Regards,Bob @ Kidderville Acres
A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!
John ,
I talked to a gentleman today that will be building 3 airplanes .
I told him about your Spruce ,, he was interested especially air dried .
Will you have any for sale ?
contact me if you would like
regards dusty
Dusty,I'm still thinking on it but it's still at the sawyer. I'll see him later this week and see how it looks. I've only looked at the top 6 - 10 boards but it was good straight wood, not a lot of character, just good and straight. For me, it was free but I'll ask him what he wants for it, if he were going to sell it. Although I have come up with some building addition uses it may still be too much for me, - even if he stores it for free -- to many paddles/oars :)
John
It's light, strong, and weathers OK. It makes good trim for lightweight boats like canoes. If it's long enough (18-20') for one piece canoe gunwales it could be very desirable.
Almost long enough but not quite. I'm sure it might be ok for canoes, but here they only buy Port Orford built or stitched glass. I'll keep it in mind though.Boiler
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