Maple question

[OconeeDan]

I found this dead maple.  Didn't look like anything special until the bark started falling off.  Didn't take me long to get a chainsaw so I can check it out better.
Most of the tree is lumpy like this.  Some spalting going on too.
Not burl, not curl, not birdseye...what would you call it?
When you take a slice and sand it smooth, lots of round "eyes" for lack of a better word.
It will likely need dyeing to bring it out.
Thanks, Dan
 
 

[Lewis Brookshire III]

Very cool find!!

[robtattoo]

I'd call it birdseye, myself.

Very, very pretty  :D

[kbaknife]

That's pretty cool!
I don't know much about it, but I do know that you should NOT cut it into scales!!
Cut it into oversized blocks - waaaaaaaaaaay - oversized.
Dip the ends in melted wax/parafin, and put them away to dry for a looooooooooong time.
Them I'd send them out and have them stabilized.
Nice find, Dan.

[OconeeDan]

Karl, I would call you but maybe your information would be of some help to everyone.

Why oversize, to dry?  this stuff is long dead and parts are getting spongy.  Other parts are pretty solid.  Graveyard dead.

Also, if I have it stabilized, I can't dye it afterward, correct?  What if I soak in dye/stain, let it dry well, THEN have it stabilized?  This stuff should soak it up like a sponge.

There is some neat wood here that will make a nice knife handle.

For what it is worth, I have found good results from alcohol based dyes in maple, found from guitar making websites.  My bow came out looking like a guitar!!!

Dan

[chiger]

Hey Dan,

I'm not Karl, but I can try and take a swing at telling ya why over sized and why dry.  

Over sized because the wood will split and crack as it dries.  Not to mention that the splayed part or decay as lumber inspectors call it is already unsound.  By the time it dries, you will need some overstock to get to material sound enough to make a usable handle.

By the way, all wood is dead!  It's kind of interesting.  The only part of a tree that is actually alive and growing is the cambium layer just below the bark.  Every thing else is dead.  It's funny, a tree can be 4 feet thick and the only thing that's actually alive is a 1/8" ring around the outside.  The other stuff is just hangin' around waiting to be lumber. ;~)

Ok, back to why dry it before you send it to be stabilized?  Because it is wet!  And the stabilizing process doesn't remove or replace moisture, just replaces voids in the cell structure.  

Unless the wood is in a desert or Antarctica where the ambient moisture content of the air is like 12%, the wood will be at least 28-30% at the driest part of the year in most of America.  Need to get out as much moisture as you can before you send it off to give the stabilizer more voids to fill and avoid trapping in water.  

Oh, and I'd almost call it quilted maple, but not exactly.  I've seen that come across my grading chain many times.  Usually occurs around a branch fork where the bark collar was damaged for some reason I don't understand.  Usually all black, wet and nasty down to the heart.  Yuck!  

It's cool looking stuff though.  Burl in maple really adds a lot of character to what is an otherwise pretty straight forward wood.

[OconeeDan]

Thank you Chigeer!
You explained a lot.
The whole tree is like that, I don't know why.  Yes, it does resemble quilted maple.
One more question, it will need to be dyed/stained to bring out the character.  So I guess I can't get it stabalized?  If so, I'll have to rely on my 2 part epoxy from Rot Doctor, it has worked well in the past. Very thin and soaks into wood completely.
Dan

[skullworks]

I don't see why you couldn't dye it and get it stabilized. I see and use lots of dyed maple that is stabilized.

[chiger]

Skully may be right Dan.

Just keep in mind that the stabilizer is going to darken the color of what ever color you use.  I seem to remember someone posting a splayed maple hunter a while back that you can check out.    Came out pretty dark.  So you'll need to account for how it will darken and use a lighter/brighter color than you want as a finished color.

The other thing you can do is check with who ever is doing your stabilizing.  They may offer colorizing as part of the service.  I've never used it, but I've seen it done.  So I'm sure it can be.

I'd say trying to dye the stuff after it's been stabilized will take some pretty sophisticated chemicals since the stabilizer is a hardener that's forced into every void in the wood.  Kind of like staining the plexy glass in a storm door.  Not easy to deep stain.

[OconeeDan]

Thanks!