Thread: Cypress Pine - Drying methods?

Cypress is more stable than others, but I dry in exactly the same way as any other timber. Cut as small as possible for future use, seal ends and stack properly to dry with suitable stickers etc

On other important thing is to split them down the middle, through the heart to to minimise star shakes.

thanks for the comments......i'll get onto it ASAP

Cypress gets brittle at low M/C's. When running it for flooring we tend to mould green off saw as otherwise it has a propensity to chip out. Shrinkage rates are low (2.5% radial, 3% tangental) so it's possible to do that. I don't know about regular planing however suspect it would be inclined to chip out along the arris when dressed if dry.
It also develops fine surface checking on the dressed surfaces so it's best to slow the drying rate down as much as possible during the initial stages of drying in hot weather. Stack under cover, use thinner stickers when stripping out, seal the ends, try and reduce airflow through the stacks, etc etc. Once the moisture level drops it should be fine though.

Originally Posted by John.G

Cypress gets brittle at low M/C's. When running it for flooring we tend to mould green off saw as otherwise it has a propensity to chip out. Shrinkage rates are low (2.5% radial, 3% tangental) so it's possible to do that. I don't know about regular planing however suspect it would be inclined to chip out along the arris when dressed if dry.
It also develops fine surface checking on the dressed surfaces so it's best to slow the drying rate down as much as possible during the initial stages of drying in hot weather. Stack under cover, use thinner stickers when stripping out, seal the ends, try and reduce airflow through the stacks, etc etc. Once the moisture level drops it should be fine though.

many thanks John

Originally Posted by dai sensei

Cypress is more stable than others, but I dry in exactly the same way as any other timber. Cut as small as possible for future use, seal ends and stack properly to dry with suitable stickers etc

Hi folks can someone please tell me what are stickers

Stickers are the lengths of timber used to separate the layers in stacked timber. They
allow air flow around the stack.

About 20mm wide and 12-15mm tick is enough. With those length logs one either end
and 2 more evenly spaced between them will do the job.

Very helpful information there and quite timely as I was going to ask the same thing last night regarding drying Camphor Laurel and Pepper tree wood. I intended to cut it insitu with a chainsaw into slabs 25 - 50 mm thick then dry it undercover with stickers so on the right track. One question - What kind of sealer do I use to seal the ends. The timber is to be used for lure making and eventually cut into 50 - 80 mm lengths by 25 mm thick for hand carving. Cheers Pat.

Just found this thread and see you haven't had an answer. I'm not expert but can give some starting information if you still need it. End grain sealers seem to come in different types and I have used a wax based one (made by Mobil I think) many years ago that worked well drying a big stick of NSW Rosewood (200 x 200 x 4m). It took years. I haven't had to dry anything for 25 years but have just been gifted a section of a River Blue Gum log. Eucalyptus teretecornis that is. So have done some searches and found that Carba-Tec sell an end grain sealer that sounds similar to the type of sealer I used years ago. I haven't tried it but am going to make the trek across Brisbane to purchase some and try it out.

Commercial millers talk about using paint but I don't know what types. I am sure that other forum members will have experience on end grain sealers that they can share.

When I went past the Timber Mill in Strahan I thought I spyed an electric frypan full of beeswax, that I figured they were using to seal the ends of some of the slabs etc that they were cutting out.... Others may know more though. I'll have some Cypress to dry out soon too.