Thread: Any Pecan milling experiences to share ?

Have none myself, but heaps done on the american aborists forums http://www.arboristsite.com/communit...-saw-mills.62/

As for the spalted stuff, why avoid it, I would have thought it was desireable for woodturning. And slabbing for woodturning, I would be doing 100mm min, even some larger 150 say.

Originally Posted by dai sensei

As for the spalted stuff, why avoid it, I would have thought it was desireable for woodturning. And slabbing for woodturning, I would be doing 100mm min, even some larger 150 say.

spalting to me at the moment seems like a big strange area I'm not sure about.

The first lot I got, didn't spalt well. blurry and muddy looking. I think it only looks good when the lines in it are quite distinct and sharp. I only got a little of that. And then it seemed to only come if it was allowed to sit around enough that it began to rot …And when it starts to rot, even if you've stopped it, it won't bend. Just sudden break in half sort of failures (for me at least)

Just read a bloke describing splating in Pecan as something that starts off looking quite ugly. Then with time it gets better and better. He said its ready when mushrooms are starting to sprout out of it ! …. I don't want a climate in my workspace that encourages mushroom growth. Mould on things I don't want to get mould on…..(?)

So maybe I could store it outside…but then coming into summer, and it being quite a hard timber, its just going to crackup all over the place, and all that milling work will end up being waste of time.

So, thinking my only option is to wax it then stack and fan it inside the shed. No mould….minimize cracking…but then I won't having any beautiful splating at all. Will it then just look like white camphor ? ... I'll end up getting people trying to sniff it, then telling me that its not good Camphor.

' Shiitte camphor around your parts Jake ? Doesn't even have a smell or any red colour Jake !… (<- I'm not really rolling my eyes. Really only feeling marginally sarcastic. And the blue colour implys I'm cold. Which is not correct)

anyway, I've also heard people say splating looks bad. Thats its mould. That it weakens wood.

(shrug smilie)….just an opinion. Not an expert on voicing an opinion on pecan splating. 2 cents worth.

anyway, I've also heard people say splating looks bad. Thats its mould. That it weakens wood.

Whether it looks good or not is subjective, but it's true that spalting is decay (fungus) and weakens the timber. This doesn't necessarily matter if it's not being used for structural purposes, but I wouldn't use spalted timber anywhere you needed strength. For decorative stuff, no worries.

I think your right. Generally it could be put into furniture, like you say, where there's no load. Like say a panel in a cabinet. Feel I could make exceptions to that as long as theres some kind of strength test for that particular piece.

Trying to get splating after milling yourself seems very hit and miss. Suppose that makes it special when its used.

cheers
Jake

I cut some up a few years back at Coffs Harbour and it had some serious movement in it at 3" thick Plumbers wood (big cracks!)

A large branch off the same tree that the old man cut for me previously was left standing against the back of the shed for about six months until I visited - had some very nice spalting in the bottom end but the cracking was so bad I couldn't get much out of it worth using

cheers mate.

The stuffs looking a bit tempremental.

I'll have to be careful with it.

ta.