Inspire me : Lots of recently felled tree bits salvaged!

[Homerjh]

Hi all, recently there has been a lot of felled trees for an upcoming new bridge, and as a result the place looks bare

anyhow, as the weather was nice i took a walk and found a lot of wood that has not been chipped and just left (the area was cut a few weeks ago), and as it was healthy (ie not cut due to poor condition) thought i would give it a good home.

So i now have a load of wood that i don't really have a project for!

As the wood was free, i would like to use it for something that may sell on ebay, so thinking the generic tealight holder or similar.

the larger bits can be cut across and the larger have 2 or 3, the smaller ones maybe 1 ont he edge and make small stand with the scroll saw.

so any tips on how to finish it off (can the bark be left?) and also what forstner bit size is needed?

http://imgur.com/a/GnBEx

the wood will either be sawn by hand, or with the mitre saw, and may experiment with different cut angles..

 

[Sheffield Tony]

As the wood was free

Technically speaking it sounds to me like "stolen" is the word you are looking for :wink:

 

[Homerjh]

Legally stalemate

i didn't trespass to obtain, it was on a public path and the work that was being done has long since been completed, therefore abandoned, i was just removing it to stop someone tripping over them as the contractors failed to clear them appropriately

However if i did take a saw to the trees, THAT could possibly be frowned upon

Anyhow enough about the Stolen Wood, what can i do!

 

[Sheffield Tony]

It does distress me to see so much good useable wood left to rot. Walked past some really nice stuff yesterday in fact. However, it remains the case that, even if you can get to it from a public right of way, even if it looks discarded to you, it is not your tree.

My tree surgeon friend has problems with this all the time. Just because it grows on trees, people think that they can help themselves to wood. The only way to stop it walking is to leave it in bits too heavy to lift, and even that is no guarantee. I watched a wind blown tree in a layby on by way to work slowly disappear. A couple of guys with a chainsaw and a trailer had the best of it. Then the bigger branch wood went. Now there's just the bit bridging the stream and some brash left.

 

[Baldhead]

Reminds me of the time I was bagging up some leaf mould that had been rotting for a year or two next to a council car park in the woods, a council groundsman wasn't to happy when he saw me filling several bags, "it stinks" says I, "I'm doing you a favour by clearing it up!!!", anyhow to cut a long story short, he said he wouldn't report it to the local bobby if I emptied the bags if had just filled, "not a problem" I said, it's a good job he didn't catch me until the third car load, it made a lovely base for my late fathers leek bed!!!

Baldhead

 

[gregmcateer]

Sorry - double-posted

 

[gregmcateer]

Technically speaking it sounds to me like "stolen" is the word you are looking for :wink:

I prefer re-homed / re-used / recycled / or, (a rather nausea-inducing phrase I saw in my good lady's home decor mag, describing a pallet with four castors attached claiming to be a coffee table - a snip at £194!!), 're-purposed'

In all seriousness, I had been lead to believe that discarded wood on public land can be freely foraged, as long as no damage occurs.

Any land-lawyers out there know for sure?

 

[Homerjh]

its in the cellar now, and if nothing comes of it there are plenty of people i know with open fires...

 

[Grahamshed]

So when I do my public spirited locality cleanup by picking up rubbish in the street I am technically stealing ?
Dpnt think so.

 

[carlb40]

One thing to remember is that some wood is often left behind for conservation reasions. Without branches / logs etc left behind it effects the local wildlife.

 

[katellwood]

If its the same as say mushroom picking on common land if you pick them to consume yourself its not theft however if you pick them to sell then its theft
From that I would surmise that if you are going to sell the wood when you have done what you are going to do to it (turn it etc) then its theft, if you are going to turn it for an item for yourself then its not theft

 

[Sheffield Tony]

I presume that this was not on common land. Even of the tree fell on to a public right of way or common land, it no more becomes fair game than a car parked on a public road does - ownership Iis not determined by where somthing is left ! To argue that it was discarded and thus fair game, I believe you would be expected to have made reasonable effort to determine that - like asking the land owner.

 

[tool-me-up]

I used to work as a countryside warden ( or countryside technician as they decided to call it) for a few years and we often felled trees chopped them up and left them ON PURPOSE!
The idea being that over time they moss- up start to grow different fungus and fauna that otherwise wouldn't grow if left standing, some where invasive species, some dying, some just need thinning out but the wood always went to use.

The "discarded" logs provide shelter and homes for lots of small animals ( even if its just something for them to hide behind before crossing the path) and are a permanent home to hundreds of species of insects and crawlies.
The crawlies, do their thing like pollinate other fauna, eat certain fauna, provide food for birds ( a lot of the smaller birds that are getting rare only eat certain types of insects ), fallen logs are also a good home for certain moths and butterflies to lay their eggs in.

We also used to use the branches and twigs to build "bug houses " which looks like a big pile of sticks and leaves but actually can home literally 1000's of bugs, a lot of small animals, mammals, provide grouse and other ground birds places to hide and sometimes even nest.

So you my friend owe us one very good WIP with lots of piccies :lol:

 

[Bluekingfisher]

I wouldn't worry to much about the "theft" aspect. I think the authorities and cops are a little too bust to be worrying about some debris being cleared from a footpath.

Next time you come across some left overs, keep it to yourself, just mention that you have some wood in need of projecting :roll:

 

[Grahamshed]

Next time you come across some left overs, keep it to yourself, just mention that you have some wood in need of projecting :roll:

Oh, I don't think he will be bothering to tell us about it again.

 

[Homerjh]

lol, well any projects i have will be featuring it for years now so no need to mention the source

found a 35mm forstner hole doesnt fit a tealight (biggest i had), good job the wood was free #-o and updated the album http://imgur.com/a/GnBEx with some shots, as i said, not perfect but smooth as anything and a nice finish IMO on the end, must be because it was cut and left in the air for a while.

Will be taking a look at the Ikea glass holders (12 for £2) and see if these can be used for any future work with wood after reviewing forums and suchlike!

Also i just found a really good source of free wood, all cut up and loads of different lengths, just need to park up behind B&Q, skip over the 8ft fence and don't forget your running shoes... :lol:

 

[Noggsy]

Homer, I wouldn't worry about the wood you've currently got. But the B and Q stuff....

 

[Sheffield Tony]

Sorry to Homerjh for going off at a tangent on my hobby horse. I'm sure nobody will miss the bits you have there

Good to have done a trial piece even if your hole is too small for a tea light. One possible problem you may have is that fairly fresh cut wood left in the round might develop radial splits as it tries - it shrinks more around the circumference than along the radius, so where the base is still solid it might crack. So, a good use for the one you have already would be to bring it in to the warm and see what happens in a week, before you make more ! Depending on the wood, it may be fine.

If you do have trouble with splitting - one neat trick is the shrink pot. If you've not heard of it, google will help You drill the hole all way through, and put a disk of seasoned wood in the bottom of the hole as a base - the outer part then shrinks as it dries to close up and grip the base in place.

 

[Homerjh]

nice idea, will leave it on the sunny window sill to speed it along

thanks

 

[Noggsy]

Homer, I've got an adjustable bit if you want to try that out?