Table build

UKworkshop.co.uk

Help Support UKworkshop.co.uk:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

FatmanG

Established Member
Joined
19 Nov 2019
Messages
316
Reaction score
23
Location
Leeds
I bought this lump of wood I have no idea what it is. I've had it 3 months inside and it's cupped badly.
I've started the long process of flattening any help identifying would be great. I'm told it's Sycamore.
Cheers FG
 

Attachments

  • 20200515_182146.jpg
    20200515_182146.jpg
    970.2 KB · Views: 292
  • 20200515_182153.jpg
    20200515_182153.jpg
    908.5 KB · Views: 292
  • 20200515_182207.jpg
    20200515_182207.jpg
    868 KB · Views: 292
I forgot to add there is a big hole where I had to dig out a big nail (2nd pic)
 
It could be sycamore, and the middle picture shows spalting. What sort of table are you proposing, because spalted timber isn't very robust, and sycamore isn't very robust to start with, never mind the spalting. Fine for a side table, but not for a dining table for 10.
 
Beech, almost certainly. Bear in mind I seldom try to help woodworking forum users identify a timber species from their photographs, usually because of such things as poorly focused image(s), low image resolution, their smallness, inaccurate colour rendition, and so on. Your images do rather illustrate those fault categories, but the flecking in this image of yours is pretty distinctive, along with some evidence of early stage spalting, this being quite a common thing in beech. Slainte.

file.php
 
beech, agreed. I've learned this week - partly from richard - that english sycamore doesn't have those prominent pores (not so much pores, but the dark marks) and looks more like our hard maple over here.

https://i.imgur.com/C6WgYDv.jpg (I could do a guess for money on this piece of wood about whether it's English sycamore or maple, and I think if i took 10% as the house, I'd be the only one who would win in the long term).

It's english sycamore.

If someone so much as farts around beech before it dries, it will mold, spalt or change color one way or another - like that.

But then again, the same is true of the american sycamore here.

I don't know which wood is more poorly behaved but both can be very pretty sawn right.
 
Thanks everyone the consensus is beech. It's 63lx24wx21/4"thick I'm going to make a coffee table Mike g so hopefully it will be up to the job
Blackswanwòod
Good to be back and alive my friend. .
 
Of all the things to make, I think that tables are my favourite.

What are your plans for this one? What are you doing for legs?
 
Back
Top