Wood identification
- Thread starter hunts777
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Chrispy
Established Member
Not so hot on softwoods but would hazard to say Douglas fir with a nice creosote finish ie sleeper.
RobinBHM
Established Member
A slow grown softwood. The tightness of the ring would imply it was grown in a cold country, and /or is a slow growing species.
Impossible to tell which softwood, maybe doug fir, larch, pine etc.
A boxed heart beam
Impossible to tell which softwood, maybe doug fir, larch, pine etc.
A boxed heart beam
Chrispy
Established Member
Boxed heart just means that it has been cut around the centre of the tree in a balanced way, in practice the saw Mill has cut off the good clear outer wood to produce good grade boards and left the early growth with all its knots to be used as construction timber.
RobinBHM
Established Member
A good quality pine or maybe D. Fir, I'd think. The first photo should be required viewing for everyone who thinks they can cut and season their own timber - if you leave the heart in, you get cracks like that. That is why people advise to cut the logs in half when felled.
It also shows well why if reusing you should treat cut ends of timber treated with preservative - see how shallow the absorption is.
It also shows well why if reusing you should treat cut ends of timber treated with preservative - see how shallow the absorption is.
adidat
I will not buy anymore tools...
Certainly a useful piece of timber and at roughly 7.3 cubic feet of timber some lump!
The issue you will have is working with it, unless you just want to look at it in its current state then you will need to figure out a way of cutting it. A large band resaw would plank this in minutes.
Maybe approach a local timber yard, but be prepared for rejection as they may have reservations due to the likely hood of metal in it.
Addidat
The issue you will have is working with it, unless you just want to look at it in its current state then you will need to figure out a way of cutting it. A large band resaw would plank this in minutes.
Maybe approach a local timber yard, but be prepared for rejection as they may have reservations due to the likely hood of metal in it.
Addidat
3 metres would make four five foot lintels (or two ten foot ones, obviously). Stick it in the local paper for £n? Have you any architectural salvage yards around you? You might get something for it. As above you'll be lucky to find anyone to saw it because of the likelihood of screwing an expensive blade. if I had it and I had space I'd just put it away and wait for the use to arise. 
Cant really tell from the cross section, but my immediate reaction was pitch pine (Pinus strobus?) which was used extensively for beams and for finer work in Victorian times. It has that stark contrast between summer and winter growth. Also smells gorgeous when being worked. Used a lot for repairing/upgrading daughter's house in Lancashire a couple of decades back.
I doubt it would have been treated if it were pitch pine, it would be unnecessary.
True, but has it actually been TREATED, or is that just discolouration from water ingress? (I don't know!)
