What type of log is this?

[Corley5]

Popple without a doubt  ;D

[JohnW]

I cut a couple logs that looked just exactly like that a couple years ago.  It would be crazy if it's not bass wood because that's the reason I cut it.  A wood carver guy I know was looking for  was looking for some bass wood.  These trees were blown down on my Dad's farm in Norther Indiana.  The dead leaves looked like bass.  I'll have to check with the wood cutter guy, and look at the remaining tress at my Dad's.  I know, I have no way to confirm they're the same trees as in these pictures.

I don't really see any aspen around here, or up north except quaking aspen.  Maybe there's a few trees I just don't notice.  Any way, I'll be interested to see if there's any conclusion here.

Later, and sorry to ramble so.

[Jeff]

 say_what

The dead leaves looked like bass.

[SwampDonkey]

Sounds logical to me. :D :D

[Jeff]

I came across a guy one time that was told and actually made to believe that Basswood was called Basswood because of the smell.

[SwampDonkey]

You meet all kinds in this business.  ;D

[JohnW]

Of course I don't mean the leaves looked like fish -- I mean they looked like basswood leaves.

So why do they call linden, basswood?  Could it be that it was in demand for carving fishing lures?

[WDH]

"Bark

It is known in the trade as basswood, particularly in North America. This name originates from the inner fibrous bark of the tree, known as bast. A very strong fibre is obtained from this, by peeling off the bark and soaking in water for a month, after which the inner fibres can be easily separated. Bast obtained from the inside of the bark of the Tilia tree has been used by the Ainu people of Japan to weave their traditional clothing, the attus. Similar fibres are obtained from other plants are also called bast, named after those from the Tilia: see Bast fibre."

From Wikipedia.

[SwampDonkey]

Natives used it to make rope just as they did on the west coast from western red cedar bark. You can peel really long strips off and it's strong.

[Magicman]

And I was told by a logger that Linden was Linwood, or more properly "Lynwood" and was named after me.  So now you know the "rest of the story".   ;D

[Jeff]

We would never saw basswood in the latter part of the day at the mill because of its twining attributes and fear of fire because of our debarker. When debarking basswood the bark fibers will come off like binder twine and can get wrapped around the cutter head shaft. The friction created easily dries the fibers and sets them on fire. There have been mills burned to the ground because of basswood. You never want to walk away at the end of the day after debarking that stuff without a thorough cleaning and inspection of the debarker. We kept a water extinguisher in the debarker cab just in case. Sometimes you had to get out after every log and unwind the stuff.

[WDH]

Was it especially worse in the spring when the bark peels off easily?

[Jeff]

Actually, in the spring when it is really peeling, its better, because you can pull it off in sheets. You hit the log with the debarker turn heads, and many times the bark would peel off in a sheet. Shallow up on the cutter head, so you don't grind off any wood, and keep spinning the log through while you back the sheet of bark back off the infeed conveyor.

[Corley5]

The pulp mills around here would only take basswood in the winter when it was frozen because of the de-barking issues with Rosser head machines.  LP in Newberry only recently installed a cambio ring debarker which can handle basswood year round  8) 

[Okrafarmer]

Well since I saw it was from Pennsylvania and had reddish bark I was going to say black birch. Which is why I am not an expert. Next best guess-- well, if it were here in my state, I would say sweet gum, because sweet gum has a habit of camouflaging itself to look like any other kind of tree....