Bitternut Hickory

[ahlkey]

This past year my woodlot was hit with a Hickory Bark Beetle attack - killing at least 250 medium sized Bitternut Hickory trees.  I plan to selectively harvest these trees this winter for firewood sale next year and use the larger ones for lumber..  I have a portable sawmill but never worked with Hickory trees before and heard from others that Hickory should be cut and sawed right away or you will have problems with cracking & splitting even if you wax the ends.  I live in northern Wisconsin and last night it hit minus - 9 degrees already so when I harvest the trees this month I will not get to them to saw into lumber until late winter or early spring, so logs could sit at least 2-3 months..  Anyone have some experience in sawing Bitternut Hickory after they have been stacked for months?

[tyb525]

What size are the trees? 9" or 19"? I don't think cracking/checking happens as bad during the cold months.

[woodhick]

I have cut shagbark hickory and they can be tough.  I use woodmizers 4 degree band and it does real well.  you did not mention size of logs or what you intend to do with the lumber.  If you don't need the lumber or depending on what you need it for I would seriously considier cutting them into RR ties.   especially if logs/ trees are in the 13-16" range.  get them cut quick and sold. 

[ahlkey]

Nearly 30% are in the 20" to 22" range with the rest between 15" - 18" in size .   I would like to use the larger ones for flooring and cabinets.  If the railroad ties option would work that would be good but not sure if they use Hickory or if I can find a local buyer at a reasonable price. I will look into this though.

Any further thoughts would be appreciated.

[Ron Wenrich]

They will take hickory for ties.

If you're really concerned about checking, then you should put "S" hooks in the end of the logs.  That will confine the splitting problems.  You could also put on plates like they use in trusses.  Just remember to cut them off before you saw the logs. 

I've sawn hickory that has laid for several months.  Before there was much of a market for hickory, I'd only get enough logs about once a year to saw.  They were hard, and many had split.  I sawed around the splits the best I could. 

[thedeeredude]

What are the big markets for hickory?  I've started seeing some kitchen cabinets made from it, but I can't imagine it would be too popular, its dang hard to work with.

[JV]

I have sold some for barn flooring in 6/4.  So far everyone has been happy and commented

on how heavy and solid it makes the floor.  The main thing was the weight in 8 and 10"

widths in 16' lengths.  Made this old man huff and puff moving it.  The customers wanted

it in that length until they had to move it.   :D

[SwampDonkey]

Gee boy, that would be heavy for any dense hardwood to lug around. Father used hard maple planks 3" thick and as wide and long as he could get on the potato shed floor. You had to wrestle those planks around to set up potato chutes to drop down 20 feet to the basement floor. The bin piler had to travel over them to reach the centre bins of the potato sheds and fill each up as you worked out to the door, or the other way around. The chute was made up of canvas in short sections and joined by clasps, they were beveled with a tongue inside. Each section was turned so the tongue on this one was the opposite side of the next. The fall was slowed by these tongues as the potatoes descended into the bin. That was the old way to store them. Modern sheds don't use those any more. After bin were full you could go another 20-30 feet high to the ceiling if you needed more room and it wasn't as bad for pressure bruise because you had cross members at 20 feet to bear some weight. Dad used 10" cedar he flatted on top and bottom, they spanned about 20 feet I think. You enjoyed a potato rain shower if those chutes plugged up from the floor in the basement to the upper floor and the guy upstairs didn't keep an eye out for trouble.  The good old days, NOT!! :D :D

[backwoods sawyer]

I have sold some for barn flooring in 6/4.  So far everyone has been happy and commented

on how heavy and solid it makes the floor.  The main thing was the weight in 8 and 10"

widths in 16' lengths.  Made this old man huff and puff moving it.  The customers wanted

it in that length until they had to move it.   :D

Did the customer cut them in half to move them?
I had a customer do that one time, insisted on 20' planks, so I wrestled them around all day and at the end of the day he started loading the trailer. He disappeared for a bit, came back with a chainsaw, and cut the whole stack in half so he could load them.

[Ron Wenrich]

Most of the hickory that I saw goes into cabinets and furniture.  Some might make it into flooring.  There's not a big demand, but it does move.  I think the cabinets I've seen are nicer than oak or maple. 

[JV]

Yeah, they cut some in half to stagger the joints.  Had two young guys putting it down and

I guess they were growling the whole time until someone mentioned I had moved them by

myself.  The customers wife helped unload when I delivered so they couldn't say much.   :D

They had some left and used it for one stall floor.  In the future they will use it for more.

We had hickory cabinets at the other farm and my wife loved them, I agree that they are

prettier than oak or maple.  The only thing you need to watch is that some have an

extremely uneven color in the grain.  I use pignut for trailer decking and am planning to use

it on my woodshop floor when I build my new shop.  We have an abundance of it and I

don't mind sawing it.  I use the 4 degree blades with success. 

[oakiemac]

I've sold a lot of Hickory this year. Seems to be pretty popular for stair threads, flooring, cabinets. I just bought another 1200bf so I hope the selling continues :

[ahlkey]

Looks like the weather next week will finally be more cooperative for cutting the Hickory Trees.  One final question I have is if using Anchorseal will help?  I just ordered a 5 gallon winterized version from the factory to try but would appreciate any advice based on real experience with working with it in the winter.  I will follow the advice of the factory representative and keep it warm until using it but temperatures outside will probably be in the 15 degree range.  For know I will try to brush it on or use a roller rather than a sprayer given the weather.  Thoughts?

[tyb525]

 Yes it does help, especially when you apply it right after you cut it. It will take longer to dry in the cold, but it still seems  to do fine for me. I haven't tried a roller, but a brush has worked just fine for me.

[backwoods sawyer]

The fresher the cut the better the seal.
Get yourself a good 4" brush, stir the end seal up before you head out to seal the logs, take that brush and work the end seal into all the nooks and crannies. Put on a good coat, if it is raining or snowing cover the ends of the logs for a day or so until it has had a chance to cure rather then being washed off. Wash the brush up good and it will last for several buckets of end seal.