Need help and advise in drying 4" Cherry slabs

[T Welsh]

Hey Guys, I have a project ongoing that I need to have 4" x 20" x9'6" Cherry slabs freshly cut dried, I have heard that a vacuum kiln can do it, but I do not know where one is. Any help with this project would be greatly appreciated. I am in south eastern PA. Tim

[WDH]

I have not been able to dry 4" cherry without cracking, and that is air drying.  Cherry is the worst wood for cracking that I have ever dealt with. 

[Den Socling]

Piece of cake.  :D  If I was home i'd show some pictures of very thick cherry slabs. But no I don't have time to dry your wood.

[GeneWengert-WoodDoc]

Did you use two coats of AnchorSeal?

Are the cracks over 1/4" wide?  If so, they are from stress in the tree and cannot be controlled well in drying.

[Den Socling]

Gene, I'm out of my office for a couple weeks. When I get back to my office, I'll show you a picture of a cherry slab crotch. It was growing in two different directions. There must of been stress. It dried with no cracks. Cracks don't have to happen.

[T Welsh]

Den, I have seen the pictures of the wood you have dried in the vac/kiln, I have to say this is very impressive. You are a couple of hours away from me. Is there any chance that you may be able to dry the cherry slabs at you convenience. Thanks,Tim

[Den Socling]

Tim, I have two vac kilns that run constantly. Now, for example, I'm in AZ but one kiln in PA is drying baseball bats while the other is drying gunstocks. The baseball bats are for a company that already ordered a kiln while the gunstocks are for a potential customer. This is how it almost always is. I don't don't know when I will have a kiln available for custom drying. However, I have a folder in my email labelled "to be dried". That has people like you and it has a bunch of contacts. I've been telling people that it might be October before I get to their wood. Then again, it could be less. I just don't know. All I do know is that I can't dry your wood in the foreseeable future.

[T Welsh]

Thanks Den, I completely understand. I think your process is great. It takes the cycle time down to noting,out preforms the old way of drying lumber and nearly eliminates the defects that occur during the kiln cycle. Thanks Again, Tim

[Den Socling]

Yeah we are talking about around 14 days and probably no checks.

[PC-Urban-Sawyer]

... probably no checks.

Except for the one to pay the fee for service!  :D :D :D

Herb

[Den Socling]

Actually Herb, I often dry for free. Sometimes a couple hundred bucks if there is a lot of handling involved. Slabs can be a back breaker but once I get them under the bridge crane, my vac grab will pick them up and put them on the kiln cart. Don't spread this around.  :D

[Den Socling]

I got this from a guy for whom I agreed to dry a flitched walnut log. When I gave him a price he said
"Brings tear to my eyes, Den. Talk to u soon. THANK YOU!"

[Den Socling]

I just thought of another one. A guy brought some 12/4 Red Oak that had been sitting too long and was badly checked. I decided to dry it with baseball bats. I ran a Red Oak schedule which I knew would be Ok with the HM. When he asked me how much, I told him to bring a case of Yuengling. He was so happy that he brought some craft beer too!  :D DanG I better shut up. I already get way too many request.

[T Welsh]

Ah,come on now Den, I will pay and stop off at Pottsville on the way up and bring enough beer to put a smile on your face. I drink Yuenglings. Tim

[GeneWengert-WoodDoc]

Well Den, what you need to do is get three investors to each buy 1/3 of the kiln and then you set it up at your location and the investors, after operating expenses, each get 25% of the profits (and you get 25%).

[Den Socling]

Gene, I have allowed investors into the company on two occasions. The second bought out the first. He is/was a NYC multimillionaire who was going to show me how to make a fortune. He hired a team of "experts" that screwed up my company and started to affect my reputation which I have spent years establishing. After he lost a couple million dollars he went his own way and was I ever glad! I will never again allow an investor into my company.

[Den Socling]

OK I'm back in PA. So glad to be out in the country again. I tell you I-10 between Phoenix and LA could make a guy crazy! I pity anyone who drives it regularly. Anyway I said I would show some cherry I've dried.



 

I don't remember how thick that slab was but you can get an idea from the Wagner. It must have been 12/4 or 16/4. Also it's a crotch and the only thing cracked is the bark.

The next picture is just some figured cherry. I love vacuum dried over conventionally dried. Vacuum dried is so much more detailed and colorful. Years ago, one of my customers would fill an order for a furniture company that bought squares and dimensions. After the order was filled, they would give my customer a couple bucks for all of the scrap!    Another customer had both vacuum and conventional kilns. They had to be careful not to mix the two in the same order.