Going to saw Magnolia.....UPDATE....I DID. Update starts at reply#13.

[POSTON WIDEHEAD]

I've got 2 nice Magnolia logs on the yard.
They look really nice with no visible damage.
I know Poplar is in the Magnolia family and I'm assuming it will saw like Poplar.
I'm not sure if there is a market for this stuff around here....I know Poplar is a big seller for me.

I'm thinking about just sawing it into 2 large cants and just put it up to air dry.

But my other question is.....if there is not a market for it, can it be sawn into 4/4 lumber and be mixed in with my Poplar sales? Would this be an honest move since Poplar and magnolia are in the same family?

I know Pecan and Hickory are sold as 1 being the other.

So......?????

 

[Ron Wenrich]

I know that they throw cucumber in with tulip poplar.  After you saw it, see how close it looks to poplar.  If it's close, I'd sell it as poplar.  I'd be interested in seeing what it looks like, especially the heart.  It looks to be awful knotty.  Yard tree?

[scsmith42]

David, I have sawn magnolia before and it mills and dries fairly well.  The lumber is a cream color.  The best market is to custom furniture makers who want something different.  I would sell it in the $4.00 - $8.00 bd ft range for 4/4 and 5/4 - with the wider boards bringing a premium price.

[POSTON WIDEHEAD]

  Yard tree?

Yep....I'm afraid so Ron.

I'll post some pics when I saw it up.

Good info Scott, thanks.

[WDH]

Yellow poplar and cucumber tree both have green heartwood.  Magnolia has brown heartwood with black highlights, so it looks different.  Creamier colored and not as white as poplar in the sapwood, and different in the heartwood.  I would sell it separate and ask for more $ than for ordinary poplar.  Some 4" mantles might be the ticket.  Some with live edge and some square, like you. 

[POSTON WIDEHEAD]

Some 4" mantles might be the ticket.  Some with live edge and some square, Censored.

I hadn't thought about Mantles. But hopefully it's have enough beauty when I saw it to make a Mantle.
We'll just have to wait and see. One thing about 4 plus inches....it will hopefully dry straighter with less movement. I'll still weight it down.

The funny thing I laugh at about my Mantle customers is they buy a Mantle based on the unique grain pattern.
Then they take it home....put it UP on the fireplace and set STUFF all on the Mantle where you can't even see the grain. I guess I'm just square.

[DanG]

Consider letting it spalt.  My Brother put some spalted magnolia panelling in the house he built back in '01.  It was amazingly beautiful and rather pricey.

[Ocklawahaboy]

Too bad that tree doesn't seem to have much dark heart.  After the 04 hurricanes here -pre mill- I saw some laying around with 10" of chocolate brown heart.   I've been told that letting it sit greatly increases the attractiveness.  Either way, I would sell it as what it is and consider it a good score.

[Banjo picker]

That's the state tree down here in Miss. Does that mean its against the law to saw one?  Banjo

[Alligator]

It use to be one of the hardwoods we separated out because we could get a premium from furniture manufactures. We sawed Magnolia, Bay and Black Gum together, some times Tupelo Gum if we didn't trade it. There was a veneer mill near by that wanted the Tupelo Gum and would trade Cypress on Doyle Scale. I must have scaled 200 or 300 double deck truck loads over 20 years.

Magnolia saws pretty, not much grain features. Furniture makers use to love it for all the internal parts. It doesn't warp bad, because of it's light color it can be stained any color. It doesn't split or check bad. In general a real easy wood to build furniture with.

[POSTON WIDEHEAD]

Thanks 'gator.

[ohwc]

Usually has a coffee color heart. Excellent for coffee tables, end table tops etc.

You can see one slab of it here. http://instagram.com/oldhatwoodco

[Tree Dan]

I would live edge that at 8/4 and some 4/4
It should have something nice In there with those knots.

[POSTON WIDEHEAD]

I sawed the smallest log of the 2. My net was 133 BF. I milled it 5/4 x wide w/ no live edge.
I was amazed!
First time I've milled Magnolia and to be honest, I almost put the logs on the burn pile.

The texture of the wood is like Yellow Poplar but the face looks more like White Pine to me.
My Dad came down to the mill with one of his senior buddies who is 93!!!!
He said "MAGNOLIA!'.......That's an expensive lumber."
So I'm glad I kept it now. It does to me, look like its in it's own class. Its really nice!


  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

 

[red oaks lumber]

that looks like some of our basswood, shows some grain with darkness around the knots
good thing the old boys told ya it was expensive wood. did they mention $300?  :D

is the goat coming back or are we just stuck with you?? ;D

[WDH]

If you look close, on the end grain, (with a hand lens), you will see a double row of marginal parenchyma that terminates the growth ring  ............Diagnostic in Magnolia, but you have to look close.  (Hard to hold a hand lens with a cloven hoof  :-\). 

[POSTON WIDEHEAD]

If you look close, on the end grain, (with a hand lens), you will see a double row of marginal parenchyma that terminates the growth ring  ............Diagnostic in Magnolia, but you have to look close.  (Hard to hold a hand lens with a cloven hoof  :-\).

I thought about air drying this for a while and brining it to Hamsley Acres and letting you Kiln Dry it. Then commission you to build be a table like you built Sis. How much would that cost me Pop?  :D :D :D :D

[WDH]

$300

$3000. 

[Holmes]

$300

$3000.

Thats cheap at twice the price! ;D 8)

[Southside]

If you look close, on the end grain, (with a hand lens), you will see a double row of marginal parenchyma that terminates the growth ring  ............Diagnostic in Magnolia, but you have to look close.  (Hard to hold a hand lens with a cloven hoof  :-\).

Whattttt??????  At least I get the cloven hoof part.

[WDH]

Parenchyma are living cells in wood.  Most wood cells are functionally dead and only transports water from the roots to the crown.  In many species, there are parenchyma cells that are in the growth ring, either as medullary ray cells or are in various arrangements.  They can be used to ID certain species.  It is one of the best ways to tell ash wood from hickory wood, for example.

In the Magnolia family, the annual growth ring is terminated (the very last line of cells that are put down at the end of the growing season) with a band of parenchyma.  This arrangement is called "marginal parenchyma".  It forms a distinct line visible with a hand lens.  It helps give yellow poplar (in the Magnolia Family) the little bit of "grain" that you see in the lumber. 

Magnolia, for some reason, instead of a single band of marginal parenchyma, usually has a double band.  As a result, magnolia has a more pronounced "grain" than yellow poplar, otherwise they look very similar.  This stronger visual "grain" is seen on Poston's pics of his magnolia boards.   Another difference is the color of the heartwood with yellow poplar having green heartwood and magnolia having brown heartwood. 

You can go to this page on the website operated by Forum member @phinds and look at the close-up end grain pics of some different species of magnolia.  In the first ones of cucumber tree, Magnolia acuminata, you can clearly see the distinct line at the end of each growth ring.  This is the marginal parenchyma, and is in a single band.

Scroll down through the page past cucumber tree, and past sweetbay magnolia, until you get to the pics of southern magnolia, Magnolia grandiflora (this is Poston's tree in this thread).  If you look carefully, you can see the double band of marginal parenchyma in the first two end grain close-up pics. 

http://www.hobbithouseinc.com/personal/woodpics/magnolia.htm

[POSTON WIDEHEAD]

I'm glad you explained that. You kept me from having to do it.  ;D

[WDH]

Just trying to take the load off you, David. 

[POSTON WIDEHEAD]

Just trying to take the load off you, David.

:D :D :D

[Magicman]

Da Goat is self loading.   :D