Black Locust and Milling

[dgdrls]

I also posted this on the "Ask a Forester" site.

Can anyone weight in on stumpage prices for black Locust in Central NY region? or any region.
I didn't see it on The NYSDEC stumpage report.
Local fellow has 5 logs and is asking $800/thousand.

Also anyone have experience milling the stuff?

Thanks
DGDRLS

[davey duck]

i have sawn many into 4x6 posts for a barn,they are not to bad if they are fresh cut,If they are dry they get hard and slower to cut.as for price that might be a little high being still logs.David

[west penn]

   I bought a log truck load of 24footers earlier this year for $900.a load delivered. It may be more plentiful in this area. Not used for much other than fence posts.  Most of the bigger logs had carpenter ants.

[Norm]

I wouldn't pay more than pallet prices for it and then only if it's heart was free of rot. Around here it's $250mbf.

[customsawyer]

Educate me please. How does a wood that I thought wouldn't rot, have heart rot?

[Magicman]

Black locust has a very poor root system.  It doesn't really have a tap root and depends upon the feeder roots for support.  Maybe this early tap root dying contributes to the heart rot, or maybe the juvenile wood just is weaker, or maybe both.  Anyway, heart rot is very common here and the pith needs to be avoided when sawing.

[bill m]

Locust logs from $150/m to $300/m on the high side. Stumpage about 1/3 of those prices.

[customsawyer]

How does it work for great fence post if it has heart rot? Do you have to go up above the rot before you start to cut your post out? 

[Chuck White]

I've sawn quite a bit of Black Locust.

I've only ever sawn it while it's still green (fresh cut) but I'd imagine it would be a lot harder when it's dried.

I have only used 10° blades on it and they seemed to do a nice job.

Lots of people use it for fence posts, but we (quite a few years back) had one sawn (before I had my mill) into a 6X8X20 center beam for my brothers work shop.  Used it quite a few times for hoisting engines and other heavy objects.

[Chuck White]

Jake;  Even with some rot, the posts will still last many years.

Usually it seems the rot travels up through the trunk, between growth rings and therefore, there will be some waste after you saw off all of the solid material.

[Ironwood]

The rot is usually occuring due to Bark Borers and their galleries (holes) and scarring associated with this. Around here there is RARELY a solid log and hence prices reflect that. To me that seems VERY high. That said if they were in log form, generously sized and looked OUTSTANDING, I would purchase them.

A while back, a new fella here posted some pics of a stand and the subsequent logs that looked INCREADEBLY nice (New England area I think) and I would have paid that price, but again VERY rare. Likely not apples to apples.

Proceed with caution.

Ironwood

[Magicman]

Fence posts are generally in the 4"-8" size range.  During that stage of their life our Black Locust are solid.  It is mostly after they are about 12" and above that their root system has failed and their interior starts to deteriorate. At least that is my experience with them.

A Note: At one time, Lorman, Ms., my home town, was declared the "Locust Fence Post Capital of the World".  There were many acres of stacked fence post awaiting to be loaded onto railroad flatcars.  It was a big business in the 50's and 60's.

[dgdrls]

Great replies gentlemen,  Thanks, Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays.

DGDrls

[5quarter]

The only black locust I've seen around here with any rot at all was from a busted crown. it rotted from the top down, but I was still able to get 1 good log from it. White oak also heart rots as a result of crown damage. A farmer up the road from me uses alot of black locust for posts. He cuts and peels them and lets them stand for a season before using them, as they'd rot if put in green.

   I've read occasionally about "shipmast Locust" which reportedly grows in the northeast.  Supposedly it has a reputation as being  tall, straight and free of rot. I doubt that it is a different type of locust though.I suspect that good growing conditions and good soil would simply produce superior trees.

[customsawyer]

Thanks for the lesson.

[alanh]

The rot is usually occuring due to Bark Borers and their galleries (holes) and scarring associated with this. Around here there is RARELY a solid log and hence prices reflect that. To me that seems VERY high. That said if they were in log form, generously sized and looked OUTSTANDING, I would purchase them.

A while back, a new fella here posted some pics of a stand and the subsequent logs that looked INCREADEBLY nice (New England area I think) and I would have paid that price, but again VERY rare. Likely not apples to apples.
That guy was most likely me, I`ve since built a real nice deck and framed out a pier that spent a good deal of time under flood waters this summer from T.S Irene. Very strong stuff and its rot free characteristics arebetter measured after its cut than when its growing. I didn`t do the milling as i`m just an amatuer, another member here, terrific timbers, did it and I believe he did an awesome job getting the most yield from the logs.