Large redwood sections - ideas?

[csobel]

An arborist dropped these off last winter from a large Redwood that was taken down in Portland... the trunk was too wide to fit in the dump trailer (8 feet plus) so these sections are from a ways up. They range from 3' long up to 6.5' for the longest. It's actual redwood, not sequoia. Growth rings are pretty wide but not terrible; density feels about 400 kg/m3. It does seem to be very rot resistant as I had a few pieces on the ground over the winter that looked good when I unearthed them. 
The 5' diameter rounds are closer to 3' long but the 3-3.5' diameter rounds are between 5 and 6.5 feet long.

What would you make out of these? I was thinking shingles from the shorter rounds and maybe utility+ 2x material for raised beds or something. Looks like a fair amount of knots on the longer sections. But I've never seen redwood shingles in person... I estimated there's enough for 3000sf of shingles or so. 



 

 

[Ljohnsaw]

I would think you'd need clear, straight grained wood to make shingles.

Slab them for tables and benches? After drying for a couple years, router plane them flat again and put a finish on them. The wood grain around the knots could be interesting.

[doc henderson]

Welcome.  swaying as a hobby or business meets many goals for us on the forum.  being outdoors, great folks, and I like the ecology of using stuff instead of it going to the landfill.  If you want to make it into money then decide what can be made to sell.  If for your own use then decide what these can make that you can use.  I would make slabs, as I agree the knots will give you trouble.  I have never sawn or used true red wood.  I have some cypress, and lots of catalpa.  I have ERC and not nearly that big, but I can often pick up a scrap and make something.  birdhouses and charcuterie boards, to table and benches.  I am a hobby guy and do the logging to the finished product.  Or I give away/sell lumber/boards.

[jpassardi]

Redwood? Us Atlantic Coaster's don't get to mill that stuff...  ;D
I agree - slabs. Too knotty for shingles and more valuable as slabs. Too short/knotty for much in the way of boards.

[DennisK]

western redwood dorsn't look like that, that looks to be some old  growth ceder/fir hybrid.

[Ljohnsaw]

Where are you located? You say these came out of Portland (Oregon?). Any foliage? 

You mentioned rot resistance and wide rings. I had some redwood with wide rings and it dry rotted in a couple years. However, I have incense cedar on my property. It is extremely rot resistant. It has a more brown heartwood then redwood does.

[csobel]

western redwood dorsn't look like that, that looks to be some old  growth ceder/fir hybrid.

Interesting. It does not smell like western red, that's for sure. More of a neutral smell. 
When you say a cedar fir hybrid, what is that exactly?

[csobel]

Where are you located? You say these came out of Portland (Oregon?). Any foliage?

You mentioned rot resistance and wide rings. I had some redwood with wide rings and it dry rotted in a couple years. However, I have incense cedar on my property. It is extremely rot resistant. It has a more brown heartwood then redwood does.

No foliage... I'm in SW Washington right across the river and they supposedly came out of Portland OR. 

[Ianab]

The logs do have the look of an open grown redwood, in a garden or park they keep the lower branches and the logs end up looking like a hedgehog. They also can grow fast in that scenario, so very wide growth rings. 5 ft dia at the stump might only be ~100 years old? The straight grain / narrow rings wood is from a tall tree in the forest that's naturally shed all it's lower branches 300 years ago, and is competing with similar 200ft tall trees all around it. 


No matter what they actually are, I agree with the others that say slice them up for live edge table tops. Live edge style allows for a bit of "character" with knots or other defects. They can always be edged later for folks that prefer straight lines. ;) Being some sort of "cedar like" wood, they will dry pretty fast. You won't have to wait 2 years. The knots in the slabs will develop star cracks of course, but that's what epoxy is for. 

[doc henderson]

If you got a mill, saw it up and lets see what you got!   8)

[petefrom bearswamp]

Im confused "actual redwood not sequoia"
Is there a sub species I am not familiar with?

[clearcut]

Coast redwood Sequoia sempervirens. 
Giant sequoia Sequoiadendron gigantium 

California has two state trees. 

[Jeff]

There is also the dawn redwood

[csobel]

Im confused "actual redwood not sequoia"
Is there a sub species I am not familiar with?

Around here you mostly see giant Sequoia (sempervirens)—the trees have extremely tapered trunks with a more purple looking wood.
I was saying this looks more like giganitum. I have a lot of old growth redwood from mineshafts that I've resawn over the years for guitar tops—beautiful wood. The color is the same between these logs and the mineshaft salvage — albeit that stuff has very tight growth rings. I'll post some pics later today...