What kind of wood is this?

This is a discussion on What kind of wood is this? within the Woodworking Archive forum.

What kind of wood is this?

Postby -MIKE- on Sun Nov 16, 2008 3:47 pm

Same piece of wood, different lighting.
Very dry, very light in weight.
The piece 17" x 5.75" x 1.5" weighs just over 3 pounds.
Moderately soft-- a 1/32" steel nail-set dropped from about a foot,
penetrates about 1/8".

http://www.mikedrums.com/whatwood1.jpg
http://www.mikedrums.com/whatwood2.jpg
http://www.mikedrums.com/whatwood3.jpg

Cedar?


--

-MIKE-

"Playing is not something I do at night, it's my function in life"
--Elvin Jones (1927-2004)
--
http://mikedrums.com/
mike@mikedrumsDOT.com
---remove "DOT" ^^^^ to reply
-MIKE-
 
Posts: 278
Joined: Tue Nov 04, 2008 12:40 pm

Re: What kind of wood is this?

Postby Tim W on Sun Nov 16, 2008 4:09 pm


"-MIKE-" wrote in message
news:gfq7to$afd$1@nntp.motzarella.org...
> Same piece of wood, different lighting.
> Very dry, very light in weight.
> The piece 17" x 5.75" x 1.5" weighs just over 3 pounds.
> Moderately soft-- a 1/32" steel nail-set dropped from about a foot,
> penetrates about 1/8".
>
> http://www.mikedrums.com/whatwood1.jpg
> http://www.mikedrums.com/whatwood2.jpg
> http://www.mikedrums.com/whatwood3.jpg
>
> Cedar?
>
Yes, cedar. Does it have a smell when cut?

Identifying different species of softwood whith certainty involves intricate
work with a microscope but the close rings, straight grain and lightness
would suggest a cedar.

Tim W


Tim W
 
Posts: 179
Joined: Tue Dec 06, 2005 1:01 pm

Re: What kind of wood is this?

Postby Ed Edelenbos on Sun Nov 16, 2008 4:16 pm



"-MIKE-" wrote in message
news:gfq7to$afd$1@nntp.motzarella.org...
> Same piece of wood, different lighting.
> Very dry, very light in weight.
> The piece 17" x 5.75" x 1.5" weighs just over 3 pounds.
> Moderately soft-- a 1/32" steel nail-set dropped from about a foot,
> penetrates about 1/8".
>
> http://www.mikedrums.com/whatwood1.jpg
> http://www.mikedrums.com/whatwood2.jpg
> http://www.mikedrums.com/whatwood3.jpg
>
> Cedar?
>
>
> --
>
> -MIKE-
>
> "Playing is not something I do at night, it's my function in life"
> --Elvin Jones (1927-2004)
> --
> http://mikedrums.com/
> mike@mikedrumsDOT.com
> ---remove "DOT" ^^^^ to reply

Or maybe some sort of fir. The dark streaks in the edge grain (assuming it
is not stained or finished in any way) looks pretty dark for any cedar I've
seen.

Ed

Ed Edelenbos
 
Posts: 67
Joined: Sun Oct 05, 2008 3:11 pm

Re: What kind of wood is this?

Postby -MIKE- on Sun Nov 16, 2008 4:30 pm

>>
>> http://www.mikedrums.com/whatwood1.jpg
>
> Or maybe some sort of fir. The dark streaks in the edge grain (assuming
> it is not stained or finished in any way) looks pretty dark for any
> cedar I've seen.
>
> Ed


It is raw.
This first pic is more indicative of the color, without consumer camera
influence.
The contrast between light and dark rings is accurate, however.


--

-MIKE-

"Playing is not something I do at night, it's my function in life"
--Elvin Jones (1927-2004)
--
http://mikedrums.com/
mike@mikedrumsDOT.com
---remove "DOT" ^^^^ to reply
-MIKE-
 
Posts: 278
Joined: Tue Nov 04, 2008 12:40 pm

Re: What kind of wood is this?

Postby Doug Miller on Sun Nov 16, 2008 4:31 pm

In article , -MIKE- wrote:
>Same piece of wood, different lighting.
>Very dry, very light in weight.
>The piece 17" x 5.75" x 1.5" weighs just over 3 pounds.
>Moderately soft-- a 1/32" steel nail-set dropped from about a foot,
>penetrates about 1/8".
>
>http://www.mikedrums.com/whatwood1.jpg
>http://www.mikedrums.com/whatwood2.jpg
>http://www.mikedrums.com/whatwood3.jpg
>
>Cedar?

I doubt it: grain doesn't look right for cedar. My first thought, just looking
at it, was redwood, but 3 pounds is *much* too heavy for a piece that size to
be either redwood or cedar. I'd vote for Douglas fir.
Doug Miller
 
Posts: 3904
Joined: Thu Jul 10, 2003 8:58 am

Re: What kind of wood is this?

Postby -MIKE- on Sun Nov 16, 2008 4:32 pm

> Yes, cedar. Does it have a smell when cut?
>

It does not have that distinctive "hamster cage" scent to it when cut.
Not much scent... if anything, slightly chocolaty.


--

-MIKE-

"Playing is not something I do at night, it's my function in life"
--Elvin Jones (1927-2004)
--
http://mikedrums.com/
mike@mikedrumsDOT.com
---remove "DOT" ^^^^ to reply
-MIKE-
 
Posts: 278
Joined: Tue Nov 04, 2008 12:40 pm

Re: What kind of wood is this?

Postby -MIKE- on Sun Nov 16, 2008 4:34 pm

Doug Miller wrote:
> I doubt it: grain doesn't look right for cedar. My first thought, just looking
> at it, was redwood, but 3 pounds is *much* too heavy for a piece that size to
> be either redwood or cedar. I'd vote for Douglas fir.

I thought Fir a while ago, but all the fir I've seen is more orange.
It certainly has the same weight as the Doug Fir I've worked with.


--

-MIKE-

"Playing is not something I do at night, it's my function in life"
--Elvin Jones (1927-2004)
--
http://mikedrums.com/
mike@mikedrumsDOT.com
---remove "DOT" ^^^^ to reply
-MIKE-
 
Posts: 278
Joined: Tue Nov 04, 2008 12:40 pm

Re: What kind of wood is this?

Postby Jedd Haas on Sun Nov 16, 2008 8:08 pm

In article ,
-MIKE- wrote:

> > Yes, cedar. Does it have a smell when cut?
> >
>
> It does not have that distinctive "hamster cage" scent to it when cut.
> Not much scent... if anything, slightly chocolaty.

It might be cypress, but looks more like some kind of pine to me.

--
Jedd Haas - Artist - New Orleans, LA
http://www.gallerytungsten.com/
Jedd Haas
 
Posts: 18
Joined: Thu Oct 23, 2003 6:17 am

Re: What kind of wood is this?

Postby rjdankert on Mon Nov 17, 2008 8:08 am

On Nov 16, 5:47 pm, -MIKE- wrote:
> Same piece of wood, different lighting.
> Very dry, very light in weight.
> The piece 17" x 5.75" x 1.5" weighs just over 3 pounds.
> Moderately soft-- a 1/32" steel nail-set dropped from about a foot,
> penetrates about 1/8".
>
> http://www.mikedrums.com/whatwood1.jpghttp://www.mikedrums.com/whatwood2.jpghttp://www.mikedrums.com/whatwood3.jpg
>
> Cedar?
>
> --
>
>   -MIKE-
>
>   "Playing is not something I do at night, it's my function in life"
>      --Elvin Jones  (1927-2004)
>   --
>  http://mikedrums.com/
>   m...@mikedrumsDOT.com
>   ---remove "DOT" ^^^^ to reply

Mike, it looks very similar to some catalpa that i have:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rjdankert/3038411674/

It is soft and light weight. It also has a distinct smell when I cut
it. I can't think of how to describe the smell - it's pleasant (to
me) like a scented candle.

Bob
rjdankert
 
Posts: 15
Joined: Sat Oct 22, 2005 2:09 pm

Re: What kind of wood is this?

Postby Steve Turner on Wed Nov 19, 2008 9:43 pm

rjdankert wrote:
> On Nov 16, 5:47 pm, -MIKE- wrote:
>> Same piece of wood, different lighting.
>> Very dry, very light in weight.
>> The piece 17" x 5.75" x 1.5" weighs just over 3 pounds.
>> Moderately soft-- a 1/32" steel nail-set dropped from about a foot,
>> penetrates about 1/8".
>>
>> http://www.mikedrums.com/whatwood1.jpghttp://www.mikedrums.com/whatwood2.jpghttp://www.mikedrums.com/whatwood3.jpg
>>
>> Cedar?
>>
>
> Mike, it looks very similar to some catalpa that i have:
>
> http://www.flickr.com/photos/rjdankert/3038411674/
>
> It is soft and light weight. It also has a distinct smell when I cut
> it. I can't think of how to describe the smell - it's pleasant (to
> me) like a scented candle.
>
> Bob

I was going to say the same thing. I have a piece of bone-dry Catalpa
right here that is 16" x 8" x 1-1/8" and it weighs 2lbs 7oz. It's very
light, and it looks exactly like what's in Mike's pictures.

--
"Our beer goes through thousands of quality Czechs every day."
(From a Shiner Bock billboard I saw in Austin some years ago)
To reply, eat the taco.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bbqboyee/
Steve Turner
 
Posts: 140
Joined: Fri Jul 11, 2003 7:27 am

Next

Return to Woodworking Archive

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 0 guests

cron