Revenge against the Hickory Tree

You have courage Joe.  As you know, Hickory is a hard wood, with emphasis on hard.  It can be difficult to work.  I have several Hickory trees on this property and they just got through dropping leaves.  Beautiful Autuum colors though.  That's a lot of damage, but the nut's are huge and heavy.

I built the attached garage stairs leading to the loft out of pine.  Easy.  30 degree cuts for the railings.  Looks like about the angle that you selected.  Crossing T's and dotting I's I used left-over carpeting and Luan to finish them off.

Ok for the garage.





Edit:  Ah, I see roddie and I were typing at the same time so I modified.  Sorry about the mis-angled picture. Tried to fix it, couldn't. Removed it.

Hey Roddie this is specifically a shag bark hickory , it will make a very rustic looking job, I have made baluster post with them before. And yes , it is very hard and rough on tools… Bob , Nice job on the stairs. I just finished the rough cut and now comes the sanding and finishing. I will make the ones on the staircase a little different

Roddie here is a picture of a shag bark hickory

Looks like a very pretty wood…. I know it has to be hard as a rock…. Great re-use for it…I know it was and probably still is used for tool handles because of its durability…. Our local hardwood is Mesquite, Also very hard…. I have a little mallet a friend turned on a lathe for me

Same here Joe. Shaggy bark, this one in my front yard is not too bad. Dropping leaves, always three on a stem and fly everywhere. I mulch them up with the zero turn John Deere and they melt away.

akjgardner wrote:Roddie here is a picture of a shag bark hickory

Thanks Joe, Now I'll know what it is, when I see one.

My Craftsman wood properties chart also lists Hickory as "Among best domestic woods for steam-bending".. and mentions its common use for tool handles.. as Robert (rdw777) pointed out.

What might you need to "steam-bend"??? ................ um..... I got nuthin'..

I wonder how good it would be for engine bearers/crutches?

Thanks, Ken,
Longevity? Ummm...
That's too bad about oak. We had an old oak tree blown down on the Air Base. It is being sawn for a Heritage Room. I have several cuts from it. Good thing I don't build keepers. I just need to build prolifically/quickly. They spend more time waiting on the bench for me to finish them. Then they spend little time with me in the air. The next couple will be keepers...I hope!

Maybe I can cut the oak for stable wing jigs?
Off to search for maple now. I don't think Lowes has it.

Ken,
I checked Lowes...my planes don't last THAT long. Ouch!

Way to repupose Joe , Darn that is a lot of damage , had to do a double take

getback wrote:Way to repupose Joe , Darn that is a lot of damage , had to do a double take

Thaks Eric , I forgot to mention my Jeep wrangler got it too . It was only $ though

944_Jim wrote:Ken,
I checked Lowes...my planes don't last THAT long. Ouch!

Oh yea........... you don't want to have to buy milled-Maple anywhere these days. Watch for old furniture being thrown away.. estate sales.. roadside salvage............. whatever. A single dove-tail jointed maple drawer from a chest or bureau.. could net enough engine-bearer stock to supply the entire country for a year...........  (so sad; that might not be too far from accurate..)

I have a small table-saw set-up for ripping hardwood "sticks", when need be. Goggles and a good "push-stick" help to make it a safe operation.

besides......... isn't it better to recycle/repurpose something.. even if just a part of it?