Est. 1998 — 27 years of woodworking knowledge
Apple wood
Dean Lapinel
>I used some apple wood, primarily large branch pieces from my folks farm. It was great for all kinds of spoons but the density didn't feel right for a hand plane. I imagine I have to use the wood from the main trunk for better density and stability (yes, I know the proper grain pattern). Is this correct?
Re: Apple wood
jim reed @ tallahassee
>Most apple wood I have seen is pretty soft. It grows real twisty and is always sold as shorts. The contrasting heartwood/sapwood is pretty, but apple would not be my choice for making a plane.
Re: Apple wood *LINK*
Pam Niedermayer - Austin, TX
>I've only made Japanese planes for which live oak is the only North American option, according to those in the know (not me). Of course, you can always buy Japanese oak (white and Hon red), but this is some expensive wood, aged about 5 years usually. One good sized dai (roughly 35 mm by 80 mm by 400 mm) could make maybe 4 hollows and rounds, each 125 mm by 16 mm. I could probably part with one of my white oak stock, but can't afford to send it off for free, or even a bargain price. Recently I found a Houston source for live oak, which I'll probably try when I run out of the white oak or need an especially wide dai.
Beech is very good if you can find it, which is very difficult, think C&W have cornered the market. :)
But...
Dean Lapinel
>Applewood was used for vintage planes and also used in making furniture and commonly used for pre-brass antiqure clock movements (including the gears). Either the wood you and I have tried was not from the trunk or what "they" called applewood was a specific species or even something else.
Apple and Beech
Warren in Lancaster, PA
>I once got some nice apple in a load of firewood. It was a seedling tree that grew up in a woodlot and was about 16 inches in diameter. I saved some pieces and have made mallets and handles. In contrast to 100 years ago, most apple trees today are grafted to some dwarfing stock, either in the root or the stem or both. Most growers want low trees so there is less ladder work and encourage lower branches, so there is only a short clear stem. In addition the trees bear earlier and are cut down at an earlier age. Not all that great for lumber. I have also seen variation in the density and quality of wood that comes from various trees.
The picture for beech is somewhat rosier. Despite some disease problems, there are still lots of beech trees over a very wide range of N. America. A lot of it is used for blocking and other industrial uses. I think that if there were demand for plane material like there was in the 19th century beech wood would come out of the woodwork.