Doc Reaper Posted April 5, 2017 Report Posted April 5, 2017 LEAVE THE BARK ON! It holds in the proper amount of moisture so it won't crack as bad. I have 5 trunks, The ones with the bark left on fared far better than the ones with the bark removed, LEAVE THE BARK ON! Quote Doc Reaper
Members dirkba Posted April 5, 2017 Members Report Posted April 5, 2017 On 4/4/2017 at 2:51 AM, motocouture said: Been a good week! Picked up two racks of deer antlers someone left out on the curb, which will be turned into burnishers / folders . Then hubby wanted to get rid of two trees in the back yard, so I put in a request for a 33" section of the trunk to make a leather working stump. Came home to this - happy to hear any suggestions on drying out / treating / embellishing etc! (Will neaten up the top later to make it level) If this is an Australian pepper tree stump its probably not the best choice for a stump...the wood is likely to crack no matter what you do. Walnut or eucalyptus wood makes a very nice stump! I would however try and force a metal hoop around the top and as it dries force the hoop down and let it settle at about 4 - 6 inches from the top. If the stump cracks the metal hoop will hold it together. Good luck with your project! Quote
Members Crashresq Posted April 5, 2017 Members Report Posted April 5, 2017 Moto.... I have been a wood turner for years and have cut and prepped a LOT of wood, of a lot of varieties, for turning. I've also prepped and used several really large stumps for anvils for my other hobby, blacksmithing. A lot of good advice here and I'll add my two cents worth. For your purposes, definitely get the bark off...you can paint or urethane the ends if you want, it will just slow the checking, but it's going to check (crack) regardless... banding it at the top and bottom with something you can increase pressure on as it dries will be one of the biggest benefits... and if you get some steel bands made up for that purpose, you can add loops to them for holding mallets and other tools . Jim was dead on with the drying times... I usually turn green wood to about an 1" thick and let it set in shavings and a brown paper bag for a year before removing and finish turning... it's held solid for about every species I've turned... so given that, debark, seal the ends (or not), and band it tightly and start using it... Quote
Members mojave Posted April 5, 2017 Members Report Posted April 5, 2017 Moto, I also like a stump for leather working, but I live in the upper Mojave desert of California. Not many big trees here. I went to our water district and got a cut off of 20" PVC pipe. I made a base and top out of glued 3/4" oak plywood that extended 3" into the pipe Filled the pipe with compacted sand, than installed the top by forcing it into the sand. Screwed the base and top with SS screws. I than attached a strap for my tools. I have used the stump for 3 years now, and really like it. Howard Quote
Members motocouture Posted April 6, 2017 Author Members Report Posted April 6, 2017 Dirkba - not 100% sure on the wood, but since I'm in Pennsylvania, I'm guessing walnut or something similar. Good idea on the bands at the top. crashresq - great to hear that you do blacksmithing! My step-dad was a farrier / blacksmith, so grew up around anvils and forges. Thanks for the detailed info and the bands idea, that will be the plan for this weekend... mojave - smart way to build a stump when there's no big trees around! Quote
Members motocouture Posted April 16, 2017 Author Members Report Posted April 16, 2017 Me - 1, stump - 0. Got the bark off (took a surprising amount of effort lol). Found some stainless steel bands online that'll go on next, along with leveling and painting the top. Thanks again for all the advice Quote
Doc Reaper Posted July 13, 2017 Report Posted July 13, 2017 How bad is it cracked now, show pictures please! My Hickory stump is a cracked pretty bad, my Red Oak (bark on) is still solid with hair line cracks. Maybe the type of wood makes a difference on the amount of cracking??? Quote Doc Reaper
Members motocouture Posted July 13, 2017 Author Members Report Posted July 13, 2017 It's definitely cracking some, will take some photos and share! I also need to level out the top from the chainsaw cuts, which I haven't quite got round to yet. Stump's currently sitting in the garage, to the annoyance of hubby Quote
Rockoboy Posted July 15, 2017 Report Posted July 15, 2017 When I wanted to level the top of a tree stump to mount my anvil on, I used the top of an old solid wooden crate as rails and I made a rough router sled. The router sled slid along the top of the crate as I moved the router back and forth in the sled. The only really tricky part was right at the beginning when I had to position the stump so that the top would be parallel to the bottom. I ended up with a stump that had a very slight rock (uneven base) to it, so I used 3 galvanised fittings as feet. The fittings lift the stump up off the ground about half an inch, and like a 3 legged stool ... it does not rock. Quote Kindest regards Brian "Whether you think you can or whether you think you can't, you are right" Henry Ford Machines: Singer 201p, Kennedy, Singer 31K20, Singer 66K16 ("boat anchor" condition), Protex TY8B Cylinder Arm (Consew 227r copy), Unbranded Walking Foot (Sailrite LSV-1 copy)
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