Black walnut tree

[Baka]

Okay enlighten me. I found a black walnut tree where I deer hunt. Is it worth it to cut down and which part of the tree do I want for a rifle stock?

 

[Park ranger]

Not worth it. To fell, buck, skid, haul, mill, and shape is way too big of a pain for most people. Unless it was special, like your grandpa planted it for you to use as a rifle stock. Wood may or may not be all that pretty.

 

[Baka]

Not worth it. To fell, buck, skid, haul, mill, and shape is way too big of a pain for most people. Unless it was special, like your grandpa planted it for you to use as a rifle stock. Wood may or may not be all that pretty.

Thanks for the input. I’m clueless about this.

 

[hoz53]

Okay enlighten me. I found a black walnut tree where I deer hunt. Is it worth it to cut down and which part of the tree do I want for a rifle stock?

well it depends whats available in your area. around here there are guys who will bring a portable saw mill out to the site. can you drive to it- have sawmills around there- have a way to haul it or someone reasonable to do it. how much wood would you get. mite be able to sell some-- dont forget if you air dry it that will take a few years before you can use it and youll need inside space to stack it.

 

[PatMiles]

The first question...is it on your property, somebody else's or gubmint property/?

 

[gambleone]

Okay enlighten me. I found a black walnut tree where I deer hunt. Is it worth it to cut down and which part of the tree do I want for a rifle stock?

If it was me, I'd just buy a piece of walnut. There's way to much work like Park ranger said. Then there's no telling what condition the wood will be in either.

 

[Tommie]

In some parts of the county black walnut is a common tree. Unless you think the one you found has amazing figure, just pass.

 

[Rustytigwire]

Black Walnut like weeds here. Easy transplant success too. Oak and pecan not so easy. Deer nip off the pecans.
Native trees not home depot crap.
Buy a plank from someone.

 

[Walt Krafft]

You could buy a really fancy stick of gunstock wood for way less than you will spend in time and money cutting a tree that in all likely hood will only have straight grain wood.

 

[brokeasajoke]

Black Walnut like weeds here. Easy transplant success too. Oak and pecan not so easy. Deer nip off the pecans.
Native trees not home depot crap.
Buy a plank from someone.

Same here. They are along about every creek. Eat the walnuts.

 

[Rustytigwire]

We put them in the driveway gravel to hull them by car tire then break with a hammer.
Tuff nut to crack.

 

[ebb]

Even if you did all that to get the wood , you would have to wait several years for it to dry enough to make a rifle stock.

 

[Uthink Uknow]

How can anyone assess the value of a tree without even knowing the size of the tree?

 

[Twicepop]

Usually the higher up the the tree before the first branch is where the straightest grain wood is. The closer to the roots, usually more figure. If the tree is big enough to mess with, and you're going through with the project, try to get your blank from a section that was quarter sawn. Seal the ends of the blank with several coats of spar varnish and let it sit for 1 year per inch of thickness (at least). Make your blank 1/2"- 3/4" thicker than what you want the forearm to be in width to allow for shrinkage and cleanup.

 

[LVLAaron]

Wood guy here: I promise you, wherever you are, there's a guy close by who can easily mill up enough wood to make a stock.

 

[msinc]

I have my own sawmill and I mill as much walnut as I can get my hands on. It is valuable wood as wood goes, bringing somewhere around $8-$9.00 per board foot for rough cut around here and we have some trees. Much more valuable than oak, hickory and other hardwoods. That said, without the sawmill and woodshop to make it something unless the tree is special to you it may not be worth messing with.
Biggest problem with walnut is the fact that I don't care how many years you air dry it that wont do. Walnut shrinks real bad at the end when it finally does dry out enough and it will crack up and just in general mess up if you air dry only and make it into something. A gunstock is not so bad because it is a solid one piece shaped item. Furniture or anything glued up in planks that is made of air dried walnut is almost guaranteed to end up a disappointment if the moisture content is not correct.
As far as figure, you want either the stump to include the tap root or if there is a big branch that divides off the trunk or the junction of a double trunk. American black walnut is not the best wood for a gunstock...for that you want English walnut {aka Turkish, French or Circassian, all the same stuff}.

 

[joshb]

Yup, it’s a lot of work but it can be fulfilling. The tree should be two foot diameter or better to get any amount of good dark wood out of it. Oh, and if it is good sized, you want the stump ball too. You’re going to need a backhoe.

 

[txdan]

Mom has a couple of them on her place. S.E Oklahoma.
She told me remembering picking up nut for something to eat.
She is 89 years young and still says she can give me a whooping if I need it.
Wouldn’t sell those for $ 1000000

 

[msinc]

My grandmother used to beat me senseless with willow tree switches. That accounts for some of the brain damage I suffer today. I was happier than a puppy with two peters when I finally got to cut that GD tree down!! Now I pay Mexican hookers good cash money to beat the hell out of me.

 

[Ned Ludd]

It's a living tree - leave it alone and let it go on living. You can readily find quality walnut stock blanks already available, of which you can actually see the grain pattern to help choose the one you want. Just do a Google search (link below) and you will find a wide range of availability and price:

Google Search