Wood ID please

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Syd'sDad

New Member
Nov 4, 2014
44
Central Indiana
I think this is black locust but not totally sure, never had the stuff before. Not fun to hand split.

Thanks
 

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Need a picture of the bark too. Not wet. Looks like mulberry though.
 
Mulberry
 
Remove the camera from the axe handle.
 
My fresh split Mulberry was more yellow. Black Walnut?
 
black walnut has an unmistakable smell. Black walnut is ok good, Mulberry is excellent firewood.
 
Doesn't look like Mulberry to me. Heartwood is way darker than what I've seen while fresh.
Red Elm?
Need better bark pics of more than just one piece...
 
The walnut I have is almost a chocolate color all the way through so not convinced it's walnut....
Neither am I. My BW looked more chocolate but it is the closest I have see to that pic. I'm looking forward to Mr Ford's finding.
 
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That is not Black Locust or Black Walnut. I think it is Osage Orange. Mulberry usually isn't that dark when freshly split, but otherwise Mulberry and Osage Orange are pretty similar. Both are great firewood.
 
It's unlike anything I've ever seen here.. The bark does look like red elm from the pictures I found on the net.
 
Most Definitely Elm. Likely Siberian or perhaps Red Elm.
 
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The split in the middle of my avatar is osage. I'd almost bet that's what it is. Osage is really sticky inside when it's freshly cut and split.
 
Totally the wrong color for walnut.
Totally the wrong color for mulberry.
And most definitely the wrong color for black locust. There are some woods that glow under a black light. Fluorescence and Black locust and Staghorn sumac are brilliant when exposed to ultraviolet radiation. Black locust is in a world of its own.
The bark looks too thick to be Slippery Elm(Red). So...by process of elimination I will guess Siberian Elm. Based on color of heartwood and proportion of heartwood to sapwood and thickness of bark.
But...hahaha....if you want to test it to see if it is indeed Red Elm scrape the outer bark off and soak a piece in water.
If you get a gelatinous snotty slippery snot on the bark surface....its our good old native Slippery Elm.
Not that Siberian weed they imported from Siberia. Although the wood grain is STUNNING....
 
The wood looks like a fresh split, I dont have Osage but doesnt the seasoned exposed wood turn that dark color after a long time?
The pictures I've seen of Osage are very similar to Mulberry when its green.
Elm has a very stunning deep burnt sienna color. Burnt sienna with overtones of raw umber and raw sienna. And pale ivory.
 
The wood looks like a fresh split, I dont have Osage but doesnt the seasoned exposed wood turn that dark color after a long time?
The pictures I've seen of Osage are very similar to Mulberry when its green.
Elm has a very stunning deep burnt sienna color. Burnt sienna with overtones of raw umber and raw sienna. And pale ivory.
Osage becomes very dark on the ends, not so much on the face of the wood.
 
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