Need wood ID. I am stumped

[fabsroman]

I know it isn't oak, maple, poplar, or locust. Tried searching on beach, ash, and elm, and don't think it looks like any of those either. Anybody have any idea what it is?

 

[gzecc]

Boxelder?

 

[Longstreet]

Mockernut Hickory?

 

[fabsroman]

Mockernut Hickory?

Tried to find a cross section of Mockernut Hickory and from what my google fu shows, the heartwood on the hickory is much larger than on the wood in my pile.

 

[Razo]

100% Hickory - not sure of exact type but I got some hickory this year and the upper limbs that were about that size looked identical to yours.

 

[fabsroman]

Boxelder?

From what I am seeing online of cross sections of boxelder, the heartwood is jagged and not a nice clean circle. The heartwood in this tree is a small clean circle.

Trying to figure this out is going to drive me nuts. Might just throw it in the 2017 stack and call it a day, but curiosity is really killing me.

 

[fabsroman]

100% Hickory - not sure of exact type but I think it even looks like shagbark. I got some shag this year and the upper limbs that were about that size looked identical to yours.

I so hope it is hickory. I have red oak and black locust sitting in a pile next to this pile and would love to add this wood to that pile versus the poplar, cherry, and maple pile it is currently in. I have never had hickory in my stacks, but it is a high btu wood.

 

[Razo]

I so hope it is hickory. I have red oak and black locust sitting in a pile next to this pile and would love to add this wood to that pile versus the poplar, cherry, and maple pile it is currently in. I have never had hickory in my stacks, but it is a high btu wood.

I'll take some pics tonight if I think of it, not a hickory expert, maybe the one I got wasn't shag but some other type, hickory nonetheless. That dark heartwood, the stringny-ness of the split edge, and that bark are all exact matches to the hickory I cut earlier this summer.

 

[Longstreet]

Tried to find a cross section of Mockernut Hickory and from what my google fu shows, the heartwood on the hickory is much larger than on the wood in my pile.

Does the bark peel off in sheets? And then curl upon itself?

I'm 95% sure that's mockernut, it looks exactly like the stuff I have. I'll take pictures tonight to show you the heart.

Should be good firewood.

 

[Woody Stover]

Pics are pretty small but I don't think that's Hickory. Looks like a limb, so the bark may be different than it would appear on a larger trunk round. Seems that I saw a post a while back with that type and size heartwood but I don't recall what it was...

 

[fabsroman]

Pics are pretty small but I don't think that's Hickory. Looks like a limb, so the bark may be different than it would appear on a larger trunk round. Seems that I saw a post a while back with that type and size heartwood but I don't recall what it was...

Yeah, I sent them to myself from my phone in "small". Here they are in "medium". Hopefully, they will be significantly larger in this post. Yes, that piece is from a limb, but the trunk was pretty much the same way. I'll go look through the pile for a larger split. Still have a load of the stuff sitting in my truck.

Edit to add: Note to self, when sending pics to post on this board, send to self in "large" size. Sheez, medium is hardly any bigger than small.

 

[fabsroman]

Alright, here are some pics of larger pieces with a good showing of the bark. Hopefully, these photos will show up larger.

 

[gyrfalcon]

Alright, here are some pics of larger pieces with a good showing of the bark. Hopefully, these photos will show up larger.

FYI, if you click on the pix, you get them larger. Even your first set was fine.

 

[Razo]

FYI, if you click on the pix, you get them larger. Even your first set was fine.

Clicking on them expands them, but the resolution was still smaller than what he just posted. Latest set are great. The grain in the very last picture instantly reminded me of hickory cabinets.

 

[bigbarf48]

Thats hickory for sure

 

[nrford]

Hickory.

 

[freebe]

Gotta be a Hickory.

 

[osagebow]

Gonna beat a dead horse....with a piece of hickory.

 

[McKraut]

I would vote for hickory too, but I just had to say I loved the "stumped" pun.......

 

[Silenced38]

I handle a lot of mockernut. It doesn't quite look the same. Mockernut that i cut has more heart wood. But i think it is hickory.

 

[fabsroman]

I would vote for hickory too, but I just had to say I loved the "stumped" pun.......

lol - I actually put it in there on purpose. Figured some of you would get a kick out of it.

Alright, I am going to go with hickory on this stuff. It seems rather dense. Just never really seen hickory before. Cannot complain. Took home 3 truckloads of wood and they were 100% black locust and hickory. My buddy and I cut and split the stuff together and we both thought the hickory was trash wood because we had no idea what the heck it was. I was reluctantly loading my truck up with it yesterday in lieu of putting black locust in my truck because I didn't want to completely screw over my buddy who already had stacked a bunch of this "trash wood" in his stacks. Turns out, I might have been on the short end of the stick on this one, but both species make great firewood.

What would you guys prefer, black locust or hickory?

How long does hickory take to season? Should I put it in the same stacks as my black locust and red oak from this year, or a different stack because it will be seasoned before the locust and oak?

 

[gyrfalcon]

Plain vanilla hickory (ie, not shagbark), if that's what it is, is a moderately high BTU wood. As a general rule, any high or moderately high BTU wood, A, takes longer to season, and B, is generally going to be heavier, piece for piece, than low-BTU wood. Oak is a bit of an exception because of its structure. It's not super-high-BTU, but it takes a lot longer to season than many woods that are-- like, for instance, Black Birch or Beech. But if you've got a heavy piece in hand, you've got something good, not trash wood, that's worth cutting and seasoning for however long it takes, especially if you live in a cold climate. A dense wood will be heavier, and a dense wood has lots of BTUs packed into it.

 

[HDRock]

I think it might be Hickory

 

[Longstreet]

What would you guys prefer, black locust or hickory?

That's like asking if I would prefer Jennifer Lawrence or Miranda Kerr. Either way, I'm going to have a smile on my face the next morning!

Probably black locust if I HAD to choose. But I would pickup as much as I could get of either if it was available. If you have any BBQ friends, they would love the hickory. Could probably work out a deal to get some wood from them in return.

 

[fabsroman]

Plain vanilla hickory (ie, not shagbark), if that's what it is, is a moderately high BTU wood. As a general rule, any high or moderately high BTU wood, A, takes longer to season, and B, is generally going to be heavier, piece for piece, than low-BTU wood. Oak is a bit of an exception because of its structure. It's not super-high-BTU, but it takes a lot longer to season than many woods that are-- like, for instance, Black Birch or Beech. But if you've got a heavy piece in hand, you've got something good, not trash wood, that's worth cutting and seasoning for however long it takes, especially if you live in a cold climate. A dense wood will be heavier, and a dense wood has lots of BTUs packed into it.

Had no idea that there is a species of hickory called "plain vanilla". From the charts I have looked at, locust, oak, and hickory are some of the higher BTU firewood.

Poplar, when green, is about as heavy as oak. However, poplar is mid level, if not lower, BTU wise and is a lot lighter than oak when both are seasoned. So, the entire heavy when green analysis isn't always true. Now, I will agree that the denser firewood has more BTU's in it. Thing is, when green a lot of the weight can be water. I bet you also understand the difference between weight and density. Kind of like when I was in grade school and I asked friends, which weighs more, 5 pounds of feathers or 5 pounds of steel. Some would actually argue with me that the steel is heavier. Trying to explain that 5 pounds is 5 pounds was frustrating, and trying to explain that weight and density are two different things was nearly impossible. Using weight as a determining factor in the field is not a good comparison unless both pieces are seasoned or they both have the same percentage moisture content. Lots of variables involved in how much a specific volume of wood weighs.

I use this link to attempt to figure out what a tree species is worth btu wise:

(broken link removed to http://www.chimneysweeponline.com/howood.htm)

The only two types of hickory on there are in the high btu group. Same goes for the myriad of oak and the locust.

My main problem comes from identifying tree species. Not quite as hard when they are still standing with leaves and dropping acorns, helicopters, etc. The best firewood looks like Osaage Orange/Hedge, but I don't even have a clue what it looks like in the field, much less in log form.

Much harder when they are dropped off in log form. I'll attach some pics of what we were processing.