4x4 untreated pine. Splitting

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  • oakchas
    Established Member
    • Dec 2002
    • 432
    • Jefferson City, TN, USA
    • BT3000

    4x4 untreated pine. Splitting

    Is there a way to keep a 4x4 of untreated SYP from the lumber yard to NOT split?

    I went through an entire bunk of 4x4x8s to find one that was straight, true, and had the heart wood pretty much dead center. I brought it home. I set it aside and turned it daily to keep it straight.

    Well, it's straight, but every inch of it has a split on one side or the other or two. So, not one inch of it in length can be used without a cracked side.

    I'm trying to get about 3 inch cubes out of it. I only NEED 2. But as I said, not one inch out of 8 feet is un-split on all four sides

    ARGHH!
  • oakchas
    Established Member
    • Dec 2002
    • 432
    • Jefferson City, TN, USA
    • BT3000

    #2
    Well, I've been scouring the web... I don't think it can be done... So, I either do a glue up or make boxes.

    While I'm pondering that, if you have any ideas... Lemme know!

    Comment

    • oakchas
      Established Member
      • Dec 2002
      • 432
      • Jefferson City, TN, USA
      • BT3000

      #3
      And, I just discovered that what I'm trying to duplicate is, indeed, glued up. Well, at least it's not a hollow block, that would require jewelry box precision for something "crafty."

      Lord! I'm always over thinking everything! Makes too much work out of simple things. Sigh.

      Comment

      • capncarl
        Veteran Member
        • Jan 2007
        • 3564
        • Leesburg Georgia USA
        • SawStop CTS

        #4
        One reason it all split is you piIckes heart wood for the center. When wood dries it shrinks, and how bad it cracks is directly proportional to how far it is from the center. If you had picked wood with no center it MIGHT not have split as bad..... but would probably warped just the same. SYP is not the best hobby wood to work with for sure.

        Comment

        • leehljp
          Just me
          • Dec 2002
          • 8429
          • Tunica, MS
          • BT3000/3100

          #5
          When overseas, at home centers and lumber yards, all of their equivalent 4x4s were sawn the length down the middle (to the center of the board) on one side to introduce a forced split. It prevented multiple splits in other places. It aggravated the stew out of me as I could not find solid 4x4s.
          Hank Lee

          Experience is what you get when you don't get what you wanted!

          Comment

          • oakchas
            Established Member
            • Dec 2002
            • 432
            • Jefferson City, TN, USA
            • BT3000

            #6
            Originally posted by leehljp
            When overseas, at home centers and lumber yards, all of their equivalent 4x4s were sawn the length down the middle (to the center of the board) on one side to introduce a forced split. It prevented multiple splits in other places. It aggravated the stew out of me as I could not find solid 4x4s.
            Yeah, I read about that method being used extensively in Japan

            Comment

            • LCHIEN
              Internet Fact Checker
              • Dec 2002
              • 20914
              • Katy, TX, USA.
              • BT3000 vintage 1999

              #7
              A few years back, i bought some cedar 4x4 that were solid with no splits, at Lowes.
              Loring in Katy, TX USA
              If your only tool is a hammer, you tend to treat all problems as if they were nails.
              BT3 FAQ - https://www.sawdustzone.org/forum/di...sked-questions

              Comment

              • oakchas
                Established Member
                • Dec 2002
                • 432
                • Jefferson City, TN, USA
                • BT3000

                #8
                Well! I just looked and none of our area wide Lowe's stores carry it!

                B.O.B. doesn't carry it in the area either...
                Last edited by oakchas; 03-17-2019, 12:27 PM.

                Comment

                • billwmeyer
                  Veteran Member
                  • Feb 2003
                  • 1858
                  • Weir, Ks, USA.
                  • BT3000

                  #9
                  I have been buying untreated 4 X 4's at Lowe's in Joplin, Missouri. I have very little problems with them. I make Yard Dice out of them!
                  "I just dropped in to see what condition my condition was in."-Kenny Rogers

                  Comment

                  • oakchas
                    Established Member
                    • Dec 2002
                    • 432
                    • Jefferson City, TN, USA
                    • BT3000

                    #10
                    Originally posted by billwmeyer
                    I have been buying untreated 4 X 4's at Lowe's in Joplin, Missouri. I have very little problems with them. I make Yard Dice out of them!
                    Those look great... And I see that the center heart wood is off on one corner, instead of dead center as I had requested... And as stated above by capncarl...

                    Hmmmm. Do you cut and finish them as soon as you get them home, or...?

                    Comment


                    • billwmeyer
                      billwmeyer commented
                      Editing a comment
                      I do both. I usually cut them within a few days, but I have some in the shop that I bought a few months ago. I also have about 50 dice cut before Thanksgiving but I haven't sanded or burned the spots on them yet.
                  • capncarl
                    Veteran Member
                    • Jan 2007
                    • 3564
                    • Leesburg Georgia USA
                    • SawStop CTS

                    #11
                    Most of the wood that I use now is green or it’s moisture level is unknown. I’m not concerned about the moisture level as some people are and have found that when I cut a tiny tree out of green wood it dries and cracks about as bad as when using properly dried wood. I don’t think it should crack, being already dried but I think if is just stress in the wood. That would explain why some species crack more than others, especially SYP. They grow like a weed and are planted close together to encourage competition for sunlight and less limb production. They whip around in the wind like an old CB antenna. If I have a piece that I’ve made that I’m not happy where it cracks I simply fill up the crack with epoxy mixed with powdered fiberglass and color to suit the piece. Sometimes the repair is barely detectable and sometimes it is an accent mark.

                    Comment

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