A monster of a Pilón

crtreedude · October 26, 2006, 04:18:15 PM

Sorry all, no picts yet. The tree is 3 hours away.

My wife put in a request for Hector our business partner that she would like to have our house we are building, remolding in a lot of pilón. This wood is a darker red, very pretty.

Anyway, Hector got some for a porch he made which came out well - but since the wood came from more than one tree, it didn't completely match. So, Amy and He searched for a tree big enough to be a sole source (yeah, I know, we are spoiled)

The tree has been found and it is already down. It is 7 FEET IN DIAMETER. I had to buy the whole tree - try more than 4,000 BF.

Hector just brought back some cross cut disc for tables that we just sold - three of them - as samples. They were 1 meter across. They were from limbs...

The wood is so dark it is nearly black. Yes, I will get pictures eventually.

Fla._Deadheader · October 26, 2006, 05:36:25 PM

That the one in Pataste ??

metalspinner · October 26, 2006, 05:41:54 PM

QuoteI will get pictures eventually

Eventually!?!?!?

Them is fighten'words.

crtreedude · October 26, 2006, 05:55:55 PM

Pataste isn't 3 hours away, it is between you and me...

You've been up North too long..

Fla._Deadheader · October 26, 2006, 05:57:55 PM

You ride with me in the Jip, and SEE if it isn't 3 hours. :

:

I can't glide over the rocks like you do.

VA-Sawyer · October 26, 2006, 06:07:50 PM

Three hours.... how far that is depends on a lot of things... is FDH doing the driving or is it CRTD ? Maybe it is by horseback ? ;) Walking ? Canoe ?

We need more info.
Bottom line is , I think he was using the '3 hours' as an excuse not to go get us some pictures. Anyone else see it that way ? ;D
VA-Sawyer

crtreedude · October 26, 2006, 06:10:30 PM

That was 3 hours with HECTOR driving - so how far do you think it is... ?

Jeff · October 26, 2006, 06:11:58 PM

The real truth is Fred's camera has never been the same since this photo was taken with it.

Fred with a tree like that we need on site photos and sawing photos and all sorts of stuff. Get Hector and the guys and families in some of them photos too!

Fla._Deadheader · November 10, 2006, 02:45:48 PM

Being as how Fred's camera is still broke, here are some photos of the Pilon, with my Sawyer and the crew.

I think there are 9 logs from this tree, plus the stump for table slabs and limbs for stool seats.

This is very colorful wood. I especially like the contrast from Sapwood to heart wood.

Pretty Gnarly stump. Table slabs come from here.

Look like this.

Can hardly wait to cut into THIS piece. 8) 8)

I believe there are 3 limb crotches in there.

Burlkraft · November 10, 2006, 02:57:47 PM

Wow...That's some awesome lookin' stuff there Harold....

Make sure you send some pics of those crotch slabs....better yet I'll take couple.. ;D ;D ;) ;)

LOGDOG · November 10, 2006, 03:36:08 PM

Awesome stuff there FLA_DEADHEADER. Reminds me of our aromatic red cedar here only with less white sapwood. Is that stuff dense or soft? Great pics. Thanks for sharing.

LOGDOG

crtreedude · November 10, 2006, 03:43:09 PM

Dense! it is a hardwood which down here is HARD - oak is not considered hard here...

Tom · November 10, 2006, 04:08:25 PM

That tree certainly shows off the Peterson, doesn't it?

Your sawing crew needs a Dead Header uniform. Maybe a T-shirt.

metalspinner · November 10, 2006, 05:00:39 PM

That's incredible!

In the first pic, the log doesn't look so big...until you focus into the guy with the t-shirt on. :D

Is that lumber available in the states? Other common names, maybe? It looks like padauk, but I think that is from Africa.

Norm · November 10, 2006, 05:30:00 PM

Cool stuff and beautiful wood!

Thanks for the pictures Harold but strangely enough I don't see Fred in any of the pictures. You would think if nothing else he'd get a stunt double. ;D

Don P · November 10, 2006, 05:34:27 PM

How bout that, its a euphorbia
Pilon ID sheet
Kinda interesting, usually when the radial and tangent shrinkage are that far apart you have a warpy wood, this one says it's stable drying ???

Sounds like neat stuff, I'll take a mbf if you have room in your bags next trip ;D

SwampDonkey · November 10, 2006, 05:52:11 PM

Is it a type of false rosewood? Looks like really nice wood.

Is this it Fred? Link has latin and local names.

Don't try to understand the technical jargon, but I was curious if you had a piece of heart wood soaked in water, if it would fluoresce under ultraviolet light (chlorophyll will). ;D

Fluorescence of Chlorophyll
I've done (observed) a similar experiment in Biology lab at university, of course I wasn't handling chemicals. That was done by the instructor.

principles of fluorescence microscopy

Got a hand lens? Check for crystals (mineral inclusions) in the tylosis of the wood vessels (think white oak). Fred that should give your forest engineer something to do in his spare time. ;)

Ok getting above everyone's head, including my own. :D

SwampDonkey · November 10, 2006, 05:53:55 PM

Thanks for the link Don P, that fits better than my link. ;)

Fla._Deadheader · November 10, 2006, 06:10:38 PM

Sooner or later, we hope to get enough different species stockpiled and air dried to ship a container to the states. We have some really good and figured wood coming available, and I hope to have the bandmill working within a month. Brought back a bunch of parts and gearmotors. 8)

Burlkraft · November 10, 2006, 07:27:11 PM

Hope ya didn't forget sumpthin'...It's a long way to go for parts... ;D ;D

Fla._Deadheader · November 10, 2006, 07:32:56 PM

Key ingredients for now are Motorcycle sprockets and chains, and hydraulic valve bank and hoses and cylinders. You know, trivial stuff. :

:

:D

crtreedude · November 13, 2006, 08:11:14 AM

I was looking for some info on Pilón and I ran across a nice article on a very interesting website... ;D

Article from Finca Leola...

SwampDonkey · November 13, 2006, 08:16:25 AM

Now that's kinda like what I'm talking about. 8)

Will this person cut firewood for cooking to?

;)

Burlkraft · November 13, 2006, 08:27:45 AM

Interesting read Fred....

Are you planting them at all ??? ??? ???

I had never even heard of them before, but from what I've seen of Harold's pictures....I like it ;D ;D ;D

crtreedude · November 13, 2006, 09:31:36 AM

Yes, all those and more, I think currently we are planting about 30 different types of trees - and that doesn't include what is included in the permanent forest and protected areas.

There are more than 150 types of trees here used for wood - and almost all are gone and rarely seen. About 30 to 50 are grown in plantations, but usually only about 5 different types, 3 of which are not native to Costa Rica.

The value of some of these natives will be very high in the future in my opinion. Pilon is an excellent tree for us, grows fast, and of course is beautiful. The younger trees look so much like walnut (the wood) that you would be hard put to tell the difference.