# Pine? Doug Fir? ID help



## TPS BOCO (Feb 8, 2021)

Newbie and already learning rapidly.... however somewhat failing at figuring this out- most specifically how to accurately describe it for possible sale. I reclaimed a whole bunch of his off a large outbuilding built in the late 40's in Colorado where I think it was all originally harvested. This is some of the 2x material I was trimming ends off- sorry in advance for crummy pics, sanded with 180 and wetted down a little. Yes, there are some little paper towel bits on there..... be glad I didn't post the first few photo attempts. Couldn't hold the tape good but this measures 4 1/4"x2" I'll try to get some pics of the other varieties I'm seeing in the stack too.

Reactions: Like 1


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## FLQuacker (Feb 9, 2021)

Guess...douglas fir


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## phinds (Feb 9, 2021)

Well, I see no sign of resin canals. That rules out pine right away. I agree w/ Wayne that Doug fir is a good possibility.


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## TPS BOCO (Feb 9, 2021)

Thanks guys! Got a guy coming today that might take my whole stash for $2/board foot- is that stupid? Wish I could keep it all, but it's a choice between more/better equipment and tools or lots of material without a good set-up. Here's a quick pic of the blue stained material- pretty sure it's pine, only other variety is a yellow tone which I'm also pretty sure is pine,(it hated the poly I put on it....) just hard to figure which exact varieties...


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## Arn213 (Feb 9, 2021)

I am on the fence on this- agreed with Paul that is not pine (missing resin canals), however the winter rings on this has too thin of a gauge to make me think it is douglas fir. Historically, the two most common used for post and beams for interior architectural building material was long leaf pine and Douglas fir. Though, you can’t rule out hemlock (no resin canals) as those were also used way back then and they have similar properties.

Can you possibly surface it so we can see more of the face grain and possibly the side edge? Can you possibly weigh one blank with dimensions?

Thanks.

Arn

PS- here is an endgrain shot of hemlock @phinds hobbithouse site:




Arn, you used the unprocessed end of that piece and resin canals wouldn't show up on that anyway, so I've replace it with the processed end, which more believably shows no resin canals for hemlock.

^Paul that was to show the end grain as a reference to what was posted on #1

Tele photo below (not mine) for reference of barn reclaimed hemlock:


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## TPS BOCO (Feb 9, 2021)

I was just gearing up to run some small pieces through the table saw and calculate density. Killed my last planer and didn't replace, so I'll just sand to 180,(finest I have) will update shortly..... I believe this is from smaller trees in an old growth forest- some 2x6 with heart also have minor bark edges and the grain is very tight. I got into the weeds partially because longleaf pine doesn't seem to include Colorado and I really don't think it would've been shipped in.


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## Woodworking Vet (Feb 9, 2021)

phinds said:


> Well, I see no sign of resin canals. That rules out pine right away. I agree w/ Wayne that Doug fir is a good possibility.



I'm going to disagree, only because I work with the ponderosa pine found here almost on a daily basis. The ponderosa pine has very little resin in it and no canals in the wood. The old growth pine in my great grandfather's barn looks very similar to the first set of photos with its tight grain and color.

In the second set of photos I'm more confident that the wood is pine, but again its only my opinion. The grain and color is almost exactly like the ponderosa pine that I harvest and turn. The biggest tell tale sign though is the hint of blue along the top half of the boards. Ponderosa pine, when killed by beetles, has bluing that is very distinct. The pattern and color hues of the blue along with the grain and Travis' location make me certain its ponderosa pine. But again, just my opinion.

Reactions: Sincere 1


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## TPS BOCO (Feb 9, 2021)

Ripped edge and face of the '2x4' in the first pics.(opposite end of board) Hating conversions and not sure of what's standard but it's 395 grams, 6.1875"x4"x2". I'm getting 7.97979797.... grams/cubic inch. Seems like the ponderosa pine is a solid conclusion on the 'blue stained'

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## phinds (Feb 9, 2021)

Woodworking Vet said:


> I'm going to disagree, only because I work with the ponderosa pine found here almost on a daily basis. The ponderosa pine has very little resin in it and no canals in the wood.


I have never seen any ponderosa pine without resin canals. They tend to be quite small so perhaps you've missed them. Check out all of the samples on my ponderosa pine page and you'll see what I mean.

Reactions: Like 1


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## phinds (Feb 9, 2021)

Woodworking Vet said:


> The biggest tell tale sign though is the hint of blue along the top half of the boards.


Good point. I've never seen Doug fir w/ blue stain but it's quite common in ponderosa pine.

@Mr. Peet what do you think?

Reactions: Like 1


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## TPS BOCO (Feb 9, 2021)

Well, my potential buyer,(rustic/log furniture with a store in a big mall) didn't like the non-circular saw marks on the 2x6, 2x4 and offered $1/LF for my 1x8; he left empty. I'm thinking this is more desirable for people milling it down, turning, etc.... I'll get a separate posting going for anyone interested in this stuff. Any suggestions on best uses? Thinking of doing an inlaid tabletop with 2x6 border to try and sell..... Gotta get my shop better equipped!


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## barry richardson (Feb 9, 2021)

I have several pieces of reclaimed old growth DF, from different sources, and it is all much darker in color throughout, more golden brown....


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## FLQuacker (Feb 9, 2021)

I think farm/ranch tables would suit it fine.


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## TPS BOCO (Feb 9, 2021)

barry richardson said:


> I have several pieces of reclaimed old growth DF, from different sources, and it is all much darker in color throughout, more golden brown....


Holy Moly, awesome pieces on your site!!

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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## TPS BOCO (Feb 9, 2021)

FLQuacker said:


> I think farm/ranch tables would suit it fine.


That's what I'm thinking but I hate building random stuff hoping I can sell it- especially large pieces.(love when it's sold before it's started) That being said, gotta get decent at marketing stuff- I despise social media.(as I post on an online forum....)


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## Mr. Peet (Feb 10, 2021)

phinds said:


> Good point. I've never seen Doug fir w/ blue stain but it's quite common in ponderosa pine.
> 
> @Mr. Peet what do you think?



I discounted Doug-fir on color, but loosely. My first thought was Englemann Spruce. Doug-fir gets several stains in the sapwood, but far fewer make it into the heartwood. Colorado is sparse on hemlock, but has Sub-Alpine fir, limber pine, pinyon pine to go along with Ponderosa pine. The new WoodBarter forum makes it hard to enlarge photos, so I really have not looked at your pictures closely. A few density trials on a few of the wood pieces might help a little but most are going to be close.

On a side note, the 1/4 sawn face shows dimpling, post #8 last 2 pictures, a commonly seen feature in pine, but not hemlock, or fir.

Reactions: Great Post 1


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## phinds (Feb 10, 2021)

Mr. Peet said:


> The new WoodBarter forum makes it hard to enlarge photos,


??? Just click on the image and click again


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## Mr. Peet (Feb 10, 2021)

phinds said:


> ??? Just click on the image and click again


Ha, funny. Yes, the user can do so, but for whatever reason, clarity is lost by the second picture. Maybe it is a pixel issue during upload, or is it a limiting factor of the site. Either way, far less user friendly than the old format for this PC.


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## phinds (Feb 10, 2021)

Hm ... I don't see any think I see any degradation.


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## TPS BOCO (Feb 10, 2021)

Thanks for the time and input looking at this. I borrowed a planer and plan to run some through tomorrow- then should be able to get exact density info and better look at the faces. As a token of appreciation, I'll send out sample pieces of each apparent variety to a few people- just let me know.


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## TPS BOCO (Feb 11, 2021)

Update: 
Borrowed a relatively new dewalt planer and test ran a 3' piece of the '2x4' shown above. Just about killed it coming down in 1/128" increments doing both 4x faces twice at each before dropping height. I'll sand to 220,(best I've got) and post pics later....WTF?


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## FranklinWorkshops (Feb 11, 2021)

Lots of pine blocks for children sell on Etsy. Doesn't take much work to make them either. Here are some examples:








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Handmade Wooden Building Blocks Handcrafted Wooden Blocks - Etsy


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__





This item is unavailable - Etsy


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## TPS BOCO (Feb 11, 2021)

FranklinWorkshops said:


> Lots of pine blocks for children sell on Etsy. Doesn't take much work to make them either. Here are some examples:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Talk about death by a million cuts.......


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## TPS BOCO (Feb 11, 2021)

See pics of both sides sanded to 220 after planing. Wiped with damp cloth.


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## 2feathers Creative Making (Feb 12, 2021)

TPS BOCO said:


> Update:
> Borrowed a relatively new dewalt planer and test ran a 3' piece of the '2x4' shown above. Just about killed it coming down in 1/128" increments doing both 4x faces twice at each before dropping height. I'll sand to 220,(best I've got) and post pics later....WTF?


Sounds like you may want to try to pass this stuff off on a reclaimed flooring mill if it is that tough! In my area of tn that brings 5 to 7 per board foot milled into t&g random width. Wide stock brings up to 8 per ft according to their adverts


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