# Pallets



## tomwilson74 (Feb 14, 2018)

Anybody ever find unusual wood in a pallet? I’ve found walnut and mahogany. A friend recently gave me some Brazilian Cherry he got from a tractor shop in a pallet.


----------



## woodtickgreg (Feb 14, 2018)

I find stuff like that in pallets all the time, don't always know what it is though. I have found walnut, cherry, sycamore, mahogany or something that looks like it, found some curly maple just the other day.
What I saw in the pallet.


 

 my pallet breaker.


 

 the yield, I took a whole pallet apart for 2 boards, lol.


 very nice curl in these though.

Reactions: Like 7


----------



## Spinartist (Feb 15, 2018)

In Miami pallets show up from South America made from purple heart

Reactions: Like 4


----------



## Lou Currier (Feb 15, 2018)

Spinartist said:


> In Miami pallets show up from South America made from purple heart



I guess when you’re moving cocain you want to make sure you use quality shipping materials

Reactions: Like 2 | Funny 7


----------



## Mr. Peet (Feb 15, 2018)

woodtickgreg said:


> I find stuff like that in pallets all the time, don't always know what it is though. I have found walnut, cherry, sycamore, mahogany or something that looks like it, found some curly maple just the other day.
> What I saw in the pallet.
> View attachment 141828 View attachment 141829 my pallet breaker.
> View attachment 141830 View attachment 141831 the yield, I took a whole pallet apart for 2 boards, lol.
> ...



Looks like Cottonwood...

Reactions: Agree 1


----------



## woodtickgreg (Feb 15, 2018)

Mr. Peet said:


> Looks like Cottonwood...


Nope, definitely maple for the runners, top boards might be but I pitched them. A couple of scrapes with a block plane revealed quarter sawn markings of maple to confirm.


----------



## Mr. Peet (Feb 15, 2018)

Thanks Greg,

West coast pallet? I assume, as Sugar maple just doesn't commonly show curl that wide, or is it not really as wide as it looks? Looks 1/2 and greater.

I see the cottonwood group used often in runners. Absorbs shock better. Of coarse, they might have by now criteria on what woods to use for certain gross weight pallet loads. Or maybe still a crap shot deal... Look forward to seeing a finished product.


----------



## woodtickgreg (Feb 15, 2018)

Here in michigan we see a ton of hardwood pallets, it's just amazing what I have pulled out of pallets. Here's a little tip for you all (lumber liquidators) they get a bunch of stuff imported and they just pitch the pallets after they unload them, the pallets are usually made out of the same stuff as the flooring.

Reactions: Like 1 | Informative 2


----------



## Eric Rorabaugh (Feb 15, 2018)

Spinartist said:


> In Miami pallets show up from South America made from purple heart


Bragger

Reactions: Like 1 | Agree 1 | Funny 1


----------



## Lou Currier (Feb 15, 2018)




----------



## Spinartist (Feb 15, 2018)

Eric Rorabaugh said:


> Bragger




I didn't say I got any of them. A friend of mine did.


----------



## Eric Rorabaugh (Feb 15, 2018)

Ahh okay. What's the problem?


----------



## Spinartist (Feb 15, 2018)

Eric Rorabaugh said:


> Ahh okay. What's the problem?




Problem?? I didn't get any of them. Yes... a problem.

Reactions: Funny 2


----------



## Herb G. (Mar 19, 2018)

A little late to reply here, but better late than never huh?

Nobody mentioned that some pallets are sprayed with chemicals to kill bug larvae before shipping them.
I used to work in a warehouse where we had stuff shipped in from all over the world.
Some of the pallets were sprayed with a green chemical that burned the crap out of your skin if you touched it with bare hands. A lot of pallets these days are sprayed with blue stuff that is nasty to handle too.
You see a lot of it these days in lumber big box stores where wood is shipped on them.

We had a machine that ripped apart the pallets automatically.
We just stacked the pallets up on one end of it, and it did the rest.
It would break the pallets apart, stack them on another pallet, and wrap it with those steel bands to hold it together. I don't know where they went after they left the warehouse, but it affected our breathing for days after we busted those damned green pallets all day.

That said, I have found some nice wood on pallets before. I got a whole pallet made from curly oak once.
I've seen a lot of wood on pallets that was nice, but I had no idea what it was at the time.

If you get any pallets from overseas, I highly suggest you pressure wash them outdoors and let them dry completely before taking them apart. If you catch a lung full of that sprayed on crap, you will surely know it.

Reactions: Like 1 | Thank You! 1 | Informative 3


----------



## frankp (Apr 12, 2018)

I've found a bunch of stuff. Mahogany, Chinese Elm, something that looks like padauk, and a couple of others that are harder to tell.


----------



## Neko2 (Apr 12, 2018)

I just ended up with curly something, maple maybe and lots of smooth planed knotty pine 1x8.


----------



## Mike1950 (Apr 12, 2018)

mine all end up bein....

Reactions: Like 1 | Agree 2 | Funny 3


----------



## goosefoot33 (Apr 13, 2018)

I've got a nice collection from pallets: clear flatsawn all-heart Walnut, curly Maple, spalted Ash, Aromatic cedar, Quartersawn White Oak.
I am wary of random re-used pallets though... you never know what kind of chemicals have been spilled on them, or where they have been. I generally stay away from pallet lumber, unless it is too nice to walk away from.

Reactions: Like 1


----------



## Neko2 (Apr 13, 2018)

Mine are usually all 1st trip and made in the same mill that my paper is.
Random mystery pallets... 
I guess it depends on how pretty the wood is.


----------

