Worth Kiln Drying expense???

[Scota4570]

I would call some vendors of gun stock wood and get their opinion.  Maybe Dunlap and Goby Walnut??

I have heard horror stories about fantastic wood tearing itself apart in the kiln.  Especially a kiln run by an outfit that normally processes softwood.  My opinion is that kiln drying never improves wood, it only speeds up the drying process but at the expense of destroying a certain percentage of the wood. 

[Fiftyfour]

Something else to contend with when air drying wood is powder post beetles.
I had a bunch of maple sawed out to make a work bench and forgot that it was in the barn for several years.
Last winter I started on the bench and about half of the lumber ended up as fire wood.
I'm thankful they did not get into the cherry lumber in the same pile.

[Bigmon]

Thanks to all for the comments, its an interesting subject.
I have decided to not do any kiln drying.
Yesterday I had time to dig out my cherry planks and take a look at whats been happening since I stacked them about 2 1/2 yrs back, under a board pile.
Of the seven planks, one is badly check about the full length several inches in from one side.  I guess that one was cut too close the center.  Its probably too bad for anything with much drop in it at all.
A couple others were cut near the outer part of the tree and will probably only be good for one good long stock each.
But the other four plank are dense and great color and very little sap wood if any.  And very little end checking, no twist or warp, etc.
Should make good stocks.
I re-stacked the plank on top the board pile this time so I can now see whats happening.
Thanks to all

[Blacksmoke]

Bigmon:  You made the right choice!  I have only use kiln dried wood once for a gunstock - never again!  It would not stop checking or moving in relation to all of the inlets.  It is always better to let Mother Nature do the air drying for gunstocks.
  Hugh Toenjes

[Sweeney]

Bigmon:  You made the right choice!  I have only use kiln dried wood once for a gunstock - never again!  It would not stop checking or moving in relation to all of the inlets.  It is always better to let Mother Nature do the air drying for gunstocks.
  Hugh Toenjes

Most of the guns built are done with kiln dried wood. And these likely have had few problems. Being in the wood business I can attest there is some wood that checks and cracks regardless of how it is treated. I see it regularly. Most of my customers demand kiln dried and so I oblige. Kiln dried wood that checks and splits was either not handled/processed properly or as stated it simply is an unavoidable characteristic of that particular tree. Thus is both the frustration and the beauty of hard wood.

[Bigmon]

I am only about 25 miles from the man at Tiger Hunt.  I have always seen him with some great maple but I wonder if he ises Cherry?
I might check out his web site and  / or contact him?
I dug all the (7) planks out and after a quick look over 4 of the seven look pretty darned good.
Even with one of the three a waste and the other two marginal, the four left are more than I'll ever need of all cherry?
Thanks to all for the comments

[Jim Kibler]

Most all commercial wood available is kiln dried.  My sample size of air dried wood isn't huge, but I tend to feel it has worked better.  Especially when carving.  You learn to work with any wood you have, but it's nice to work with a friendly piece.  Most well respected craftsman who work primarly with hand tools (edged tools) tend to agree about the benefits of working air dried stock.

Jim

[Turtle]

 An old builder near me used to dry and store lots of blanks in his barn hayloft. He checked them periodically and burned the ones that developed problems. He said they would never make good stocks. I have one 30 years old with lots of rainy deer hunts on it-no issues.
                              Turtle

[Woodsrunner79]

While we're gathering wisdom. I was given a 14' rustic bar top a neighbor was going to burn. It's bark-on, on one face and poly stained on the top. The ends are untreated, as is the underside. It's 4" thick. Looks to be white pine. Any thoughts on what it's good for? I figured it'd be too soft for gun stocks.

[GANGGREEN]

While we're gathering wisdom. I was given a 14' rustic bar top a neighbor was going to burn. It's bark-on, on one face and poly stained on the top. The ends are untreated, as is the underside. It's 4" thick. Looks to be white pine. Any thoughts on what it's good for? I figured it'd be too soft for gun stocks.

It'd probably make a nice bar top.     Definitely not gun stock material, but maybe a heavy work bench?

[J Henry]

  Think turtle, slow and steady,less stress much happier with finished results.

[Woodsrunner79]

And HEAVY it would be Ganggreen. I'll wager the whole plank is coming in at 175-180lbs.