# Is Apple tree wood usable for woodworking??



## jaguar1201 (Feb 4, 2015)

I came to the wood species forum in search of an answer from the experts as to the worthiness of apple tree wood in wood working projects. Is it a "soft" or "hard" wood? What is its workability on lathe, router, drill, saw etc? What is the best application for apple wood? I ask these questions because I will need to take down an expired apple tree in my backyard this year. The trunk diameter is about 8", and some branches are 4", so the wood yield could be promising for some project, after suitable drying time. Any tips are sought.
Rick


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## PhilBa (Sep 25, 2014)

The Wood Database is a great source of info. It has an entry for Apple.

Lots of movement when drying, looks a lot like cherry and is very hard. I bet you could get some fabulous grain from old and tortured trees, though. 

Let us know how it works out for you. My wife is from Wenatchee, WA which is the center of the Apple growing universe (at least they think so) - could be an interesting source there.


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

I knew someone who used it for turnings on his lathe. He was always looking for it so he must have liked it.


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## TwoSkies57 (Feb 23, 2009)

Hard to come by in any real (large) sizes! Make sure it has dried, and dried well. Beautiful stuff when ya get a good board or two. Well worth the effort to try and 
salvage what you can from the tree. Branch wood is hit and miss with most speices, but if you've the mind, dry some and see where it goes. Older tree's tend to spalt. 
when they do, you can end up with some outstanding looking wood.


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## jaguar1201 (Feb 4, 2015)

Thank you for the info about apple tree wood. Phil, I did look at THE WOOD DATABASE at your suggestion and it provided much needed information that I was seeking. I will proceed to salvage what I can from this tree. I planted it myself a few years ago, and whatever apples I did not get the local deer population stopped by and enjoyed. My peach tree and cherry tree are still alive. When I bought this acre in 1989 there were three cherry and even a pear tree, but when they died I did not think to save the wood .

Is a two year indoor drying period adequate for the wood after cutting?
Rick


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

The general rule of thumb is one year per inch of thickness. You have to be careful drying inside. It can be too dry or too wet depending on where you put it. I would paint the ends to help keep the moisture loss as even as possible. Uneven drying causes cracking and warpage. Painting melted parafin on works well too.


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## Fraise (May 19, 2012)

I have a baby's rattle that a woodturner made during a demonstration out of a piece of apple. I smelled great and the baby loved it. He's getting married next month. Where did the 30 years go?


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## mark greenbaum (Sep 26, 2010)

That wood is absolutely no use for wood working. Send it to me for disposal. 

I love turning fruit wood of any sort. Always a surprise, and a joy to turn into a bowl, lidded jar, rolling pin, dreidel, etc.


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## gmercer_48083 (Jul 18, 2012)

Rick, Apple wood is prized for making wooden hand planes.


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## Shadowrider (Apr 1, 2015)

Don't throw out the little pieces, apple is wonderful wood for ribs and brisket in the smoker.


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

We're gradually working our way to 1001 uses for apple wood.


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## denniswoody (Dec 11, 2011)

Probably the branches will not yield much that is usable. Branch wood is also somewhat unstable. The trunk is certainly worth salvaging. I use apple for making boxes so I start with lengths of 15 to 24 inches or so. I cut 1 inch widths using my band saw then air dry them for one to two years. Keep them well stickered with weight on top. Ends painted of course. Here is a box I finished a while back. The box is apple and the top is maple if I recall correctly.


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## jaguar1201 (Feb 4, 2015)

Again thanks for the tips on apple wood. I appreciate Charles's drying tips and possible project uses for the wood when it is ready, and Gary, your hybrid woods box is lovely. I presume that what I have learned in the last day is that the tree pieces must be slab sawed into actual boards to start the drying process, and to coat the ends with paint or wax. My original thinking was to let it dry as complete round stumps that were ~ 24-30" long, and then, after the appropriate drying time had elapsed, saw it into boards, or turning squares.
Rick


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## DaninVan (Jan 1, 2012)

Rick; the splits often (mostly) happen at the ends, so absolutely longer planks would be the way to go. Don't run them through your planer until you're actually ready to use them.
Finding a storage place with low, stable humidity and air flow is the real challenge.


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## jaguar1201 (Feb 4, 2015)

Thanks for the drying advice Dan. I have a former coach house that I was planing to store the lumber in. It is no longer heated, but it will be dry from precipitation. In good weather I can get great air circulation by leaving doors/windows open. In fact when I do open them it can be like a small wind tunnel. I do not wish to store the lumber in the main house basement but I could, as I have the room to do so. The first step is to cut the tree down.
Rick


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## DaninVan (Jan 1, 2012)

Good luck, Rick! Sounds like you've got the perfect woodworker's man cave there.
Wifey won't let me do any tree cutting while the birdies are canoodling.
The Western Dogwood I had my eye on made a dramatic health recovery over the Winter so now _that's_ on SWMBO's Do Not Touch list. 
(I can't even prune the California Lilac 'cause the Hummers have set up housekeeping in _it_. )


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

Ah yes, the things we have to do to keep the domestic peace.


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## Fraise (May 19, 2012)

I have been interdicted from cutting lilac just today. Apparently it looks nice.


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## DaninVan (Jan 1, 2012)

Aaaaand the award for 'Perfect Planning' goes to John! Well done, John; you set a high standard for all of us slackers!! LOL!


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## Fraise (May 19, 2012)

*Plants*

You will understand I am not a gardener. I am the gardener's labourer. :smile:


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## phillipsted (Sep 26, 2014)

gmercer_48083 said:


> Rick, Apple wood is prized for making wooden hand planes.


It is also a traditional wood for the totes on Western-style hand saws.

TedP


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## ngk20000 (Jan 3, 2011)

Apple wood is obviously a "fruitwood". Pear, apricot, cherry, etc. come to mind. Most have desirable wood properties. Many are very desired for "turning". One problem is finding trees (stock) big enough. In addition to the typical smaller diameters, many of these species are rather short in mature height. Another problem is longevity as a living tree.....many have aging problems and orchard managers tend to prune for short heights to assist in ease of harvesting the fruits. One exception might be pear. And as with most lumber, a woodworker wants to avoid the pieces (lumber) with that nasty central growth ring.


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## jaguar1201 (Feb 4, 2015)

*Update on apple & cherry tree takedown*

Well folks, today was the day when the monsoon rainy season stopped here in northeast OH, and the sun was out, so my dead apple and cherry trees were cut down. I experimented with coating the ends of the limbs with melting paraffin wax, and it was an easy process with my propane torch. The smaller diameter limbs, when dried/cured will be used for turning on my lathe. The larger diameter trunk sections will be slabbed into boards. In a year or so, I will add an update.
Rick


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## Eastjack (Dec 29, 2008)

One of the lazy susans I posted pics of in show and tell has an apple wood surround. It is the one with very dark wood near the outside of the marquetry. The apple had some spalting and interesting grain. As others have said it is very hard and burns easily during ripping. I use it in small pieces for decorative banding as well.


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## malongi (Jan 12, 2018)

jaguar1201 said:


> I came to the wood species forum in search of an answer from the experts as to the worthiness of apple tree wood in wood working projects. Is it a "soft" or "hard" wood? What is its workability on lathe, router, drill, saw etc? What is the best application for apple wood? I ask these questions because I will need to take down an expired apple tree in my backyard this year. The trunk diameter is about 8", and some branches are 4", so the wood yield could be promising for some project, after suitable drying time. Any tips are sought.
> Rick


It would be best in your smoker.


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## DesertRatTom (Jul 3, 2012)

jaguar1201 said:


> Apple Wood: Is it a "soft" or "hard" wood?
> Rick


It is a hard wood. The designation is for trees that lose their leaves in the fall/winter.


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## TwoSkies57 (Feb 23, 2009)

Applewood covers alot of ground simply because of the number of various speices. 

My experience has been: (based on very limited use) 

1: it is HARD...harder than sugar (hard) maple. 
hard on edged tools! tends to burn easily if your not careful, but it does take an edge/profile beautifully

2: Prior to use, it has got to be dry, which takes a good bit of time when compared to some other domestics. 

3: very susceptible to seasonal movement. More so than other domestics. 

4: An excellent choice for tool use, ie. totes, plane body, saw handles, spoke shaves, mallets etc...
when it comes to furniture, turners like it, box makers, inlay and small decorative pieces 

5: Spalting is not uncommon, in fact this IMHO adds excellent character to the wood. Can be kinda buggy/wormy. 
Keep an eye out for punk wood as well.

I've only ever run across it in small privately owned mills/kilns. And always in smallish pieces and very limited quantities.


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

I live in one of the 2 main apple growing regions of North America, the Canadian Okanagan Valley and the south part of it in Washington State. If the tree came from an orchard then it probably only has about 4 to 5 feet of trunk before it starts branching out and orchardists like to max the height out at around 12'. That's why you're unlikely to find anything long. I've known guys who got wood for turning from orchards that were taking over mature trees out or taking them out to replant with new more desirable species. It turns very nicely according to them.

That was the old way of growing apples. The new way is to plant the trees much closer together and only allow them to get about 8' tall and maybe 3 to 4' wide. I suspect that trees will be replanted more often too since one of the issues with the older trees is that those species of apples have declined in popularity (Macs and spartans for example) so the current strategy may be to replant more often to avoid that. Of course this means that apple wood will be even harder to find than before. Anybody really wanting some will have their best bet by finding a tree removal service who take them from people's yards where the trees have gotten too large and possibly dangerous.


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## DaninVan (Jan 1, 2012)

On the subject of saving fruitwood, sort of in the same category is Holly [Ilex opaca]. If you're getting rid of one don't wreck the wood; it's lovely stuff.
About the same hardness (Janka scale) as Black Walnut. Maybe not a lot of fun to work with though.
Holly | The Wood Database - Lumber Identification (Hardwood)
Ilex opaca


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## Dejure (Jul 27, 2009)

I live in apple country too - Eastern Washington, USA. Since I am surrounded by thousands of acres of apple orchards and it's not uncommon to see hundreds of acres uprooted to plant new varieties of apples, I use a lot of fruit wood.

Apple has a lot of nice color and is dense, so it makes great kitchen utensils and turnings. If you can get big enough pieces, you can make bowls, small boxes and so on.


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

Are down somewhere between Omak and Wenatchee Kelly?


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## Dejure (Jul 27, 2009)

Here is some of the apple I've put to use.


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## TwoSkies57 (Feb 23, 2009)

DaninVan said:


> On the subject of saving fruitwood, sort of in the same category is Holly [Ilex opaca]. If you're getting rid of one don't wreck the wood; it's lovely stuff.
> About the same hardness (Janka scale) as Black Walnut. Maybe not a lot of fun to work with though.
> Holly | The Wood Database - Lumber Identification (Hardwood)
> Ilex opaca


I do a good deal of work with American Holly, stringing, accent and inlay mostly. A chess table once..beautiful wood. Especially when its white as snow and clear. Never thought to look up just how hard it was....thats a interesting little ditty you posted! Kinda took me by surprise. 
thanks!!


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## Herb Stoops (Aug 28, 2012)

I have posted theis before, box made with spalted apple


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## Dejure (Jul 27, 2009)

About twenty miles south of Vantage. More specifically, about five miles south of Mattawa. Even more specifically, in Desert Aire.

Was born and raised in Ephrata, until 59, when my dad took over the Northcross Highway. 

Then, around 70, Uncle Sam made me an offer I couldn't refuse. After getting back home to Washington, have lived in various places, until I landed here.




Cherryville Chuck said:


> Are down somewhere between Omak and Wenatchee Kelly?


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

I used to go down the other side of the Columbia through Ellensburg back in the early 70's going back and forth from here to Portland. I remember most of the apples being north of you. Interesting country. On one side of the Cascades it's rain forest and the other side is a desert.


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## Dejure (Jul 27, 2009)

We are surrounded by thousands of acres of apples and vineyards. Lot of row crops too. Area has grown a lot in fifty years.


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