High-quality burl wood can run $5 a pound. A large trunk can clock in at 10,000 pounds, so “you have to put out $50,000 before you even cut it.”
What do you do with tree burls?
WHAT ARE BURLS USED FOR? Because the pattern or grain of burl wood is so irregular and uneven and so different from straight lumber graining, burl is not used for structures or where bearing weight is required. Burl is typically made into veneer panels, inserts, and for furniture slabs and instrument making.
Every piece of burl wood is unique, and this is one reason they are considered rare and valuable. They come in a variety of sizes and have different grains and color of wood. In fact, it would be near impossible to find two pieces exactly alike.
How do I sell burl wood?
eBay is a good place to sell Box Elder burl because there’s a few guys, one in particular who dyes and stabilizes woods and resells it mostly as knife scales (because they are so profitable) but also as pistol grip blanks. eBay can actually be a good place in your situation.
High-end burls can sometimes sell for $3 to $4 a pound. And the burls can weigh several thousand pounds. With the costs involved, you sometimes break even. Sometimes you make money, but the burl business isn’t a glamorous job.
What is the most expensive burl wood?
Burls Just Wanna Have Fun
If you sort a wood iPhone case collection by price, you’ll notice that the most expensive KerfCase money can buy is the Amboyna Burl case. At a wallet-walloping $409 starting price, it handily beats out other interesting wood types on price, such as our spalted maple and figured walnut cases.
Can you cut a burl off a live tree?
You should never cut burl wood from a living tree. Excising a bit of its trunk can kill the entire plant. No matter how beautiful a burl you have found, you need to skip it if the tree’s still alive.
Removing a small burl from a tree is straightforward: simply cut a little below where the burl is attached. Larger burls are not so easy. It is my feeling that harvesting burls is somewhat like cutting diamonds: there is a knack to it.
How do you sell wood trees?
It’s generally much easier to sell trees in a woodlot harvest, where many trees are sold and harvested at the same time. To cut down your tree, a timber buyer must bring in laborers, a log truck, skidder, loader, and other equipment. The buyer must cut the logs and haul them to the mill to sell.
Where is burl wood found?
A burl is a tree growth in which the grain has grown in a deformed manner. It is usually found on the trunk, at the base of the tree, and sometimes underground in the form of a rounded outgrowth.
What causes burls on oak trees?
A burl results from a tree undergoing some form of stress. It may be caused by an injury, virus or fungus. Almost all burl wood is covered by bark, even if it is underground. Insect infestation and certain types of mold infestation are the most common causes of this condition.
The surprising story behind the beautiful, rare wood. Because the grain is twisted and interlocked, burl wood is extremely dense and resistant to splitting. Burls have become so valuable that poachers have even been known to cut them from the side of trees in national parks, such as the ancient redwoods in California.
How much is a walnut burl worth?
Walnut burls, depending on their size, weight and texture, can be worth as much as $5,000 to $25,000 — sometimes even more — to end buyers. Their marble-like appearance makes them choice material for crafting handmade clocks, fine custom furniture, fancy gunstocks and dashboards for foreign sports cars.
How much is cherry burl worth?
Cherry burls, like most other species, can be quite valuable because of the variations of the reds in the wood combined with cherry being a very good to work with for pretty much any sort of woodworking. I have seen pricing range from $0.25-2.00 on green wood by the pound to $10-25 per board foot.
How can you tell if wood is burl?
Burls can be identified by sight and touch.
Walk near trees to observe their roots. Normal roots grow outward from the trunk and have a long, snakelike appearance. Examine the tree trunks. Touch the bark on the suspected burl if you can reach it. Look up and observe the tree branches.
