Does anybody know if they still go after those logs that somtimes get away from log rafts or booms?I was on the west coast in B.C. and the shorlines where covered with old wood ,not to mention the ones that sink in shallow water. Off in distance, I could see tugs, pulling these huge rafts south through the Georgia strait.
if the wood is old enough you can make big money on them.
Why would it be more expensive,perhaps its more stable?
the older the trees the more ring equals more unique it also works much differently.
Hi bigblueox, Yes the older the tree the more beautiful the grain will be,and more dense also. My grandfather made gunstocks and was always looking for old blackwalnut trees because of the beautiful grain in the older trees. He took the logs to a sawmill over on the coast and had the logs sawed in about 4" thick planks, painted the ends and let them dry with stickers in between the planks. I have a Royal Arms AAA blackwalnut rifle stock that is a crotch cut and it is so beautiful.
Picture?
beachcombers not the series I remember.
There is still log salvaging done, however limited to what it used to be. The wood you see on beaches, and there is lots, is mostly no good and of no value. The term "beach worn wood" rocks get into the wood if it is on the beach too long. This damages saws and makes for much waste All wood is now bundled with steel straps, so that there is not nearly as much loose logs that get loose. The log market values also make it prohibitive to certain species of wood. The whole concept takes a lot of explaining,but what I have said to you is pretty much the general reasons.
Beach Combing As there is interest shown here, I will explain a little further how this works. From the Vancouver area to Cape Caution, which is on the BC mainland about the top end of Vancouver Island, is a "closed area" to beach combing. This means you are required to purchase a lisence to perform this. You must give proof of what boat and equipment you own, then it is decided whether you will receive a lisence or not. There is a term "midnight loggers" these are guys who go out at night and steal logs from booms. booming grounds etc. In the area I have described this is controlled by an organization called "Gulf Log Salvage". This is operated under the stewardship of the "Council of Forest Industries" What this means is the valuable logs that have got loose, have a stamp inprinted into the ends of the log from the company who logged them, and mostly these logs have been scaled and stumpage fees have been paid to the forest service for these logs. Therefore if you recover them, you must sell them to the "Gulf Log Receiving Stations". For different species and grades of wood there are different values. Bringing these logs to the receiving station, they will be graded and scaled, and you will receive a small percentage of the market value of these logs. So you can see that if you see a good looking log on the beach, lets say hypothetically the log is worth $400, you may receive $80 for that log. However, above Cape Caution for the rest of the BC coast, you don't have to purchase a lisence, and you can sell the logs to who ever you choose. I may be doing a trip for this purpose in a couple of months. You need to get a permit from the local forestry office, mainly just so they know you are working in the area. Generally you are not allowed to buck anything. Afresh cut end means you may have fell a tree, yarded it in the water and stole it. BELIEVE ME, there is too much of this done. L would expect in Alaska as well. Much akin to cattle rustling. If you find logs on the beach that come from a slide and have roots on, you are alloed to get "a root buck permit" to do this now is easier, as with a digital camera, you can take pictures of logs where they lay, give a GPS lat. & long, so that you can prove where you got them from. I'll stop now, but as you can see, this is not a simple process.
tugman' I don't know anything much about logs. I do know about cattle. What you say does sound familiar as cattle brands and brand inspectors and inspection certificates. You can't 'un-brand' a steer, but fresh bucked logs, the way you say it, sound like there the same as slick (unbranded) calves, always suspicious... Thanks for the explanation of the 'Home on the Watery Range' wrangling (log wrangling)!