Anyone make stuff from Ironwood?

Pens and small stuff out of that size, knife handles comes to mind, also hand carvers.

Make a nice carved walking cane!

Chris

My 30 inch DBH stuff became some firewood that split hard!

I seem to remember Dale torma, I think I got the name right? Using iron wood on some woodworking project he was doing. I can't remember which one though.

I have read that you can tap them and make a syrup. I guess they are in the birch family.

I have a beaver-made ironwood walking stick. It had been on the beaver lodge long enough to dry out so that it isn't too heavy to carry. Perfect length and pretty straight which is hard to find. I don't know what I'll do it I ever lose that one. I'm queer about my "favorite beaver sticks".

My Dad used to make chain saw file handles out of it.

My father use to make canes from iron wood. He would let the steam from a pot of boiling just soften the wood fiber and would just bend it into a 90 degree bend and tied it till dry. Now we have all kinds of clamps on the market.

It makes good gluts. Been looking for some, but haven't found any here.

That looks more like hornbeam, also known as muscle wood.

Ironwood is another name for Eastern hophornbean, AKA American hophornbean, AKA musclewood.

Around 10 years ago, a friend and I each carried 2 heavy loads, of Eastern hophornbean about 1 1/2 miles, in really miserably wet and muddy weather. I turned a lot of it, while still green, on a lathe and every single piece, developed around a dozen cracks, nearly all the way through. The pieces I left the bark on, only had a minimum amount of cracking on the ends. I never did end up finishing anything out of it. I think most of it is still in my friend's shop. The pieces with the bark on got much lighter and are extremely hard. I should grab some of it. One piece in particular, would make a nice staff. Most of the pieces I turned were to thick to carry around.

Keith

Pistol and revolver grips.

Hammer and hatchet handles.

I have used it to male splitting maul handles, they will take a beating.

firewood,i am eliminating all of it here to give the thornapple and nut trees a better shot.have some thats 16-20 in across.

It’s at the top of the list in BTU ratings. Higher than almost any other wood species, burns almost like coal.

sure does Lug and actually dries pretty easily.

Carpinus caroliniana Is American Hornbeam/ironwood/musclewood.

Ostrya virginiana Is Ironwood/American hophornbeam.


Basically the term ironwood is used for a class of tree whose wood is extremely hard, and species vary from region to region across the states.

The tree pictured above is what is referred to as musclewood because of the shape and feel of the tree.

Close to 20 years ago i made a "coon combine" out of a nice piece . Its been used probably every year since and there is hardly a mark on it . It allows me to combine coon , coyote and fox into the back of my truck in the suburbs .

I think the tree in the photo is blue beech, sometimes called muscle wood because of the looks of its smooth and striated bark. Hophornbeam is ironwood and is a lot harder and tougher. It has a rougher and scalely bark. I got them confused long ago and cut, dried and carved a self bow from blue beech in the photo. What a waste of time. Hophornbeam is the wood you want if you need a harder and stronger wood.