# dead standing pine question



## MidGAOutdoor (Apr 7, 2011)

i milled some dead standing pine that i felled back in february. i did this yesterday and today its showing 16%mc. it smells good, looks dry, feels dry sounds dry etc. can this be?


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## ETWW (Mar 27, 2011)

I've sawn quite a bit of beetle-killed Pine over the past year. The drought we've had stresses the trees and the Pine Borers finish them off.

If the tree has been dead <6 months, it is usually very sound throughout. I've sawn some that had been dead a year+ although the outer third wasn't usable. I used the inner, firmer wood for siding planks.

The 16% MC sounds too low, especially since the trees were felled in February...not a lot of heat to facilitate drying. A dead tree/log will usually rot due to fungal activity which requires > 20 MC before it ever gets that dry.

But, if it is at 16% or even close, chalk one up for the good guys and saw some more of it. :yes:


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## MidGAOutdoor (Apr 7, 2011)

last summer is when i really started looking back there. im sure they were dead a while before that so a good year. ome of them were too far gone but i got some good 2-1/8 table top parts from them. 2 half log coat rack blanks and 1 2-1/8. they were 6-8 in diameter give or takea few. there were 20something logs 4-5ft long big enough to saw. the rest i can use for log legs etc.


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