# Poplar Question



## OcoeeG (Nov 20, 2008)

I am new to milling so I have many questions. One of my first projects is going to be milling up a big old Poplar into fence railings to fence off some patsture. I was planning on making it about 5/4ish thick, drying it and then resawing it on a table saw. A friend of mine said poplar does not do well in the sun and wouldn't do well in this application. I plan on painting it. What says ye on this topic. Is it worth sawing this huge poplar into fence rails or not?

Saw comes Monday, CAN'T WAIT to start milling!!!!


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## Sawyer Rob (Nov 20, 2008)

OcoeeG said:


> I am new to milling so I have many questions. One of my first projects is going to be milling up a big old Poplar into fence railings to fence off some patsture. I was planning on making it about 5/4ish thick, drying it and then resawing it on a table saw. A friend of mine said poplar does not do well in the sun and wouldn't do well in this application. I plan on painting it. What says ye on this topic. Is it worth sawing this huge poplar into fence rails or not?
> 
> Saw comes Monday, CAN'T WAIT to start milling!!!!



Resaw it to what?? Do you mean resaw it to width? I'd want "at least" 6/4 for fence rails!!

Poplar will do fine "IF" you air dry it first! And paint it well... It takes and holds paint well, and you need to keep it painted. That is, if you want those fence rails to last... It won't last long as post though...

Rob


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## woodshop (Nov 20, 2008)

Sawyer Rob said:


> Resaw it to what?? Do you mean resaw it to width? I'd want "at least" 6/4 for fence rails!!
> 
> Poplar will do fine "IF" you air dry it first! And paint it well... It takes and holds paint well, and you need to keep it painted. That is, if you want those fence rails to last... It won't last long as post though...
> 
> Rob



Pretty much what I would say... Tulip poplar (called whitewood in some parts) is about as good as it gets as far as taking paint which is why it makes such good interior trim. It's not very weather or rot resistant though, so like Rob says you have to keep paint on it. Lot of work. Flip side to that is those that say the way for it to last the longest is don't paint it at all, just let it weather till it's gray. Their point is paint will sometimes hold moisture IN , especially at joints or where they connect to the posts, and then act like a coating that can't breath all that well and thus rot starts there. With no paint at all at least the wood dries out. What I've done with pine and I assume poplar would also work, is give the bare wood a good coat of wood preservative, and then let it weather till grey. Doesn't look as nice as a white painted fence, but the fence I've done that way actually lasted longer than the same pine picket fence that I painted with good quality exterior latex house paint.


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## BlueRidgeMark (Nov 20, 2008)

I wouldn't use poplar on a fence, unless you like a high-maintenance fence. Did someone mention lot of paint? 

Lots of paint. Frequently.


It's a nice wood... indoors.


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## OcoeeG (Nov 20, 2008)

Thanks guys, that is why I asked. I wasn't sure. Yes, I was planning on cuttin slabs letting them dry and then resawing them to width. 
Other than cedar what would be a good wood for fencing. There are plenty of cedars out here but not many big ones. Gotta let the little ones grow a while.


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## Sawyer Rob (Nov 21, 2008)

OcoeeG said:


> Thanks guys, that is why I asked. I wasn't sure. Yes, I was planning on cuttin slabs letting them dry and then resawing them to width.
> Other than cedar what would be a good wood for fencing. There are plenty of cedars out here but not many big ones. Gotta let the little ones grow a while.



REDWOOD!! lol lol OK, i bet you don't have any of those lieing around either...


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## ebath (Nov 21, 2008)

OcoeeG,

Many of the older barns here in Central Virginia are made from Poplar, including mine. It is seventy years old, and was made with 6/4 boards. It was never painted. The bottom of some boards have rotted because they are near the ground.

I built a solar kiln this past spring and used poplar straight off the mill (wet). I coated it with an oil based deck preservative and it still looks new. No cracks or warpage. I kept the boards about eight inches off the ground and coated the ends with the deck preservative so they would not suck up moisture.

BTW, resawing is cutting across the width of a plank to get thinner boards. This would be dangerous on a table saw and you would be limited to very narrow boards. Cutting across the thickness is ripping. 


Ed


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## OcoeeG (Nov 21, 2008)

Poplar it is then!!It will be the railing of the fence so there will be no ground contact i had planned on putting a wood preservative on it anyway. Thanks for your help


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## Brmorgan (Nov 22, 2008)

I assume you're talking about poplars of the Aspen family, not a Tulip poplar, right? If so, you should be OK if you use some kind of preservative on it. My dad used small poplar trees (< 4") to replace some broken fence rails on their horse corral, and they didn't hold as well as the pine or fir ones that were already there. For one, the sun really breaks down the wood fibers quickly, and second, the wood just isn't as strong so the horse broke quite a few scratching itself or leaning over to eat grass on the other side. But they were cheap and easy.

Also, the term "resawing" can refer to any re-sizing of wood in any direction, not necessarily just thickness. At least in a sawmill anyway, where 90% or more of the time it refers to re-edging (ripping) into narrower stock to remove edgewane etc.


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## OcoeeG (Nov 22, 2008)

Nope, I am talking about Tulip Poplar. Sorry, here in the southeast US I doubt we have many of the other kind. But I could be wrong. Are Tulip poplar better?


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## woodshop (Nov 22, 2008)

OcoeeG said:


> Nope, I am talking about Tulip Poplar. Sorry, here in the southeast US I doubt we have many of the other kind. But I could be wrong. Are Tulip poplar better?



Having milled and worked both in my woodshop, I will tell you for most applications tulip poplar is a much better wood . Less "fuzz" when planing and machining... it is harder and will sand to a cleaner finish.


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