Hickory

[STLfirewood]

My wife and I just bought a new home. We are going to do some remodeling before we move in. I really like Hickory floors. I have a Woodmizer and a bunch of hickory trees on the farm. Would it be cost effective to mill these into rough lumber take them somewhere to have the boards made into flooring? Could I just cut them like normal lumber or would I have to 1/4 saw them? O have really nice Hard Maple flooring in my current house. I really like the look of the floor but it marks up pretty easy. Hickory looks a lot like Hard Maple but it's a lot harder surface. Thanks for the answers.

Scott

 

[OH_Varmntr]

You can buy router bits so you can cut your own tongue and groove into your boards for flooring. Just an idea.

As far as it being cost effective, it depends how you value your time. Would it be worth it? I think so!

 

[chads]

Hickory is quite a bit harder than maple. Around 1820 janka to 1430 for maple.
If your going to do more than a couple of boards you should seriously consider using a really good shaper 5hp or so.
I had a friend that had to run 1200 bf of hickory flooring and had to upgrade to a 5hp from a 3 hp to get the job done in a reasonable amount of time.
I think he got a set of amana heads for it also the cheaper ones just wouldn't cut too good.
I think prefinished hickory flooring is about $4-5 per ft here.
They use the finish with AL Oxide in it, that stuff runs about $140 a gal. and lasts alot longer.
I am not so sure it's profitable to run flooring if you don't already have the tools etc.
Somone with a shop would most likely run it for $1-2 per foot Finishing it takes time too.
I have recently put several floors down that were prefinished. and they are quite a bit faster and look pretty good.
The only drawback is that the boards may be off a little on height and since your not sanding it one will stand up a little more than the next once in a while.
Chad

 

[Dave Boyt]

Quarter sawing shouldn't be necessary for hickory, but you certainly want to have the wood kiln dried. My recommendation is to find someone who can both kiln dry and machine the wood. The kiln drying should take the wood to at least 140 degrees F for several hours to kill any bugs. You do not want powerpost beetles in your house. I've found hickory to be the toughest wood to cut. If you find the blade trying to wander in the cut, you might try a blade with a 7 degree hook angle. Keep it sharp and tight.

 

[STLfirewood]

Thanks for the replies. I would have it dried and made into flooring by someone else. I don;t have the tools to finish it into flooring. I would just use my LT 15 to cut the boards. I have cut a few Hickory logs and your right the blade will move some if you not carefull. What kind of pricing should I expect if I take rough sawn board somewhere to bew dried and worked into flooring? Thanks Scott