Norway Maple - Fort Wayne, IN

Milled July 3, 2019

Curdes Ave

This 7’ Norway maple log came from the Parks and Recreation Dept. of Fort Wayne. I saw their crane drive past my house through the picture window in my living room, and just barely visible above the fence was this log!

Way too excited (and as I am typically known to do) I ran outside, jumped in the car, and chased down the crane thinking this was an ash log at first. The crew just so happened to be cutting down another maple in decline just down the street from my house so I was able to convince them to drop off this log in the side yard of my house.

There was some rot on the one side that turned out to be of minimal issue, and was the catalyst for the beautiful surprise of staining and false heartwood. I believe this rot is why the city flagged the tree for removal. I am not exactly sure where it came from (I forgot to ask the crew…doh.) Consistent throughout the top 1/4 of this log is some compression in the grain that creates that gorgeous flame maple - notorious in high end guitars.

Wow this log is a beauty and will make some nice, smaller dining tables.

These slabs will be dry by summer 2021.

Thank you, Fort Wayne!