Guest Johnman330 Posted March 16, 2012 Share Posted March 16, 2012 Im helping a friend make some wooden boxes for a 1914 REO to mount on the siderails and wanted to use the same type of wood they used back then for the spokes on the wheels. Does anyone know if this is Hickory or Ash wood? Thanks in advance for all your help. -- John:confused: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gavinnz Posted March 16, 2012 Share Posted March 16, 2012 (edited) I work with wood a bit, and at the end of the day if it was me I would get some samples of both and put the final finish on the samples and compare them to the wood in the wheels.Their are a few things to keep in mind.... most will not matter but then again they might....1. In those days they would have probably used the best wood and burned the rest for heating, so be carefull you get the good wood today... as now they sell everything to us.2. The wood supplies they used in 1914 might be "older trees" that might a differnt look to modern trees harvested younger... maybe, maybe not. 3. Wood changes colour over time.... so to get the "right" colour that will match you might want to do a type of stain on the new wood for the boxes to get a better match.4. Wood for wheels had to be very dry, so make sure the wood you use is also very dry as that can effect the final colour and look of the timber.Just some thoughts. Good luck!regardsGavin New Zealand Edited March 17, 2012 by gavinnz (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Mochet Posted March 17, 2012 Share Posted March 17, 2012 I think you'll find that wood spokes were of hickory, John. Ash was used for the body framing.Phil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rusty_OToole Posted March 17, 2012 Share Posted March 17, 2012 I don't know about REO but have seen several references to the material used for wooden wheels at that time and it was always "second growth hickory".You might find the info in advertisements or spec sheets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Layden B Posted March 17, 2012 Share Posted March 17, 2012 My understanding is that the best spokes were second growth Shagbark hickory. Very few very cheap low quality wheels were ash. As Mochet said, ash was used for body framing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terry Bond Posted March 21, 2012 Share Posted March 21, 2012 Try this link to Bill Calimer's wheel shop in PA. It has a lot of info about making wheels and I'm sure you'll find it enjoyable and educational. I'm just getting ready to start finishing some wheels Bill did for my 1914 T. Was going to start a new thread on that topic.TerryCalimers Wheel Shop: Wooden Wheels Made for Antique Autos. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Johnman330 Posted March 21, 2012 Share Posted March 21, 2012 Thanks everyone the information was deffinately useful. Im going to go ahead and try hickory once their done ill post pics. Thanks again -- John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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