I am planning on building some outdoor play furniture for my kids out of black locust. I read recently that the seeds, bark, and leaves are poisonous. Should I be concerned with using this wood for something my kids will be in contact with and is there any hazard involved with working this wood? Thanks.
-Mike
Replies
Mike, I'm unaware of any serious toxicity problems with the wood of black locust. It has excellent decay resistance and is a good choice for exterior projects.
Just make sure to keep the design simple enough that it doesn't require a lot of hand tool work...then eat your Wheaties and keep your blades sharp. Black locust is an extremely dense, hard and heavy wood.
Thanks Jon.
As for the toughness of the wood, I appreciate the warning. I've never used it before and was planning on doing everything with power tools and machines. Not much of a wheaties fan anyway.
Black Locust is a great choice. I have not found any problems with it chemically, but whatch out for splinters! They are tough and sharp! I try to use narrow pieces of wood. If I use screws, I use pan heads with washers to avoid splinters from countersinking; I could probably leave out the washers, though. I have built a truck bed, a deck, various horsedrawn farm equiptment, and some nice socket tyoe chisel handles with locust and have been very pleased with it.
Good Luck
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