It will definitely be a lot of work and you will have a lot of scrap,
shavings, splits etc Be prepared for a fair amount of waste wood as you
split, hack and hew down to workable stock. The splits and splints dry out
quickly and lend themselves to kindling.

You'll need a brake perhaps?   Follansbee has blogged about using a forked
branch on the ground, with two limbs close together, as a spot to wedge
stock while splitting it. If a branch from your downed oak fits that bill,
the arborist might put that aside for you.
https://pfollansbee.wordpress.com/2012/08/01/riving-brakes-boxes-etc/


Have fun! I was only ever able to access green wood blocks from the County
Arborist dump pile on the way home from pre school. The back of the mini
van was often loaded with a stroller and a few logs. Nothing longer than a
15 inches but made a whole bunch of little stool and benches of dubious
stability and wood choice, but it was all green and fun to work.
Michael


On Sat, May 8, 2021 at 4:47 AM John M. Johnston 
wrote:

> Galoots assembled,
> I’ve a lovely old white oak tree in my yard that is suffering from massive
> root rot and will be taken down May 25th. It measures about 36 inches in
> diameter near the base and has a couple of good long straight runs in the
> trunk where there are no branches.
>
> Ever since my Peace Corps days in the early Seventies, the Whole Earth
> Catalog, and the publication of the first edition of Alexander’s Making a
> Chair From a Tree (3rd edition due in July), I’ve wanted to make a chair
> from a tree.
>
> While I’ve built lots of 18th century fine furniture, I’ve never done any
> green wood working.  I’m sure I could get the arborist to cut a 5 foot long
> log from a straight segment of the trunk, so that would be the starting
> point.  I ordered the 2nd edition DVD of Making a Chair From a Tree to get
> an overview of the process, necessary tools, etc.
>
>  Am I out of my mind to consider such a project?
> Your collective wise counsel is appreciated.
>
> Cheers,
>
> John M. Johnston
>
> “P.S. If you do not receive this, of course it must have been miscarried;
> therefore I beg you to write and let me know.” - Sir Boyle Roche, M.P.
>
>
>
>
> 
>
>
>

-- 
Michael