I am in the process of building a reasonable size deck. I have purchased 90x90mm jarrah posts that I intend to run stainless cable through. The posts were from recycled timber (old beams or something). They have been stored in our garage for a few months. Now I am at the stage of needing to use them I noticed they all have quite bad splitting/cracking (which they did not have when purchased). This has made them almost useless (I can see one of my kids getting a VERY bad splinter). Does anybody know is this normal for aged timber? Does anybody have any ideas what I can do? I thought about applying a thick coat of some type of clear epoxy so we do not loose the effect. If this does not work I am thinking of covering them with stainless steel sleeves.