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Cedar Cedar Cedar, I'm sick of freaking Cedar.

Started by dad2nine, August 06, 2006, 11:05:32 PM

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dad2nine

I'm building a huge deck around our above ground 30' swimming pool. I'm just plain burnt out on cedar. I found 100's of 16' plus cedar logs that have been stacked on a farm not far from my house. They have been stacked there going on 4 years now, on the outside there all gray and cracked, but open them up and their dry as a bone and no splits, They are making beatuful lumber. As a matter of fact they are so dry, they saw best without any water. The cedars are making an awesome deck, but I sure could stand to have some hardwood on the mill, I long for a little oak or black walnut, etc... anything but cedar. This too shall pass, I know, but I just wished the deck were done already. Only 25 more 4x4 posts left to sink. If I would have had to buy this much cedar lumber from the lumber yard, I could have bought 2 wood mizers. I must say in the short amount of time I have owned my WM it has paid for it'self atleast twice. I love the mill, just not liking cedar at the moment.  :D


scsmith42

I get a major headache when cedar is being milled.  Don't know if this is normal or just me...

Congrats on scoring your logs - please let me know if there are any left over!

Scott
Peterson 10" WPF with 65' of track
Smith - Gallagher dedicated slabber
Tom's 3638D Baker band mill
and a mix of log handling heavy equipment.

ScottAR

You're not alone...  I feel a twinge in my head at the moment of smell.
I have a headache in just a few minutes of exposure...  I just avoid it if
at all possible which stinks as I like the look of the wood...
Scott
"There is much that I need to do, even more that I want to do, and even less that I can do."
[Magicman]

SwampDonkey

I like cedar. A few years ago I visited a camp that was totally rebuilt from eastern (northern) white cedar. Nice stuff.  :)
"No amount of belief makes something a fact." James Randi

1 Thessalonians 5:21

2020 Polaris Ranger 570 to forward firewood, Husqvarna 555 XT Pro, Stihl FS560 clearing saw and continuously thinning my ground, on the side. Grow them trees. (((o)))

Bibbyman

This spring we sawed out the decking for a deck about 40x40 with a 25' above ground pool out of it out of eastern red cedar.  No problems at all.  I asked the customer if he was going to put some kind of finish on it to keep the color and he said no, his wife wanted it to turn gray to match the color of their house.

Got pictures?
Wood-Mizer LT40HDE25 Super 25hp 3ph with Command Control and Accuset.
Sawing since '94

tcsmpsi

Aw, shucks, dad.  You know I feel so for you.
Ah, you poor darlin'.
:D

Yeah, like Bibby said.

Where's them pictures?
\\\"In the end, it is a moral question as to whether man applies what he has learned or not.\\\" - C. Jung

jkj

Many people are allergic to eastern red cedar.  When woodturning, my arms break out into a rash if I allow sawdust to get to my skin.  Some people report respiratory problems as well.  I wear long sleeves and a forced-air filtered hood or respirator when sanding.

But I can't get enough ERC to saw.  I pulled all the standing dead cedar out of my woods and cut into fence posts and cut as much 4/4 and 8/4 as I can and use it to build a variety of things, from behives to wooden gutters.  I need many more fence posts if someone in or around TN has more than they need.

JKJ
LT-15 for farm and fun

dad2nine

Quote from: Bibbyman on August 07, 2006, 06:47:26 AM
This spring we sawed out the decking for a deck about 40x40 with a 25' above ground pool out of it out of eastern red cedar.  No problems at all.  I asked the customer if he was going to put some kind of finish on it to keep the color and he said no, his wife wanted it to turn gray to match the color of their house.

Got pictures?

Yeah this one is 40'x56' with a 30' round pool in it. Everything is going to be cedar, the posts, the joists, both inner and outer bands, the decking, the stairs and the railing . It's a freaking monster, biggest I've ever built. I've cut, I don't know how many cedars and I still have a bunch more to go.

Good thing, I have the inner band up! sunk 25 4/4's one every 4' and a few more around the plumbing just because I thought digging holes with the post hole digger was so much fun. They hold up the double 2x6 /2x8 bolted inner band, was lots of fun bending it around the pool too.

1/4 of the outer band is up, 4x4 every 8' and 6x6 on the long 45 degree double 2x6 corners, and about an 1/8 of the joists are hung.

This has become by ball and chain project. LOML asks me what are you going to today? Answer is the same "work on the deck", where are you going? "to get more cedar logs". Good thing she helps, she has become quite the wood butcher pulling the handle on the chop saw, thank God for wives.

Any idea how many LF of decking I will need? I'll be doing 5/4 x6 (well actually 4/4 x 5 1/2 after machining). Not that I need it now but I have to saw it out sometime.

As for pictures your going to have to wait till I can get some new batteries - sorry...

Cedarman


I just love, love ,love cedar.  It is a sad day when I can't saw cedar.  I am in the pink when I saw cedar.
I am in the pink when sawing cedar.

Percy

I recently started cutting Western Red Cedar again up here and it sure cuts nice with the 13 degree blades compared to the large knotty Sitka Spruce I was cutting before I switched back. The stuff(WRC) is slowly killin me though. I get the "snotts" real bad, wake up in the middle of the night with panic attacks cause of the shortness of breath and itch all over. It took about 10 years of Cedar cutting for this to develope so now I wear a mask which helps immensly for the breathing and snotts but the itch is still there. When the Spruce timber market improves, I will switch back el quicko...WRC is the nicest, most lucrative wood we have up here, unfortunatly for me..heh......
GOLDEN RULE : The guy with the gold, makes the rules.

dad2nine

For me eastern red cedar caused my eyes to itch and nose to run, but since I started cutting it dry without water lube, it's not so bad. Either it's not using water or my body got used to it - not sure which one, might be both.

tcsmpsi

Well, I still feel for you, dad.

Hundreds of cedar logs...right here where I'm at...what a bonanza that would be!

Why, that would be almost as stupendous as having a lifetime supply of grits!

The only time wood dust has bothered me, is in remodeling and having to saw into a lot of old wood overhead and in tight places, especially in old ceiling/roofing framing.

Of course, as Scott mentioned, if you find yourself with too many of the little darlin's, be more than glad to help a fellow out.  Fact of the matter, if'n you was close enough, would probably help you mill 'em up for some of them.   ;)
\\\"In the end, it is a moral question as to whether man applies what he has learned or not.\\\" - C. Jung

dad2nine

Guys I'm sorry, didn't mean to imply these cedar logs are free, there not. I'm paying $10.00 a log all were bucked at 16 or 18' and been stacked for going on 4 years now. I've been keeping track of yield and they yeild about 60 bf of clean cedar lumber (no wain) which factors out to about .17 a bf.  This does not include any thing else just the price of the log and expected yield per bf. One good thing, the farmer applied ancorseal when he stacked them so end grain split is at a min. He told me he was going to have them squared up and fench in a pasture, but his plans have changed.

Around here the larger cedars have heart rot, so it's not worth messing with them much. I still take them but only if there free.

Sorry about the confusion...

tcsmpsi

Never figured you got the logs for free.   Here, anything other than  SYP is an
exotic.  ;D  Literally.
\\\"In the end, it is a moral question as to whether man applies what he has learned or not.\\\" - C. Jung

dad2nine

Just got an order for 500 BF of you guessed it, freaking red cedar. Uggg... when will it end  :D

scsmith42

Dad - I'm a couple of hours east of you (outside of Raleigh) and have some projects on the farm that I'd like to use cedar on.  Do you know any good sources for large cedar logs?

Thx.  Scott
Peterson 10" WPF with 65' of track
Smith - Gallagher dedicated slabber
Tom's 3638D Baker band mill
and a mix of log handling heavy equipment.

dad2nine

scsmith42, I do know of a source who would deal in a min of a tractor trailer load full, I pretty sure he would deliver. The only problem I see is most of the the larger cedars around here have heart rot, so it's tough to find a cedar log that will yeild any thing larger than a 10" board. Send me a PM and we can discuss details.


Thanks

4woody

Hi i made my first oxtagone post today  with a chainsaw

scsmith42

Peterson 10" WPF with 65' of track
Smith - Gallagher dedicated slabber
Tom's 3638D Baker band mill
and a mix of log handling heavy equipment.

4woody

I have man who wants 5 oxtgone post cut 5.5x5.5 96" long how much shoud i charge any help wood be great

MotorSeven

Scott,
If and when you get a price on those logs, please post it. I may run out of trees on my place and have to out-source. For a 6x6-(Square on 3 sides, peeled on the outside) i am thinking i will need a 10-12" log...correct?
RD
WoodMizer LT15 27' bed

scsmith42

RD - will do.  The tough thing about cedar is that it's so knarly that if you want clean sides you will need a lot of material.
Peterson 10" WPF with 65' of track
Smith - Gallagher dedicated slabber
Tom's 3638D Baker band mill
and a mix of log handling heavy equipment.

SwampDonkey

If it's like our northern white cedar, the best I've seen will give you 12 feet (maybe a bit longer) of clear bolt on the but end. But, cedar takes a life time to limb up naturally because it's so shade tolerant. Needs moose or girafs with long knecks to eat the lower limbs. ;D The worst thinning ground is to be in a stand with scattered cedar residuls, them Dang limbs keep everything hung up and some of them limbs are dead. The old dead limbs just don't fall away like on fir and poplar. They're not big diameter limbs (unless pasture grown), but a pain.
"No amount of belief makes something a fact." James Randi

1 Thessalonians 5:21

2020 Polaris Ranger 570 to forward firewood, Husqvarna 555 XT Pro, Stihl FS560 clearing saw and continuously thinning my ground, on the side. Grow them trees. (((o)))

dad2nine

scsmith42, sorry about the delay in getting back to you - I'll give the guy a call in the morning and let you know his price. If it seems resonable, I'll send you a PM with his name and number and you can work with him directly...

Thanks


scsmith42

Peterson 10" WPF with 65' of track
Smith - Gallagher dedicated slabber
Tom's 3638D Baker band mill
and a mix of log handling heavy equipment.

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