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Splitting 20' logs

Started by 1938farmall, December 24, 2010, 07:43:10 PM

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1938farmall

Am planning to saw some 20' logs right thru the center to make half-log siding.  They are beetle killed Colorado lodgepole pine 18" to 26" butts standing dead 2-3 years.  Would like opinions on how bad they might warp ? Might also take a 2x from each flat before using for siding.  thanks, al
aka oldnorskie

sgschwend

I did not think it was made that way.  I thought the siding was made by removing slabs with parallel edge cuts.

It sounds to me your parts would be more like a log wall.

As to distortion the half log will want to shrink, I would think it would be similar to a logs, which is the outside will try and shrink faster than the inside.
Steve Gschwend

sjgschwend@gmail.com

weisyboy

i did 100 of thee for the brisane art gallery, 24' long, from slash pine, woked great, looked good when doen to.

dont know about shrincge/warping with your pine thow.
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laffs

how are you going to attach these half logs? if thats what you want just go ahead and put them on befor they warp. id use something like white silicone for the chink. if you could find it in 5 gallon pails and brush it on, all the better. if it shrinks just put in some more chinkin.
Brent
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barbender

A 26" butt log sawed in half is a lot of weight to hang off a wall, not to mention a fair amount of stress with that much wood. I have seen siding done like this, and it looked very nice, but with much smaller logs. Probably around 12" butts. I'd slab them off until you had about 8" wide, that should leave them around 4" thick maybe? Just my 2 cents. I've thought of doing a hewn log look with slabs, live edge with chinking, flat both sides. Another thing is, how are you going to attach these logs? If they are still 8" thick, what kind of screws would you use?
Too many irons in the fire

1938farmall

barbender,  you are right; they will be heavy.  i will probably take more than one 2x slab off the flat side before i try to put them up.  was planning on 4x4 studs & 6" pole barn nails.  my real worry is whether the lodgepole pine will come off the mill as bananas ? if they do, there is no way i could pull them tight against the wall.   :( al
aka oldnorskie

weisyboy

we only used 8-10" logs, still heavy thow.

if i was doing it i would use 10" trees, split then the top and bottom squared off so tehy sit together.
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Just Me

Depending on how the taper is maybe you could get four pieces of siding from one log. I have had to do a bit of log siding, mostly white pine and cedar, but anything over 3" at the middle of the curve was getting to be to much for the fasteners to handle, and too stubborn to get on right if it had a twist. Only lodgepole I ever used was for rafters so I don't know how it acts sawn.

What you have proposed would give your siding more strength than your walls, it would suck if they went wild on you as they dried.

How about just a solid log wall?

Haven't been out there in Colorado for a couple of years, but the beetle kill was well on its way and just sad. My daughter lived in Frazier, and it sure was changing the scenery. Same thing at my friends in Lincoln Mt. I almost bought a motel in Lincoln but was afraid of what it would look like around there when the beetle is done. I like trees.

Magicman

My experience with SYP is that after a tree has been dead for a while and partially dries, the lumber stabilizes and it is not prone to "banana".  I would think that yours would be the same.
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beenthere

Quote from: 1938farmall on December 25, 2010, 12:39:41 AM
.............  my real worry is whether the lodgepole pine will come off the mill as bananas ? ........

Likely won't have a banana. :)  Do you have these in WI now, and can you experiment with a few to see that you don't get bananas?        Shipping some dead lodgepole or sawing them at their origin/location?  Just curious.   

Would think you need a way to deal with the taper and maybe sawing parallel to the bark would be the best way to saw. Get the same width face at least, and then just have some thickness difference to deal with. Or control the thickness and only have the taper to deal with.
south central Wisconsin
It may be that my sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others

paul case

correct me if i am wrong but sawing with the bark level still wont get a slab that doesnt taper. it will be as close as you  can get but it will still have taper. pc
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pc

1938farmall

BT,  glad to hear your opinion that they will stay straight.  you guessed right; the logs are still in colorado & don't want to truck them until i know.  will try to contact a mill operation in colorado to see what experience they might be willing to share. a
aka oldnorskie

beenthere

pc
I think you are right. :)

1938farmall
Maybe a visit to CO to a mill or two sawing dead lodgepole will set your mind at ease. There should be several operations if the economy hasn't shut them down.

The one "defect" (of many) to watch out for is spiral grain. That would possibly cause some frustration due to additional drying, but the lodgepole should be a pretty low MC if dead very long. 
Other log defects (if buying logs) would be sweep, pistol butt, crook in the stem, decay, holes. Eccentric pith center may be another. From my experience sorting through lodgepole pine stems, it is hard to get them without some of the log defects listed.
But a buying trip might be in order to avoid shipping logs you cannot use.
south central Wisconsin
It may be that my sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others

1938farmall

BT,  a "buying trip" to the mountains of colorado; sterling suggestion.  why didn't i think of that all by myself  ;D  a
aka oldnorskie

beenthere

south central Wisconsin
It may be that my sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others

barbender

Lodgepole should act like well behaved Jack Pine, since it is straight. How much will it cost to get it trucked? Seems like the cost could be prohibitive, you should have some suitable Red, White, or Jack Pine where you're located.
Too many irons in the fire

KingTimber


   Sounds like fun.
Crooked logs make crooked lumber.
Be wary of side hill growth and offset pith or centers. Side hill growth causes one side of the tree to grow under tension and the other to grow with compression so to speak. We could talk about physics with force vectors and normal forces and such, but it is common sense. Side hill growth; the uphill side is pulling to keep the tree straight, downhill is pushing to keep it straight. Just like you or I standing on the side of a hill. One remedy is to whack a good chunck off the but end of the stem. This will get you up into a more stable part of the tree. In my experience dead wood has less tension but there are exceptions to the rule. Up here Fir seems to follow a different path. It is a white fir with no wheres near the strength of a douglas. One remedy if conditions allow is to take a waste cut when necessary. First cut to relieve the tension and a second thinner cut to level it back up. 3/8 or a quarter inch will usually clean it up. Are there not some wormy logs in your local area? I hate to see fossil fuels burnt up in trucking when there is a local alternative. If they are coming back empty then by all means load'em up.
Have fun and be safe,
Chuck.

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