The big sawmill here is gona start cutting Hemlock

[Rod]

I saw Almo today and I asked him why they were cutting down all the Hemlock's,and he said that his forster said sawmill wants them.

I've never seen anyone hauling Hemlock's before.Maybe they might be worth something now

[moosehunter]

Just my luck, I was about to order a load of hemlock logs. I won't be able to afford them now :

[Rod]

same here,I asked Elmo what they were gona do with all the Hemlock's,and he said he thought the sawmill said he could have them for free.So I told him that I'd buy them off of him.Well anyway, that deals shot.I guess I'll have to cut my own.

[SwampDonkey]

Hardly worth cutting here, too much shake from sapsucker pecks and low prices.

[OLD_ JD]

i sold some pulp grade hemlock's to a bis in N.Y.state(Dont remenber where exactly),the finch & Pruyn i think it was caLL, 4years ago for 105$ a corde :D..happy now to get rid of that stuff ;D

[Ironwood]

   Local mill here cuts, "flitch siding, brainstorm, or Adirondack siding" All the same thing as there are many regional names for the product. Hemlock is the norm for this guy and prices are fairly stable, 50 cents a board foot green 6 years ago and 60 cents today.  I dont think it will be following Cherry as the money tree.

                                 REID

[RSteiner]

I realize Hemlock has a bad name because of the trees which were damaged by the big winds back in the late 1930's, at least around New England.  By this time all those trees are gone.  I have milled out a lot of Hemlock and used it to frame buildings, build furniture, and various other things.

I once was asked to build a cross to hang in a church sanctuary, I made it out of Hemlock.  The grain in the wood was tremendous when stained, it had a very rugged look. 

It would be good to see an increase in use of Hemlock as in some areas of the Northeast there is an insect that is killing it.  It would be good to harvest and mill out what is being infected before it dies and is unuseable.

Randy

[Greg]

There is a good size mill in Mass. that cuts timbers from Hemlock, and sells them to timber framing companies. Nothing wrong at all with this wood, and structrually far stronger than white pine.

From my impression, there is a ample supply of Hemlock trees available in the NE, mostly because of historically poor demand for this wood.

Don't know about its milling qualities or use in dimension lumber, but there's going to be alot of it out there to harvest because of the continuing spread of wooly adelgia (sp?).

Just my random 2 cents,
Greg

[Ron Wenrich]

I saw quite a bit of hemlock for barn siding and dimension stock.  I used 2 x 8s for roof trusses in my house.  Saws good, and doesn't move much when drying. 

I do run into shake, but only on occassion and usually in big logs.  I usually can saw around it. 

[maple flats]

Not familiar with shake, what is it? I'm new to this sawing game.

[Ron Wenrich]

Ring seperation.  You will see a split that is along a growth ring.  Sometimes it goes all the way around, but most times it is just a short distance.  The wood falls apart at that point.  Sometimes it runs a long distance, sometimes not. 

Hemlock and oak are the primary species I run into the problem. 

[thecfarm]

Hemlock is in low demand around here too.Wasn't always that way.Ask any old farmer what kind of wood he wanted for his rafters and he will say hemlock.I just got done the wife's addition to the greenhouse using hemlock.I made a horse lean to,also for the wife,using hemlock.I have alot of it.Some is growing next to the bog.Some trees will go 3 feet across.These trees are old and have the big,dead limbs on them.I've been cutting the smaller trees.I think this is the lowest price for logs there is.

[SwampDonkey]

They just leave'm standing  here, as well as white pine.

[RSteiner]

I have a Mobile Dimension portable, been sawing part time with it for over 25 years.  During that time at least 40% of the wood I saw is Hemlock, 40% white pine and the rest is hardwoods.

I like sawing hemlock there is no pitch to deal with, it does have a distinct smell not as aromatic as pine but a pleasant smell none the less.  With hemlock if a cut piece is going to twist it will happen as it is cut.  Tress that come from a steep side hill where one side of the tree grows faster than the other will tend to have a lot of tension in the log.  When these logs are cut the piece will twist and spring as it is cut. 

I have had a few pieces move in against the blade and pinch it so tight it stopped the saw.  When cutting hemlock I can stick a plastic wedge in the cut as it begins to insure the blade is not pinched if the log wants to move.  Those cases are rare and 95% of what I cut stays nice and straight.

I have built many buildings out of hemlock, a 24X26 two story gambrel roof barn, a 12X24 addition to the house, and many out buildings framed out of hemlock.  It is a good wood to work with green, naiuls drive in better and once a nail is in it stays in.  When it is dry nails do drive a little harder.  SOme people say it splits easy when trying to nail dry but I haven't noticed it is any worse than fir or spruce.

Randy

[maple flats]

Built my sugarhouse, 16 x 24 out of hemlock, sawn by a neighbor. Then I bought my Peterson and sawed the floor joists and floor boards, used it green. Like it so far. 8) 8)

[Corley5]

99% of the old hay barns around here are built from hemlock and have lasted 100+ years.  In many cases the wood outlasted the foundations and they fell down anyway :( :'( :(

[Back40x2]

I love to cut hemlock.  I love it when a customer calls and says they about 7000bf of hemlock. EASY AS PIE ;)

I used it to build my 12x14 Solar Kiln, and many other things.  Worked great!  Someone said earlier and I agree.  They need to use it more, or its going to be destroyed like the american elm was.  There is an insect that is just devistating it right now.  Don't quote me, but I believe you can no longer transport it over state lines now because of that insect.

The market price now as of last week at a local log yard was 140 per 1000.  Cheap 8) 8) 8)  That is great for people who like it like me.  I just 9000bf two weeks ago for 130 per 100.8) 8) 8) 

I am going on a tare, and building a Mill house/fan drying building. I am using with is called socket sytems to build it.  Neat stuff ;)  WWW.Socketsystems.com

Very easy and less time consuming way to timberframe.

[Corley5]

I haven't hemlock dying around here but at da camp in Da UP a little green caterpillar is defoliating them and they die as a result :(.  It happens more close to a lake.  Hemlock in the uplands don't seem to be affected, yet anyway :(

[Ron Wenrich]

wooly adelgid is here in the east.

http://www.fs.fed.us/na/morgantown/fhp/hwa/hwasite.html

Not sure of that green caterpillar there in MI

[Rod]

I was talking to a guy today who has a bandmill and he told me he bought 12,000 feet of Hemlockthis week and he paid $250 a thousand delivered to his mill and he sales it for $450 a thousand.

[woodhick]

Rod, I noticed your flying a WV flag.  Where you located?

[Rod]

I live in Clay

[maple flats]

Here in central NY I was quoted $250 / 1000 delivered to my mill just this week and the quote came from a guy who lives in my town. I thought that high, will check around. Never bought any before, just cut my own, but now I don't have any ready to harvest and need to buy while mine grow some. Don't like to cut before about 24" DBH unless some thinning is needed. 8) 8)

[SwampDonkey]

Corley,

Could be the hemlock looper, only its brown.

http://www.na.fs.fed.us/spfo/pubs/pest_al/hem-looper/hem-looper.htm

http://www.nrcan-rncan.gc.ca/cfs-scf/science/prodserv/pests/hemlock_looper_e.html

or the hemlock sawfly, which is dark green or yellow green, but it's a western tree pest.

http://www.pfc.forestry.ca/entomology/defoliators/conifer_sawflies/hemlock_e.html

http://www.fs.fed.us/r6/nr/fid/fidls/fidl31.pdf

[Rod]

the loggers here are getting $140 for cutting and skidding and $50 for hualing to the mill so that leaves $60 a thousand on the stump.

[Corley5]

I'll have to show these pics to Dad.  He's the one who sees em.  They are gone by the time I get to camp in the late summer.  I tend to think that's it probably the Hemlock Looper

[timberjack240]

all i have to say is       
and i hate hemlock its makes me itchy and there are to many lims to cut off

[firedog]

They just started falling on a place I own here in SW washington today. Hemlock has doubled out here since last fall, was $250 per thousand and is up just over $500 right now.  I don't have much of it on my place but sure is nice to get a better price out of it. 

[SwampDonkey]

Western hemlock is all the difference in the world compared to eastern hemlock. I worked in some areas of BC where 80 % of the volume was western or mountain hemlock. They seemed to get a pretty good price for it or they wouldn't be able to log such remote areas. They just let eastern Hemlock stand in my area and if there is scattered white pine that stands to.

[Ron Wenrich]

Is the western hemlock part of the hem-fir designation on lumber?

[SwampDonkey]

I'm not sure on that. My gut feeling says yes.  I would suggest western hemlocks and western true firs. I been trying to find out for sure from the internet.

If I had the choice between species, I'de use western hemlock species. They make nice staircasing, window and door casing. Our eastern hemlock is too splintery to use dried. I remember seeing western hemlock used alot in the interior of houses out in BC.

[Ron Wenrich]

The first sawmill I worked at used to have a lumber yard.  One of the guys told me that when they went to pick up Doug fir lumber they had to make sure it wasn't hemlock.  Also, Doug fir is pseudotsuga, which means false hemlock (if my Latin is right).  I kinda thought hem-fir might be hemlock and Doug fir.

[firedog]

Here is a link that talks about Hem-fir http://www.wwpa.org/hemfir.htm If I am reading it corectly, Hem-Fir can be Western Hemlock or a number of fir species.

[SwampDonkey]

Yes, from the context I've read it from, Doug-Fir is by itself or with western larch in contruction of Trusses anyway. The Hem-Fir is hemlock and the true firs. I've left a message with the CWC to see if I can get clarification in the mean time.

[SwampDonkey]

Thanks firedog, that link pretty much sinches it. ;)

[firedog]

Glad to help, I actually had the same question myself. I was looking at the stuff I have from the logging of my property and they just call hemlock, Whitewood when it gets sent to the mill.