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Started by dad2nine, November 23, 2006, 10:45:31 AM

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dad2nine

Hello everyone - couple of things. I've been lurking mostly, just trying to suck in all the knowledge you folks share in the forums. Thanks for all the great information. Now that I got a few logs under my belt I'm looking to expand a little and attempt quarter sawing. I don't have any means to (chain saw big enough) to quarter the logs before I put them on the WM. WM has a method to QS mentioned in one of the books that came with the mill. Is there any thing other I can try? I'm really looking for ideas. Maybe I'm jumping on this to soon without the right equipment? I figured I would start with a smaller log 28" dia sycamore and see if I can destroy the lumber in the process of learning  :D:.

Thanks everyone

MemphisLogger

I have a few approaches available for download at QS Downloads
Scott Banbury, Urban logger since 2002--Custom Woodworker since 1990. Running a Woodmizer LT-30, a flock of Huskies and a herd of Toy 4x4s Midtown Logging and Lumber Company at www.scottbanbury.com

TexasTimbers

Shucks don't practice on a sycamore!  :o Pick a pine or sumtin then take a stab at that beautimous stuff. And with 99 posts you can't claim to be a lurker for a long time now.  :)
The oil is all in Texas, but the dipsticks are in D.C.

dad2nine

Quote from: kevjay on November 23, 2006, 12:41:05 PM
Shucks don't practice on a sycamore!  :o Pick a pine or sumtin then take a stab at that beautimous stuff. And with 99 posts you can't claim to be a lurker for a long time now.  :)

Yeah I think your right - I have a guy who is willing to pay some pretty good money for QS green sycamore. But being green to QS'ing, I think I might have to pass. Last sycamore I cut up was curly and your right it's just to pretty to practice on. I've got it sold eitherway (flat or QS), I still might give it a try after I get it on the mill. Maybe I'll do alright with it but if not I can sell it to the another guy for 1/2 of what the other guy was willing to pay for QS. I think the important thing is not to be driven by money and thinking about it a little more seems ole greed was trying to drive me.

I was active several months ago and stopped posting because I quickly came to the understanding, learning to saw is a long process that only comes with pratice. So that's what I've been doing, so better way to learn than by doing!

Thanks...

fencerowphil (Phil L.)

I really like the material on QS that Urbanlogger has on his site.
Great detail.  Great site.
:o
Since I use a swinger,  the method is not applicable, but the end
result is very much like Method 2.   All the lumber of a given
log ends up rift and quarter.  Don't have to move the log, nor rip it,
nor turn it.

The only limitation, when cutting a big log as-is, where-is, is that
I can only cut wider than 10" on the right hand side of the log.
On that right side, however, I can double cut for the really wide
QS boards.

Phil L.          Got a 40" Sycamore to cut tomorrow!   8)
Bi-VacAtional:  Piano tuner and sawyer.  (Use one to take a vacation from the other.) Have two Stihl 090s, one Stihl 075, Echo CS8000, Echo 346,  two Homely-ite 27AVs, Peterson 10" Swingblade Winch Production Frame, 36" and 54"Alaskan mills, and a sore back.

4woody

when i qc i use a chainsaw an the timbor jig i can set  the saw up just right with the grain on each end

rvrdivr

I learned to QS from a post by UrbanLogger a while back. It helped to see the pictures as he walked us through the process. Thanks UrbanLogger.
When I tried it myself it was a piece of cake. The hardest part was cutting the log in half. As long as your chainsaw will cut past the center you can get it apart. I recently tried to cut one in half on the mill. Because the dogs are down below the half way point, it sat more to the left on the tracks. after I cut into it a few inches the guide bar hit. If I had taken an inch or so off the top then turned it a quarter turn my guide would have past by with no problem. It will waste a llittle more wood than flat sawing and takes more time but it is worth the effort.

Here is a pecan log I got. Unfortunatly two of the quarters were so full of metal I gave them to the fire wood pile. The other two were just fantastic!






dad2nine

Thanks everyone, you guys are a lot of help  :). The Sycamore log in question is 28" dia small end. I do have a 20" bar on my chain saw. But thinking I would be out there sawing my butt off for a long time with it. It's not a very good saw, it's a pulan. I know I need to upgrade, but nows not the time. I might try chain sawing the log in half (down the pith) while it's on the trailer. Load a half on the mill with the flat against the dogs, toe up and slice again through the pith. Off load one quarter from the mill and go to town. Seems like a lot more  work than flat sawing. But if a guy were setup with the right equipment I don't think it would be so bad. I wished my blade guide on my WM would open up more, then I could just rip the log down the center on the mill.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks

Radar67

Quote from: rvrdivr on November 25, 2006, 10:55:08 PM
If I had taken an inch or so off the top then turned it a quarter turn my guide would have past by with no problem.

I think rvrdivr already gave you the best suggestion.  :)

Stew
"A man's time is the most valuable gift he can give another." TOM

If he can cling to his Blackberry, I can cling to my guns... Me

This will kill you, that will kill you, heck...life will kill you, but you got to live it!

"The man who can comprehend the why, can create the how." SFC J

4woody

what is the best way to cut red oak qs or cut flat i have some bigins

Tom

It depends on what you want to use it for.   Many folks wouldn't know if they had quarter sawed or not.  cabinet panels are generally flat sawed because the show the 'V' grain that everyone is accustomed to.  Quarter sawed boards with a lot of medullary rays is a very busy pattern.  That which shows next to a crotch may be Tiger Oak, a name given to a board whose rays look like tiger stripes.

Most flooring is quarter sawed.  Quarter sawing will demand the higher price, usually, but, you have to understand that you get less product too.

There are threads on the forum that discuss the uses of flat and quarter sawed lumber.  It is quite varied and an understanding of the movement of wood will help to make your decision.

Most Grade sawed wood is flat sawed because it utilizes the most clear wood.  Knots in quartersawed lumber stand a better chance of being spikes and the lumber breaks at that point.  It makes for the use of shorter boards. 

dad2nine

Went and picked up the sycamore log today. It measures 28" on the small end, 32 on the big end is 9' 6" long and has a bad crook starting about 7' from the big end. It's a little bigger than I first thought. I suppose to try my first attempt at QS'ing it would be best to start with straight log hu? Once I get it on the mill I can shave the crook out, along with a big burl cap on the opposite side. I Measured the blade guide opening on the WM  it's about 24" with the dogs up and and 28" with the dogs down. This should be real freaking interesting with the crook...

I would post a picture but the site won't let me, says pixel count is exceeded after I re-sized it to 500 x 375 pixels to get it under the 32k limit  >:( what gives anyways?

beenthere

Resize to 400 pixels longest side. Then it will fit. You are close to getting them ready for the ff.

Your last 8 pics in your gallery are at the 400 pixel size limit. Should work this time the same way.  :)
south central Wisconsin
It may be that my sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others

woodmills1

I wouldnt try to true quarter that log with the crook, why not use the woodmizer modified method strating with the curve facing down....that is high in the center.

That would cut your losses and give you some nice Q sawn from the center hunk.
James Mills,Lovely wife,collect old tools,vacuuming fool,36 bdft/hr,oak paper cutter,ebonic yooper rapper nauga seller, Blue Ox? its not fast, 2 cat family, LT70,edger, 375 bd ft/hr, we like Bob,free heat,no oil 12 years,big splitter, baked stuffed lobster, still cuttin the logs dere IAM

rvrdivr

QuoteI might try chain sawing the log in half (down the pith) while it's on the trailer. Load a half on the mill with the flat against the dogs, toe up and slice again through the pith. Off load one quarter from the mill and go to town..

dad2nine, This way will work and makes a nice clean cut through the half. When I tried this on bigger logs, I found it took just as long to load, square the half, and cut it as it would have if I had just cut it with the chain saw. Remember your only going through half the thickness you did to split it. Also with my Hudson 36 I remember the v-belt hit the top of the halved log on the larger ones. Again I learned to trim off the top to clear for this. More time spent and wood wasted.

As for your chain saw, make sure to use new or freshly resharpened chains and don't rush it or force the saw. You should be using a tank of bar oil with every gas fill. I'll put a 2x4 on top of the log and use my smaller saw to cut a path in a few inches deep down the lenth of the log. With that reference I'll keep going deeper in. When your cutting the oposite side make your end cuts (at least 1) the last so when the log splits your safe out of harms way.

The best way to learn after all the advise you get, is to experiment. You will find out what works best for you and your mill. Don't be discouraged, it will work one way or the other. 

I know it can be fustrating to U/L a pic on this site but read and listen to these guy's and it will soon be as easy as QS is.:D

I found a pic of that pecan I quartered for y'all to see.


Oregon_Sawyer

Try this for a picture of a BIG log being quarted.

https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php?topic=4484.0

Loren
Sawing with a WM since 98. LT 70 42hp Kubota walk behind. 518 Skidder. Ramey Log Loader. Serious part-timer. Western Red Cedar and Doug Fir.  Teamster Truck Driver 4 days a week.

tcsmpsi

Quote from: dad2nine on November 26, 2006, 10:56:09 AM
It's not a very good saw, it's a pulan. I know I need to upgrade,...


Maybe it is just something in the air today, but the reflection of that just struck me with a twinge of sadness.

Remembering when Poulan was the saw in this part of the world and it was the 'upgrade'.  Much the same as Skil was the electric circular saw, and my first use of one was of monumentally notable trust of the carpenter I worked for who brought it out from its revered enclosure only in special situations where there might be a hundred or more of the same cut.

Ok, dad, sorry to break in on your thread.   ;D  Just sad to see their names become bantered about with almost revulsion when they set the definitions of their fields.

I look forward in seeing your quartersawing.  Did you finally run free of cedar?   ;)
\\\"In the end, it is a moral question as to whether man applies what he has learned or not.\\\" - C. Jung

dad2nine

Still looking for more ERC, it's like an exotic around here. Had I known it was going to be so hard to find, I would have bought the whole pile while I had a chance. I still need about 1200 lin feet of 5/4x6 deck board, I think I have all my framing lumber cut - if not it's darn close...

I've came to a conclusion, if I'm going to keep sawing lumber from big logs, I need to get some serious log handling equipment  ::). Thinking a bobcat might fit the bill for now or should I think bigger?

dad2nine

You guys are so right - note to self - quarter the log on the ground BEFORE you load it on the mill. I made a ton of work for myself, next time I'll know better  ::).

Question is a rip chain the best for quartering? I had to sharpen my  chain twice so far, I went with little flatter angle on the pitch than I normally would, seemed to rip a lot better and threw some long curly chips. Only down side filing by hand sure does take up some time.

Thanks

4woody

i would take a grinder an cut half the teeth off the chain look chain mods

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