Author Topic: Small Sawmill Business and Firewood workshop near Athens/Princeton WV, 6-7-18 (Read 1166 times)

WV Sawmiller · « **on:** May 18, 2018, 07:40:21 PM »

Not sure how many, if any seats, are left for this workshop but will be the 3rd one I have attended and we always have a great time and hopefully learn a new sawing trick or two.

If you are anywhere close and there are seats available I can highly recommend this workshop to any interested. If you're coming send me a PM and maybe we can link up at the dinner get-together the evening before.

Small Firewood and Sawmill Businesses Workshop Tickets, Thu, Jun 7, 2018 at 9:00 AM | Eventbrite

WV Sawmiller · « **Reply #1 on:** June 09, 2018, 09:28:35 AM »

Great event. Always good to see Harry Watt and his guests including Marty Parsons. The various idea and suggestions are always good and very thought provoking. One big advantage Harry has is the cross pollination he gains from going to the various events and talking to such a wide range of people in the wood business. I do think the location has a huge impact on what works for each of us but I think we need to experiment and try more things to be profitable.

The Dyna guys had a great firewood demo if you are interested in the firewood end of the business.

I know I am looking forward to the next workshop.

Don P · « **Reply #2 on:** June 09, 2018, 08:32:48 PM »

It was good to meet you and Marty there. We need to get Marty some better logs next time

.

The workshop got some more thoughts going. That is a nice facility as well. The small DH kiln is the same little Ebac as mine. Come to find out mine is still working, it is only our second load and we thought it had lost charge but the load was dry and it seems to be fine. We unloaded a load of nice walnut slabs from it this morning, moved it over to a friends shop and got it set back up.

Harry dropped by our jobsite on his way back home and we visited for a few hours, I was doing my best to pick up some of that cross pollination from him, he is full of ideas. It's always nice to have somebody come in with a different perspective.

He is interested in charcoal and biochar so I had some cooking. I had also made a charcoal furnace. After the slab workshop down in Morganton I melted a batch of aluminum and tried a knothole pour so he got to see the results... not to my fancy but I'll keep experimenting. As we were visiting, the farm matriarch dropped by to show off an article in a local magazine that just hit the stands. They had done a piece on our little woodworking group. I'll have to go get 5 copies for my mother.

As we were talking, come to find out Harry got a grant to do some research and production of residential cross laminated timber (CLT) panels for residential construction, something I've been following in commercial construction for several years hoping it would filter down to residential. They have a facility down in Lenoir lined up and should start in the next month or so, this should be interesting.

I always pick up something worthwhile at an event like that, good job folks!

WV Sawmiller · « **Reply #3 on:** June 10, 2018, 12:28:38 PM »

The best take away from those workshops may be the list of attendees. I met Henry Miller there and now use him for slabbing logs too big for my mill when I need to do so. It is always fun and educational to to compare notes with other sawyers, which is why this forum is so great.

Harry said he deliberately bought the sweepy poplar log as a challenge to Marty. Like he said - anybody can saw good logs, it is much harder to saw bad logs. I like Marty's view on them but better not repeat it here. We had been talking about ugly logs making pretty benches was why he had Marty saw it into live edge slabs like that. I just wish I could get anything close to the sales prices Harry mentioned for such but he is right - you need to take them to a bigger city where the market for them is better than our area.

Great meeting you. Stop by up here sometime if you are in the area.

MartyParsons · « **Reply #4 on:** June 10, 2018, 08:53:13 PM »

Hello,
Here are a few pictures. First log was White Pine. It scaled 32 bd/ft on Doyle. Never did get to hear the over run.

The second log had some sweep. We did 8 qtr .

WV Sawmiller · « **Reply #5 on:** June 10, 2018, 09:36:57 PM »

Who is that good looking guy in the brown shirt and black cap?

Marty,

If I remember correctly the pine scaled out at 57 bf.

Thanks for all the tips.

Don P · « **Reply #6 on:** June 11, 2018, 10:10:10 PM »

I see my red T shirt in one of the pics, close call on breaking the camera there

. That was a very good demo Marty, educational and fun.

We sold a live edge mantle today, note to self there, I hadn't really thought of keeping anything of those sizes in stock. We rummaged through my stacks and then went over to the other Don's and found a few in his stacks. I hear you on rural pricing

One thing to also factor in on pricing, there were what 4 curved poplar slabs full of tension... how many are going to make it to dry?

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