A bit of gardening

[Ianab]

Friend has bought this neglected property. One of the "features" was a ugly old Deodar Cedar beside the driveway. About 16 leaders, and the 2 main ones looked to have taken a lightning hit, and were dead for the top 1/2. I'd looked it at, looked at the road and the power lines, and decided it was out of my pay grade  ;) :D

Anyway a mutual friend is an actual logger, and agreed to get it on the ground for her. 

Steel cable rigged up into the tree from the tractor. Power lines to the left, State Highway behind, no pressure...

 

Tractor at the ready as Blair makes the sawdust fly.
 


And then the action. Blair had cabled the first leader to the tractor, then run a strop to the second one that was weighted the opposite way. Once the first started moving it hauled the other 1/2 down after it. Love it when a plan comes together. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wlOiafXc1eI

Anyway, when the rain stops (sometime next week hopefully) I'll go and start cleaning up the mess. At the moment it's a 20ft tangle of branches sitting on the track. There is another driveway, so no immediate pressure to get this overgrown one clear. Hopefully I can salvage a couple of "character" sawlogs from the mess. 

[Ianab]

Got to check the chainsaw work today, pretty clever bore cutting the wedge out of the offside leader, then binding the two together so the first would drag the 2nd back over.



Pretty sure it's Deodar Cedar, so I'm trying to salvage a couple of logs. 


 It's not a pretty sight, chainsaw sitting there for scale. We can't really get machinery into the tree lined driveway, so it's going to have to be dismantled piece at a time, like an oversize Jenga puzzle.  :D
 

[Ianab]

Finally got back to the tree and milled up a couple of smaller top logs salvaged out of the mess above.





Still got the bigger logs to deal with, and they should make some niver nicer boards.

[Brad_bb]

What's a niver board?

[red]

Nicer

[thecfarm]

I would think river boards.  Or that's how I read it.

[Ianab]

Typo. I did mean nicer. : :D

[btulloh]

Very nive.

[Ianab]

Got another break in the weather today. 

Into the actual logs now. 


Dragged it clear of the mess. 


And set up the mill around it. 



Opened up, and it's looking good.  Got into a few more knots as I went down, and the other side wasn't a good, but still usable. 


Down to a scrappy bottom slab. 



Not much waste in the edgings



 And a good load of assorted boards to haul home. No real project in mind, so I cut an assortment of sizes to try and get best recovery. 



Anyway, that was my 1/2 day workout today.  ;D 

[Ianab]

Finally got back to the last of the tree. Saw and flip trick left me with this chunk of deodar. 

 

[Ianab]

Some of the cedar got used for a project at Lil's kindy. They had some trendy chipboard / vinyl shelves with baskets for the younger kids nappies. But it wasn't working if they were carrying a kid, and then had to wrangle a nappy out of a basket on shelf.

So can you build .... 



They get bonus points on the "Enviro Schools" plan as the wood is locally sourced salvage, and untreated cedar.   Has a couple of coats of poly to make it easy clean.

[Ianab]

BTW, if you ever get a chance to saw some Deodar Cedar, take it. It's really nice wood to saw and work with. Softwood obviously, but just a nice stable and durable wood. 

[doc henderson]

was that tree near your home?  did you have to make 2 trips to haul your saw rig, and also the wood?  look at all the work you get done, while many of us are sleeping! love the cubbies.  I assume nappie is for nap sack, or back pack as we call them here?

[Old Greenhorn]

 I assume nappie is for nap sack, or back pack as we call them here?

Doc, 'nappy' is slang for 'diaper'.  ;D

[tule peak timber]

Ianab, what are your typical uses for the deodar?

[doc henderson]

Well I guess at your age, and after retirement, you would know!!!  :D :D :D @Old Greenhorn 

[Old Greenhorn]

Well I guess at your age, and after retirement, you would know!!!  :D :D :D @Old Greenhorn

Actually, I learned that when I was a new parent a very long time ago.

[Ianab]

Well I guess at your age, and after retirement, you would know!!!  :D :D :D @Old Greenhorn

It's traditionally used to build temples in India (where it's native), or just general construction. Wood is fairly soft, but durable and finishes nicely. I don't know of it being grown commercially any place, mostly an ornamental tree. 

was that tree near your home?  did you have to make 2 trips to haul your saw rig, and also the wood? 

Tree was at a friends farm about 5 mins up the road, and took several trips to get all the wood home. Mill is actually still in her shed as mine if full of wood.  :D