Jumping in the deep end

[Dutch42]

 

 
 tried milling some red oak I dont plan on using for anything. I got two cuts in and then this happened.
 

 

 

 The oiler screw fell out and luckily I  noticed right away. I'm starting to think I accidentally joined a horse forum. On account of all the nay sayers in here.

Minus the oiler screw mishap, I think my first two cuts in a hard wood went well. The pine and hemlock should be much easier milling.

[RetiredTech]

  Glad to see you're making some sawdust. Hope you can get that saw going again without too much trouble. Whenever things are going too good Murphy just has to show up. I hate that guy. :D

[Don P]

The breeze blows by, you have slabs 



 

 

 

[Dutch42]

 Glad to see you're making some sawdust. Hope you can get that saw going again without too much trouble. Whenever things are going too good Murphy just has to show up. I hate that guy. :D

Yeah, I call this saw Lil' Pig because it eats up all my time and money. I love my other husky saws but seems like this one is always breaking. That's what I get for buying a used saw from a "reputable" saw builder. Paid a premium for it too :/

[Dutch42]

The breeze blows by, you have slabs  



 

 

Wow, that's a lot of lumber! What husky you using? Looks like a 2 series saw?

[Don P]

That is my partners mill so I let him work the heavy end :D, it is a 3120 XP. We needed longer rafters than our other mills could do easily... and in the woods and steep fields where we could go to the large trees we needed instead of trying to get them out. We used my circle mill and his Lucas swing blade to make the rest of the lumber on that job. I saw, dry, then rip straight using a number of different saws depending on size of wood and where I am. The 26' 2x12's were planed and then straightlined with a chalkline and skillsaw.

[KcMatt]

 
 tried milling some red oak I dont plan on using for anything. I got two cuts in and then this happened.
 

 

 

 The oiler screw fell out and luckily I  noticed right away. I'm starting to think I accidentally joined a horse forum. On account of all the nay sayers in here.

Minus the oiler screw mishap, I think my first   two cuts in a hard wood went well. The pine and hemlock should be much easier milling.

Yes, dismiss the collective experience of people who have tread the path you are embarking upon and who are offering, unpaid, their experiences.  Be sure to keep us updated.  So far you have experienced a chainsaw failure which I was fortunate to avoid. 
Waiting for your next update.

[Dutch42]

Whelp still waiting on  parts for my milling saw... must be coming from china? So I borrowed a tractor from a good friend, dug some holes, and poured some mud in tubes for my shed build. Not really forestry or milling related but its what my milling efforts are for.. building stuff

 

 


Had a family emergency that meant I was sitting around in the hospital for a few days waiting to see if someone was gonna be ok (they were ok). I decided I'd buy a cheap chinese saw for milling while I wait on parts for my Husqvarna 385xp. Idle hands... means I'm spending money lol. Naturally the saw arrived broken. Luckily it was just the dogs and i bought from a US re-seller who is sending new dogs.

 



Im the first to admit when im wrong (just ask my wife lol)... and boy was I wrong about lugging these slabs on foot. I made it about 10 yards before i was like nope, gotta find a way with the quad and my log arch. Long story short, I got some slabs outta the woods and in my garage.

 

I cut down the slabs with my circular saw and will cut them down further to their final sizes with my table saw. Sorry, got in a hurry and forgot to take pics in the woods or of me processing the slabs.

Is it hard work? Sure. Do I regret getting into CSM? Not yet. Will I hire a sawyer? Hell nah!

[Dutch42]

Cut a few more slabs yesterday and my first 4x6. I free handed the 90 degree cuts with my 372xp. I used a chalk line on the flat surface made by my CSM to follow. Its... not great. Might end up as firewood i think I will be getting one of those edge mills. I'll see if i can square it up on my table saw.

 

 

It was a hot day and I was moving pretty slow. I was also really struggling with keep my milling saw chain tensioned appropriately. The stupid tension screw is on the front of the saw making it very difficult to tighten when in the CSM. I tried a ratcheting screw driver and on of those Z shaped screwdrivers, neither worked well, but I was able to get it tightened without taking the saw out of the cut and out of the mill.

I thought since I didn't have any pictures in the woods before I'd add some. Also, have to show off my little work horse of a quad all loaded up ready to head to the house. I've had this quad since I was 11. She got treated pretty poorly when I was a kid, but this little honda just keeps on keeping on!

[Dutch42]

Long time no update been slowly plugging away! Have had a few distractions and disruptions. Two work trips and three saw "break downs"


My wife insists these kidds are gonna keep the back yard tidy and safe from fire hazards. They have done pretty good work keeping the grasses down and ridding the woods of poison oak. Preparation of the fence temporary and permanent ate up about two weekends that I could've been milling. But as they say, Happy Wife; Happy Life. 



Rookie mistake here. I should've used 2x8's for the horizontal beams and just notched the vertical 4x6 beams. Instead I notched both and according to my neighbor who builds decks means that the 4x6 horizontal beams are actually only as strong as a 2x6 because I notched them. He still thinks it will be fine though. I think it will be fine too. I'm pretty happy with how level it came out.



Floor joists are probably overkill at 12" on center. They required a good bit of hand planing to get somewhat flat... so much for that nice level floor. I decided to add a deck off the downhill side of the shed so I can access the roof from that side a bit more easily and so my wife and I have a spot to chill and watch the goats eat.


I put the floorboards on the joists green. Yes, I know they will shrink! I put screws in just the center of the floor boards at each joist so they can shrink and not split. I did this in early November so its a bit cooler out and so far no spliting, but the shrinkage is visible and the gaps range from 1/16" to 1/8." the boards are 11/4" inch thick and vary in width from 3.5" to 10.5" wide. I cut them longer than the base of the shed so if the ends split I can cut them off. It's rainy season in Northern CA so I have been putting a tarp to try to help keep the boards dry.




The blue beast is a slabbing machine! As previously mentioned it has had a couple break downs though. I replace the pull cord with some good rope and had to repair the little metal piece that connects to the spark plug. My Husqvarna 385XP has been... not so reliable. I bought it used from a "reputable" saw builder in the local area. He "repaired" it once when it was overheating, and when milling it continued to overheat. I think the crank seal may be leaking allowing air in and causing the saw to run too lean. No time to fuss with it when the blue beast is getting the job done!




I decided that dragging slabs accross the ground was a lot harder than draging them accross cleverly arange bits of wood and logs to an area I can easily get in/out with my quad and log arch. I only have one more "easily" accessed log left to mill and will have to figure out how to move the other logs into an area when I can get in/out with my quad.



I moved this monster log with a series of ropes, pullies, and chains from the road with my pickup. I moved the log about 20 yards before getting it stuck in a small ravine. Its in a marginally better spot but still too difficult to get to with my quad. I will probably have to cut it down in size a bit (its about 10' long and about 55" in diameter). 




I've got a few more boards ready to go than in the photo. I'd say I have about half to two thirds the boards I need to build the shed walls/roof trusses. I was thinking I would mill the "sheathing" for the roof but I think I will just use ply wood to cover the shed so I can get it shingled as quickly as possible. I think I am going to do a gambrel roof, because my wife likes the look of the "barn" shaped sheds.



When its too dark to mill I have been teaching myself freeCad. It's how I am able to guesstimate how many boards I'll need and sizes. It's also kinda fun... my wife says my definition of fun is broken.


I'm hoping to have the walls and roof done by late December and most if not all of the siding milled by the end of January, but who knows what life will throw in my way between now an then that will slow me down!

[beenthere]

Looks interesting. 

Dutch42
Do us a favor and click on your user name, where you can update your profile with location at least. Thank you. 

[SawyerTed]

Glad it's working out for you and you are enjoying the CSM.  Even if your "fun is broken."   :D

[thecfarm]

Looks good. 
We had goats, we finished off bottle feeding them. They would kinda follow us like dogs. But would head for the flowers on a trot. I would say,out,out,out sharply and they would leave them alone. One was in the garage once and there was a piece of paper under some stuff. The goat saw it and started to chew on it, I said out,out,out and it went out with the piece of paper and whatever was on top of the paper was on the floor. 

[Nebraska]

Careful Goats and chainsaws are a slippery slope...Can lead to bandsaw ownership.  Kiln builds, tractors, skid steers and all sorts of attachments  for said objects...

[SawyerTed]

...and chickens 🐓  :D

[Dutch42]

Careful Goats and chainsaws are a slippery slope...Can lead to bandsaw ownership.  Kiln builds, tractors, skid steers and all sorts of attachments  for said objects...

Yeah, the buddy that lent me his tractor is trying to sell it to me. If I had a flat spot large enough to park a tractor and a BSM I'd probably have both by now. Although, with a tractor I could make some flat spots 🤔. I think once my shed is done I might build a mobile BSM.