how long can a person keep timbers

[Nemologger]

say I started sawing oak timbers for a room addition, I stored them in the dry, how long before I should work them? Im sure it will take me a couple months to get all I need. Would they dry out too much?

[Dave Shepard]

I wouldn't want to go much longer. Last summer I worked white oak that had been sawn for about a year. Broke two chisels, two mallet handles and wore out three sets of rawhides and both of my shoulders. :D

[witterbound]

That's gonna be quite a room.

[Brad_bb]

You can cut them dry.  Just takes a little more effort.  It parrs a little nicer green, but you can still do it dry.  If you're using power tools for cutting and hogging material, it won't make a huge difference.  The flip side advantage is that if they are dry to start with, you won't have the shrinkage you'd have with green.

[D L Bahler]

In many traditions, the wood is seasoned before cutting joinery. I often mention this when discussing Swiss building, that our tradition is to store the wood under cover for at least 2 or 3 years before using it. 5 years if you can.
This would include oak.