Mortise Saw in Ulster County, NY?

[Old Greenhorn]

I feel a little silly coming here with all the highly qualified heavy hitters. I am a pretty poor woodworker. I have an Oscar 128 sawmill and one of the weak points in this design is the angle iron used for the rails, they wobble in heavier cuts. I was thinking if I milled up some 8x8 timbers or larger and screwed the rail onto this at shorter intervals, it would firm it up quite a bit. The other issue is, I have no flat ground, so further thinking put me on the idea that if I made some tenon joints in the 8x8 rails, then had short legs going into the ground, I could get the whole thing solid and level and concrete the posts in place when It was all set. I want to keep it as close the the ground as possible because I have to ramp-roll the logs up. (One end will be just above the ground, and the others end will be about 20" higher because of the slope.)

 As I said, I am a poor woodworker. I am wondering if there are any forum members in my area that might have a mortise saw (I think that's what you call it)? I can fake in the rectangular tenons pretty well with conventional tools even if I am slow, but chiseling out about 10 of those big mortises seems like it would take forever even for a skilled man, which I am not.
 So if there is somebody around here that I can maybe make a deal with, I figured I'd ask the folks I trust first. I could bring the beams to you and work with you, borrow the thing, or whatever. In turn I can swap you a day of my labor or perhaps have something else of value to offer. I don't do this for a living, so cash is something I don't really have.
Thanks,
Tom

[Wudman]

I accomplished what you are attempting with lag bolts and spikes.  Most of the forces you are dealing with are vertical.  There is not much shear involved.  Set your beam across your piers and lag or spike it together.  Shim your rails if you need to level anything and lag it down.  That will keep you from cutting all of those mortise and tenon joints......unless you want to practice mortise and tenon joints.  Mine hasn't gone anywhere in the last 14 years, so it does work ok.  Good luck.

Wudman 

[Old Greenhorn]

Yeah Wudman, that's a good idea. I guess I had been thinking that if I could pull off the tenon joints it would help minimize all those vibrational moments that happen in all directions. You are quite right that most of the load is vertical and for the life of me, I can't figure out why two lag bolts counter-bored thru the top rail down into the post would not be just as good.
 Probably I have been feeling so inferior because I can't do these timber construction methods and wanted to give it a try on something very simple. Reading all the fancy things here can make a guy like me feel inadequate pretty quick.
 Truth be told, the toughest part of this job will be digging the holes. We don't have much dirt here, just rocks interspersed with roots, ledge, stumps, and other hard stuff.
 I will think about this and once I get the rails milled up I will make a decision. Thanks for the input. :D

[Crusarius]

I wouldn't even bother digging holes. just use full length 6x6 right on the ground. or if you really want put a gravel base down and then set the 6x6 on that. Use stakes to hold it all from moving. 

Yes the 6x6 will rot. But it will not rot overnight.

could even use 18" pavers and set the 6x6 on that. help keep it off the ground. 

One thing I did whenever I have any wood touching the ground, I used a piece of composite deck material so the composite decking is touching the dirt not the wood. worked great for my wood racks that are in the mud. Also keep them from sinking.

[Old Greenhorn]

Crusarius, that is exactly what I already have with blocking to cover the grade change and it is still too shaky. I need to make this solid. Also, you may have missed the part where I mentioned the sloping ground, so just laying down block or gravel won't cut it. The blocking height changes by over a foot from end to end. This is why I wanted to make a solid frame construction and probably add some diagonal cross ties.
 The more I think about it, the more I think I will make it a lagged and spiked construction with lap joints at the long timber ends. All ideas asre good, you just hit on the one I tried second. (the first one was not pretty).  ;D
Tom