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Sawing in cold freezing weather

Started by adirondacker, November 07, 2019, 07:46:23 AM

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WLC

Mart, That is too funny!!  Doubt many on the board have seen a cup of boiling hot liquid thrown in the air vaporize before it hits the ground.

I've taken to using the -100 RV antifreeze mixed with water when I'm sawing in below freezing weather. I always purge my lines at the end of each sawing day and take the lube tank into the shop until the next time I saw.  Have not seen any indication of staining using the RV stuff.
Woodmizer LT28
Branson 4wd tractor
Stihl chainsaws
Elbow grease.

Quebecnewf

I work in the winter cutting logs . At -32 F cutting logs is not a problem . I would never consider sawing at that temp unless the mill was in a shed preheated . Staring up engines and Hyd at that temp takes special setups . If your not prepared for that then your going to have no end of trouble

Quebecnewf 

123maxbars

Quote from: Magicman on November 12, 2019, 01:33:26 PM
I have a "one log" Walnut job to saw tomorrow.  The forecast is for 22°, so I'm not looking forward to sawing even one log.  :-X
at least 8) it is Walnut, 
Sawyer/Woodworker/Timber Harvester
Woodmizer LT70 Super Wide, Nyle L53 and 200 kiln, too many other machines to list.
outofthewoods
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Out of the

Magicman

I had to glow the engine three times before it popped off, but other than that everything went smoothly.  I had purged the LubeMizer so it was not frozen but I sawed dry anyway. 

My "new" Kubota tractor does not have glow plugs, but it still started on the second try.  We were probably in the 50°'s when we finished.

With the knee surgery the only freezing weather "sawing" that I will be doing will be... smiley_sleeping
Knothole Sawmill, LLC     '98 Wood-Mizer LT40SuperHydraulic   WM Million BF Club Member   WM Pro Sawyer Network

It's Weird being the Same Age as Old People

Never allow your "need" to make money to exceed your "desire" to provide quality service.....The Magicman

Andries



 Spent a few hours sawing 6x7 beams down to 2x6 studs for a good friend.
He came to the mill from 2 1/2 hours drive away; we chose the date a week earlier.
Bad timing.
Minus 24°C with a strong NW wind.
😵
LT40G25
Ford 545D loader
Stihl chainsaws

Andries




The ww fluid rated for -40, was definitely  needed.
The pine pitch would build up and cause the band to thump, a trickle of fluid cleaned it up quickly.
Bands by Kasco, 4° and rotated the dull ones off as soon as the frozen wood had beat them up too badly.
The hydraulics did not want to play in the snow. Shoulda known better than to try.
I've got no working hydraulics after using the clamp to hold the beams. Worked for two cuts, then quit.
Got 75 studs cut by hand holding and slow feed with sharp bands.
I'll check for popped fuses this weekend when we're forecast for plus temps to 4°.
LT40G25
Ford 545D loader
Stihl chainsaws

Andries

Good luck with the surgery @Magicman.
With all the copious quantities of firewood that you've got stashed away - you'll have a warm recovery period. 🔥
Best wishes!
LT40G25
Ford 545D loader
Stihl chainsaws

Magicman

Andries, what species of trees/logs are you sawing?

I have never seen such white sawdust before!!  :o
Knothole Sawmill, LLC     '98 Wood-Mizer LT40SuperHydraulic   WM Million BF Club Member   WM Pro Sawyer Network

It's Weird being the Same Age as Old People

Never allow your "need" to make money to exceed your "desire" to provide quality service.....The Magicman

Andries

Good eye Mr. @Magicman, sir.
That'd be Arctic Willow, Salix arctica, the Northern most woody plant in the world. 
@WDH will back me up on this . . . .
Reknowned for extremely white sawdust, which scatters about in most of this country.
Mostly used in glue-lams, where it takes approximately 27,000 trees to make one standard wall stud.
Its a bit of work, but we manage.
;)
LT40G25
Ford 545D loader
Stihl chainsaws

Old Greenhorn

Quote from: Andries on November 14, 2019, 02:56:14 PM
Good eye Mr. @Magicman, sir.
That'd be Arctic Willow, Salix arctica, the Northern most woody plant in the world.
@WDH will back me up on this . . . .
Reknowned for extremely white sawdust, which scatters about in most of this country.
Mostly used in glue-lams, where it takes approximately 27,000 trees to make one standard wall stud.
Its a bit of work, but we manage.
;)
You learn the darndest things here on the FF!  ;D :D
Tom Lindtveit, Woodsman Forest Products
Oscar 328 Band Mill, Husky 350, 450, 562, & 372 (Clone), Mule 3010, and too many hand tools. :) Retired and trying to make a living to stay that way. NYLT Certified.
OK, maybe I'm the woodcutter now.
I work with wood, There is a rumor I might be a woodworker.

Magicman

Wow, so I naturally thought that you were pulling my leg so Google was my friend:  Arctic Willow.  So now that you have identified the origin of the "white sawdust", and the 27,000 figure is believable, but I am now left to wonder about the harvest method.  Seems like a skidder's tires would sink into the tundra??  Gotta take a lot of them little logs to make that huge amount of that white sawdust?  Also what blades are you using?
Knothole Sawmill, LLC     '98 Wood-Mizer LT40SuperHydraulic   WM Million BF Club Member   WM Pro Sawyer Network

It's Weird being the Same Age as Old People

Never allow your "need" to make money to exceed your "desire" to provide quality service.....The Magicman

Andries

Quote from: Magicman on November 14, 2019, 03:26:20 PM
. . .  I am now left to wonder about the harvest method.  Seems like a skidder's tires would sink into the tundra??  Gotta take a lot of them little logs to make that huge amount of that white sawdust?  Also what blades are you using?
Sinking tires? Tundra is frozen solid, my friend.
27,000 logs per stud. Very low un-employment stats up here.
And now we get into the trade secrets . . .
Y'know all those lèèètle bookshelf sawmills that WM sells? We 'activate' them and use metric bands on them.
Ėlon Musk was involved.
VERY top secret . . .
🤔🤔🤔
LT40G25
Ford 545D loader
Stihl chainsaws

Magicman

Shoulda knowed dat it all boiled down to dat crazy 'rithmatic called metrics.  :P

Now I wants ta know where dat white goes when all of dat sawdust melts??  smiley_headscratch
Knothole Sawmill, LLC     '98 Wood-Mizer LT40SuperHydraulic   WM Million BF Club Member   WM Pro Sawyer Network

It's Weird being the Same Age as Old People

Never allow your "need" to make money to exceed your "desire" to provide quality service.....The Magicman

frazman

I kinda chuckle at this cold weather thread. What is cold to one is warm to another... ;D

Old Greenhorn

Quote from: frazman on November 14, 2019, 06:39:08 PM
I kinda chuckle at this cold weather thread. What is cold to one is warm to another... ;D
Everything is relative  ;D. I know this happens almost every year. My problem this year is it was nearly 60 one weekend and then then 18 the following weekend and stayed that way since then. Too much too fast. I always need a few weeks to make the adjustment.
Tom Lindtveit, Woodsman Forest Products
Oscar 328 Band Mill, Husky 350, 450, 562, & 372 (Clone), Mule 3010, and too many hand tools. :) Retired and trying to make a living to stay that way. NYLT Certified.
OK, maybe I'm the woodcutter now.
I work with wood, There is a rumor I might be a woodworker.

WDH

The ice grips the North and the glaciers groan.  I have heard that people get hungry and have to cut holes in the ice to fish. 
Woodmizer LT40HDD35, John Deere 2155, Kubota M5-111, Kubota L2501, Nyle L53 Dehumidification Kiln, and a passion for all things with leafs, twigs, and bark.  hamsleyhardwood.com

jmouton

i heard there were no holes in the ice to be had down there, wdh
lt-40 wide ,,bobcat,sterling tandem flatbed log truck,10 ton trailer, stihl 075,041,029,066,and a 2017 f-350,oh and an edger

thecfarm

Than they cut holes and bring food to eat in thier little shacks. ;D
Yes on the temps. Somewheres around 32° seem cold this time of year. February feels like a heatwave. ;D
Model 6020-20hp Manual Thomas bandsaw,TC40A 4wd 40 hp New Holland tractor, 450 Norse Winch, Heatmor 400 OWB,YCC 1978-79

WDH

No sir.  No ice.  No holes. No glaciation. No snow load.  No frozen wood.  Mill cranks and sawmill hydraulics always work.  Things are peachy until summer comes in April :).
Woodmizer LT40HDD35, John Deere 2155, Kubota M5-111, Kubota L2501, Nyle L53 Dehumidification Kiln, and a passion for all things with leafs, twigs, and bark.  hamsleyhardwood.com

Andries

Well, yeah.
After April, when the heat brings out rattlers in the lumber pile. 'Blue Jean' pine and ambrosia are clever marketing for decayed wood products. We've all seen pictures of MM in the sandbox, working hard at avoiding another bout of heatstroke. Heck, your ac bills are probably higher than my heating bills. I can dead stack birch lumber for two months in the winter and it'll still be as bright as the day it was milled.
😎
All horsing around aside, like old greenhorn says, it's those crazy temp swings that make things tough. Going from 60 to15° in one day would make any reasonable work a challenge.
As the old Finlander said:
"Be cool, stay warm!"


LT40G25
Ford 545D loader
Stihl chainsaws

mart

Quote from: frazman on November 14, 2019, 06:39:08 PM
I kinda chuckle at this cold weather thread. What is cold to one is warm to another... ;D
We get folks from corporate in Texas visiting here on the north slope sometimes in the winter. They always are shocked at just how cold it can get. I always tell them, "yeah but it's a dry cold." Kind of pay back for when I took basic in El Paso in the summer. I got so sick of hearing, "yeah, but it's a dry heat."
I was young and dumb once. I got over being young a long time ago.

LT15 w/19 hp - 24' bed
Branson 3725
Stihl MS362
Husqvarna 450

Old Greenhorn

I was out in Breckenridge, CO in December. It was about 5 below and I walked into the store after walking 8 blocks and shivered off the cold as the door closed behind me. "MAN, it's cold" I said to no one in particular. The guy behind the counter had his feet up on the counter and was reading the paper so I couldn't see his face. "Yeah, but it's a dry cold" he said, real dead pan. I laughed and asked "what the heck does that mean anyway?" he said "I dunno, I've lived here 50 years and everybody says it, but I don't get it either."
Tom Lindtveit, Woodsman Forest Products
Oscar 328 Band Mill, Husky 350, 450, 562, & 372 (Clone), Mule 3010, and too many hand tools. :) Retired and trying to make a living to stay that way. NYLT Certified.
OK, maybe I'm the woodcutter now.
I work with wood, There is a rumor I might be a woodworker.

petefrom bearswamp

Skipped over a lot of this thread, but anyone sawing at -32F is a fool IMO
Kubota 8540 tractor, FEL bucket and forks, Farmi winch
Kubota 900 RTV
Polaris 570 Sportsman ATV
3 Huskies 1 gas Echo 1 cordless Echo vintage Homelite super xl12
57 acres of woodland

frazman

I remember once we had travelled to Florida for a ship cruise and when we were walking around in short in December, locals were looking at us probably thinking those must be crazy Canuck. Weather was much better then what we had at home and had to appreciate it.

As for cutting in cold weather, hoping to find out soon as I'm getting my manual sawmill next week as long as the snow isn't to bad for setup...  

WDH

Andries knows both extremes.  That brings about cattywhompousness. 
Woodmizer LT40HDD35, John Deere 2155, Kubota M5-111, Kubota L2501, Nyle L53 Dehumidification Kiln, and a passion for all things with leafs, twigs, and bark.  hamsleyhardwood.com

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