stinky oak odyssey

[Magicman]

You gotta admit that those tongs are butt ugly.     :D  But they work.   8)

[grouch]

You gotta admit that those tongs are butt ugly.     :D  But they work.   8)

Aw, man, I thought they's sexy... er, um, ok, maybe purty... tolerable...

Alright. They're _ugly butt_ ugly. Might not improve the looks any when I graft 3 more inches of pipe right in the middle of the ones that are there. ;D

[grouch]

My original cobbled up hitch for the log arch consisted of a D-ring, clevis and drawbar:


It lurched and clunked and eventually caused the arch to move somewhat in the direction you told it to, it just sometimes took some little zigzags of its own choosing along the way. That was acceptable as long as I was dealing with logs small enough to scoot, pry or manhandle along the mill bunks. (Loading from the side still requires me to scoot logs toward the head before sawing. Clearance issues).

I needed more precision and the ability to watch the 4 inches or so clearance between tires and mill so I would not have to fight that big log into position.

My tractor needed a snout.


What the snout is welded to is a piece of 1/2 x 4 x 8 angle:


Don't know how much this helps, but I let the snout (2 inch receiver tube) continue under the angle:






Here's why the snout has to be so long:






2 inch ball in 3/8 inch angle welded to 2 inch square tube


Don't get nervous; you *won't* meet this running down the interstate:

[grouch]

Ok, that should bring us back to


I'm getting as bad as Hollyweird in scrambling space and time.

The tape measure should have been enough to tell me not to try leveling the pith. Big end was about 25 inches, small end about 15 inches, that's 5 inches of wedge to cut away before a full cut, and that's about all the good wood at the big end. It's a learning process.

Just about the mill's limit:


About 12 inches good:






I was cutting 1-5/8. These things were heavy.


Already losing some of that 16 ft










That was a stinky beast to roll. After each turn, I had to realign the track.

[grouch]

Still didn't know how far up that mess went:




Ugly and stinky:










Cut in half:




Feed trough?

[grouch]

Almost there...



What? That's not a circular sawmill? I been robbed!

Boards from the 2nd log have a destiny with dirt, tomatoes, beans, etc.



Some end grain shots (with and without flash, because I don't know what people are looking for when they study these slices). If you see any saw marks on these, tell Freud to fix their blades:








There it is -- selection to stapled.

[paul case]

encore!!!!! bon_fire

PC

[nativewolf]

That's perfect picture end grain of a red oak!   8)

[grouch]

encore!!!!! bon_fire

PC

You have to supply the respirator and fresh air pump!

That's perfect picture end grain of a red oak!   8)

Thanks. Are there multiple kinds of red oak? I remember from my pocket guide (which I lost grrr) the Quercus section was long. Only other guide I have has no photos, just line drawings of bark, leaves, seeds and flowers.

Set up the tripod for those, then couldn't tell through the viewfinder if I was getting what I wanted (forgot "live view") so set 'em up again with bottom board on top. When it turned out both sets were square and focused, decided to post both pairs.  That's as close as my 18-55mm lens will focus. Could've put on a bellows and got down to the cells.  ;D

[paul case]

Oh yeah there are different kinds of red oak. Southern RO, blackjack oak, Black oak, Northern RO, and Water oak are the kinds of Red Oak we have here in my neck of the woods.

PC

[grouch]

See, that's the thing -- common names are regional. There's a "blackjack oak" behind my house which was called a "pin oak" where I grew up. Local fellow told me when we moved here that, "It's called a blackjack oak 'cause it holds its hand all winter."

[Ox]

What a fantastic journey - thx for sharing

[derhntr]

I could see lots of bore hole. Big problem in dead oak.

[grouch]

I could see lots of bore hole. Big problem in dead oak.

Will the villains continue eating on it after sawing?

I can't remember if I sprayed Tim-bor on all of that oak or not.

[grouch]

Stinky oak boxes doing their job:









These tomatoes look happier than the ones in the previous picture.


Onions not looking too well.