Chasing the Sawdust Dream

[Resonator]

Thanks for the feedback guys! I put a lot of hours into the project, and wanted it to be a showcase piece. Highlighting what can be done with lumber that I can produce, (and some woodworking). ;)
Thanks also to the customer (and his wife) for generously letting me use one side of their heated 2 car garage for a workshop for over a month, without which the project wouldn't have turned out as nice. Further convincing me that I need to plan to build a new shop of my own, just for constructing projects. Allowing my business to be able to produce "value added product" year round.


"To look around at what you have accomplished in a day gives a man a good feeling. Too many men work on parts of things. Doing a job to completeness satisfies a man."  
- Richard Proenneke, from "Alone in the Wilderness"

[Jeff]

Definitely a show piece!

[RichTired]

You do very nice work! Amazing what you can find in an old log... 8)

[doc henderson]

who knows, may solidify a tradition of a family eating breakfast together.  nice work start to finish.  no pun intended.

[Resonator]

Even with all the nationwide pandemic that's going on, I've been getting a few sawmilling calls. I had taken a break from sawing over winter, but since the snow is melting in the land of cheese, I guess I'm back in the sawmill business. 8)



Bought a new box of blades and a couple B57's. I ran the originals till they were plum wore out, and then picked up a couple auto parts store belts to get by. They worked OK, but there's nothing like the real thing.






A repeat customer brought over a few logs to saw, though he didn't know what they were. My first guess is Elm, but I've been wrong before. Whatever it is, I'm happy to saw it (and get paid)! ;D

[thecfarm]

You sure do good work. Both sawing and building!!

[Resonator]

New customer brought me a couple big, knotty, pitchy, White Pine logs to saw. Biggest one was 30"+ diameter, and plenty heavy! Had to do some "Bibbying" with the chainsaw for the blade glide to fit in different places.. Tree came out of someones front yard, so of course it had...







Customer requested it cut to 7/8" thick for paneling, so I got max board yield from the logs. He was impressed by the wide boards (some almost 20") that you can't get at a big box store.

[Resonator]

Still chasing the sawdust dream, riding out the ups and downs, and hoping for better days to come. Maybe there's a pot of gold out there, the rainbow did touch down in my woods. :D



Made a new sign for the business from some leftover paint and a free 2-man saw blade.



Ran the original blade guide rollers about as long as I could, and replaced them with new ones from Wood-Mizer. Cut some knotty Spruce before and after, huge improvement in cut quality (less waves).



Rented a mini EX for the weekend, and did some demo and cleanup to make room for a future new garage / shop building. While I had it, I gave a few trees a gentle "nudge" while cutting them down to fell them in the right direction. Very handy machine for moving logs around with the thumb and bucket, and digging stumps, and stacking brush... (I definitely need to own one of these someday). ;D



The lumber inspector was impressed with my inventory. (Makes it all worth it).  ;D

[WDH]

Your lumber always looks so very well sawn. 

[Nebraska]

That inspector looks like he might be tough to deal with in the future, one of mine took me out yesterday evening whipped me in golf(dad hadn't played a round yet this year) then I had to buy him a hamburger. Enjoy it they grow fast.

[Resonator]

Another day, another rainbow, back in the woods. (Still looking for that pot of gold.) :D



One of my neighbors took down a Spruce tree, and I got a couple logs free for the taking to cut into knotty slabs. Maybe not the greatest wood, but I gave him a piece as a thank you. That gave me a chance to mention: "If he ever thin out your Pine plantation, let me know." ;D



 A new customer brought me some 12' and 16' logs to rebuild a ramp into an old 2 level barn. He felled the trees a day or two previous to bringing them to me, and pressure washed them. 8)



Some had a little sweep. :D



They were cut into full 2" thick 16' planks, and 7" x 7" x 12' beams. After wrestling these all day I was whooped.
After sawing to fill his cut list, he had one log too many. I offered to knock a couple bucks off his bill, and kept that log for myself.



Soon after he left, the son of a repeat customer stopped in to buy some of my White Pine and Red Pine boards. He asked if I had any long material available, I said "Well I just happen to have this White Ash log here, if you want too wait around while I saw it." ;D
He was happy to get some 14', mostly clear 1" boards, and may bring me logs to saw in the future.

[chet]

Ain't it nice how things work out sometimes.  Musta been dat rainbow you was workin' under. 

[WDH]

Jeremy, that is some nice ash. 

[Resonator]

Still chasing the dream. Took me five years, but I finally made the last payment on my Kubota. 8)
Just turned 1000 hours recently, and other than a few "operator error" repairs, it has performed very well. I know I wouldn't be able to run my business without it. Now onto paying off that bright orange Wood-Mizer behind it... ;D



Got a call out of the blue from someone down the road from me, they had a huge mostly dead White Pine blow over in a storm last spring, and asked if I wanted the logs. They mainly just wanted to get rid of them, though I said they can have some of the slabs or lumber if they want.



I agreed to take all of the logs, they even arranged free delivery.  
Although the biggest log is right at 3' in diameter, (too big for my mill), so the jury's still out what I'll do with it.



Got quite a few nice thick slabs so far, and some 1" lumber for cabin paneling. 



Sold a few to another neighbor with a winery business, he has plans to make them into bar-top tables. He liked that it was a local tree, that came from only a couple miles from his business.

[trapper]

nice shiney mizer,   Get a new one?

[Resonator]

No, still got my 2017 LT28 (paint is still shiny), hope to pay it off soon. 

[2308500]

,

[Southside]

@Resonator seems you have a strange, white, fungus, on those last logs there.  Hope that isn't invasive and spreads down this way.   ;D

[Resonator]

 :D :D

[stanwelch]

Good job Jeremy!!  Glad to hear you are still chasin'  8)

[Resonator]

Frosty morning.



Cut down some Black Ash while expanding my sawmill yard, and had a new customer request 1 x 6 Black Ash for cabin Paneling. He was OK with getting fresh cut lumber, he won't be doing his project until next year. Cabin Paneling seems to be one of my best sellers, customers prefer the rustic natural appearance over what is available in the big - box store.







Always amazed how dark the wood is fresh off the mill, and how light it gets a few hours later. Some of the logs had plenty of stress, and I may have put heavy weights on top of the cant while on the mill to hold the last few cuts flat. ;D 



The customer liked the Black Ash so much he called back and asked if I had any full 12" wide White Pine to go in another room. Took a walk in the woods with my chainsaw, and a few hours later I had lumber ready. Just another day, chasing the sawdust dream.  ;D

[doc henderson]

good looking lumber!  great job!

[Magicman]

Oh yes, that wall paneling (is) will be beautiful.  Very often customers call not really knowing what they want.  Suggesting wall paneling, wainscoting, ceiling, flooring, etc. gets their mind to thinking and very often leads to more sawing business.

I will be at a customer's location at 9:00 this morning sawing Cypress, then SYP Monday, and White Oak starting Tuesday.  This "sawdust dream" seems to never "wake up" and I ain't chasing it.....it's chasing me!!  :

[kantuckid]

On that 3 footer, chainsaw/split with a wedge, etc., some off the worst side then saw it. 
 
An old time sawyer, logger mill owner in my area who I knew well, told me a story about breaking down huge logs from the virgin forests by drilling a hole in a strategic location then blowing off some gunpowder to split those logs so they'd fit on the mill. That same man had gone up north from KY chasing timber and logged and milled in WI for a number of years, took his family with him, then came back.  

[Resonator]

Someday I'd like to take a trip way down south and see you saw Mr. Magicman.

Oh yes Kantuckid, I'm experienced in splitting a log lengthwise with a chainsaw and wedges. The next log up the tree from the big one I cut that way, and it seemed like a lot of work for some low value lumber. I have plenty of White pine available that are much more manageable size. I may just make a cut out sign of Paul Bunion and Babe his blue ox and put it next the log for advertising.  :D