I'm looking for some ideas on how you all do your edging other than with a dedicated edger. I found a nice one on this forum for a good price, but I'm just not in a position to afford it yet(maybe someday). What I'm wondering is, how do you all do your edging without one. I.m sure there are some creative methods that maybe not as efficient, but get the job done.
I edge on the mill (bandmill). Sometimes I put a lot of "like" flitches on there and edge them at one time and sometimes I edge flitches one at a time.
Usually I edge the flitches from the log they came from, right after finishing (or just before finishing) with the cant from the log. Sometimes, especially if I am edging one at a time, I use the cant to dog the flitches against so that they will be stable.
If I have only one or two flitches I may wait and edge them with the next log.
I prefer to do it this way so that I am totally through with a log before I go on to the next log. It keeps the log's boards together and keeps me disciplined as well.
I have edged at the end of the job. It seems that I always end up with a mess to work around when I do that. It can be quicker if you have good help but I find that you tend to treat these flitches as lesser important pieces of wood that you are just "cleaning up".
Most of my work is on site, it's not possible to tow an edger and a mill and it doesn't pay to make a second trip with an edger.
I do exactly as Tom does for many of the same reasons, except I edge all sizes together and just keep shuffling the deck as some boards get pulled and others get rotated. I can only clamp down to 4 inches, so I can't edge one at a time unless I use a board laid horizontal to pinch the flitch to the post.
I keep the lifting arm half way up and slide my flitches off the log and onto the arms as I open the log. With the right size log, I can just let them fall into the arms over the posts when I rotate the log with the truner. When I'm done with the log, I just raise the arms back up and slide the flitches back on then stand them up with the turner.
The edger salesmen will tell you that you over edge and lose money edging like this, but for the most part I don't think that to be the case. An edger is on my want list but I can live without one for a while yet. ;)
I've done this also. My question is, as the flitches get narrower, do you cut them all together? This would mean they are all the width of the nerrowest.
Also, does anyone use a tablesaw to edge?
When I have to edge on the mill I saw differently then when I have my edger. I take a slab and rotate 90 degrees and take a slab and then some flitches. By doing this my flitches have one side the is about flat so it makes it easier and faster to set them up and edge. On small logs where you get just 2 or 3 boards to edge I sit them off behind the next log and then do several logs together. It is bad to get to far behind. Putting the narrowest to the inside keeps you from handling them till the wider ones are done. More then 8 on the mill at a time gets tuff to manage.
ARKANSAWYER
It takes multiple passes and a reshuffle after each pass. The first pass only edges 1 or 2 boards. These then get flipped to put the other side up. drop the head down (how much depends on how waney the flitches are, but 1 1/2" usually works) make another pass, pull out any boards that are edged on both sides, flip boards that are good on only one side to expose the other, start the drill all over again until all boards are done.
If the logs were uniform and cylinderical, this goes fast and easy. If they were boney or curved, it can be a real pain.
I think about everybody edges pretty close to the same on the mill. Bibby had a pretty good description somewhere but I can't find it.
I bought a Corly edger...only ran it for a short time as it is a two people operation and I'm a one man band.
Grade lumber for my use I edge on the mill to save space in the kiln...but it is pretty wany. After drying I straight line rip one edge on a table saw sled...some boards need it to remove crook and wane, some don't, but I do all of them as it is pretty fast.