Hey all I want to talk about good logs to saw the bad one's to saw,
and those ugly logs.
I will snap some pics of my first load of logs soon.
They are twisted ,bent and yupp ugly.
Being a rookie Any tips will help.
I just figured out today, for those long logs that are bent to far its best to cut them...am I right?.
Tell me about how you tackle those ugly logs.
By the way I will get some pics up of what Im doing with the new Woodmizer 35hd.
Dan
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/37653/saw4~0.JPG)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/37653/saw3.JPG)
More :) pics to come
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/37653/Saw1.JPG)
This was my first log 8)
I love this saw mill, Im starting to get the hang of It, reminds me of when I first got on a skid steer yrs ago
This one has some figure in it.
I need to chainsaw it to get it through the guides
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/37653/_DSC0009.JPG)
After you get them milled you can enter the lumber in the pretzel board contest. ;D
the way i would tackle those "logs" is make them 20" long and heat my house :) i have no markets for lumber from logs like that..
Quote from: red oaks lumber on October 15, 2014, 08:00:25 PM
the way i would tackle those "logs" is make them 20" long and heat my house :) i have no markets for lumber from logs like that..
That make me feel much better...me being a rookie sawing bent logs
Thanks...I do agree with you
But I did get some not too bad boards out of them did I?
I know that pile is crap.
Magicman where are my 300 pine logs? :D
I was in them today! no pics, to ugly to post,, there is some to be had, but the wrestling match is a battle.
That first picture looks like my firewood pile. ;D But I have seen some nice looking stuff that have come out of firewood piles too. Just not real straight lumber. ;D
Brothers...what about the nice crotch log...when this Sawmill snowball Can. Rookie saws it to that log, I hope it's not fire wood.
Quote from: mesquite buckeye on October 15, 2014, 07:56:27 PM
After you get them milled you can enter the lumber in the pretzel board contest. ;D
Sign me up ...I'm ready :D
I've sawed several logs with a lot of curve into live edge slabs. They sold quickly to people who wanted to make curved , free standing bar tops. I shouldn't have discounted them for being curved!
Dan, you've been raiding my log pile. ;D
Soon after I got my mill built, I heard my farmer neighbor had bought a 40 acre field adjoining another 40 he owned. It had a fence row on two sides that he planed to remove in the spring. I asked for the trees. He asked how many? I said I'll take all I can get. He said OK and he'd let me know when the field was dry enough and they'd get after it. The plan was he would doze them down, cut the stumps and tops, then load them on my trailer. As luck would have it, the week they got after it, I was in Dallas visiting Grandkids. :(
My son called to let me know it and he had time to take my truck and trailer to haul them home. He said my neighbor got a big kick out of burying me in logs. :D :D
What I came home to...
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/29968/2012-04-08_11-00-55_767.jpg)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/29968/2012-04-08_11-02-17_851.jpg)
What my ugly logs are getting used for...
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/29968/2012-06-17_09-50-54_32.jpg)
Besides making paneling for the cabin, I've heated the house for free for the last two winters and have enough firewood for two more.
Right On!....See Im not the only one with ugly logs.
Lets see your ugly logs...I bet there not as ugly as mine :D
The good is you were paid tipping fees ?
Ug-lee log contest. (https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php/topic,74856.msg1134530.html#msg1134530)
Red... the good on me was the lesson I learned on fence row trees. ;D
My scrap pile got a bunch bigger with all the tramp metal and toothless saw blades I tossed on it. Its really true... nothings free! (Old sayin) :D
I don't see a single thing wrong with your logs, Dan.
It is practice, practice, practice and a few boards at the end.
When I bought my mill I sawed a BUNCH of white pine for my neighbor/friend.
He was cutting white pine for pulp from his land. I told him if he wants to save some logs I will saw them for free. I was there, running the mill every chance I had. I parked the mill next to a large pile of pine and just sawed and stacked lumber and slabs. He hauled it away each time I ran out of room and I kept sawing. He ended up with at least 6000-7000bf of lumber. Needless to say I did not have to saw any white pine for myself since, as my neighbor always just says, that I can take what I need. It was the best thing I ever did.
I left with no money, but had a SOLID knowledge base on running the mill and how to wrangle a wide variety of logs that -sometimes - I could not fit on the mill. When I pulled up to my first paying job is when all that free sawing started to pay off.
Im going to saw that big crotch tomorrow.
Its all Norway maple and I have been useing the 10 degreee blade.
Now I may change bands for the first time to the 4 degree.
I was surprised how that 10 blade ripped through this maple.
Not sure if I shold be using the 4degree blade on all of this firewood...I just do not no when to change blades. :new_year:
I change blades when I stop throwing mini rice kernels and it starts looking like saw dust. Can't comment on the 4° blades. I've never cut frozen logs or wood hard enough to need them. The 10° blades have worked fine for me on oak (the hardest I've sawn) to basswood.
That's a nice pile of firewood you got there! ;D Seriously, pick out the best ones, cut them to length to get the straightest log you can and you can get some decent lumber out of them. My grandfather sawed lumber on his Lane Sawyer's favorite for decades and he had a colorful saying. "*s&^%$y logs make s&^%$y lumber." For the most part he was quite right.
GD in Maine,
I had a job similar to that. I sawed 10,000 ft. of hemlock for a guy about 45 minutes away from the house. It looked much better in the pile than it did on the deck. I learned alot about my mill, and milling. It was valuable experience.
I did charge the guy, so I made some money. A few of my friends said I was crazy, that I lost money. I said nope, I made a killing ;)
Sometimes the customer might not understand what is a log and what is not. One log is usually enough for them to realize what is, and what is not economical for them to saw. I often tell them that they can not make "chicken pie out of chicken mess". :D
There are other times when the customer does understand and may have a special project in mind. Those are the instances when you lay aside your good judgement and saw. ;D
Seriously, most of our mesquite logs look that bad or worse. The good news is ugly logs like that actually make prettier furniture than the perfect ones. I would cut them a little thick if they are showing stress wood so your pieces to make things with will be longer even if they move around. If you are trying to make money selling this kind of lumber it will be a tough road, but if you are using it yourself or if you have artistic furniture types around have at it. ;D
Quote from: mesquite buckeye on October 16, 2014, 08:23:24 PM
Seriously, most of our mesquite logs look that bad or worse. The good news is ugly logs like that actually make prettier furniture than the perfect ones. I would cut them a little thick if they are showing stress wood so your pieces to make things with will be longer even if they move around. If you are trying to make money selling this kind of lumber it will be a tough road, but if you are using it yourself or if you have artistic furniture types around have at it. ;D
A couple of months ago I had a client from Texas as me to saw a bunch of mesquite like that. MY first reaction was "WHAT?!?" But he wanted it for "unusual cuts" and it worked out just fine. (Mesquite is pretty hard stuff.)
Today I got some straighter logs 8)
Soft maple, hard maple, and some walnut :new_year:
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/37653/Walnut_and_maple_logs~0.JPG)
I think Im changeing my blade tomorrow...I just skimmed over top of the clamp...never cut into it, just took some black paint off of It. :-X
I wonder if the 10 degree blades will be ok for that hard maple, or should I put a 4 degree on?
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/37653/walnut_fletch_cuts.JPG)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/37653/Soft_maple_on_the_sawmill.JPG)
Im not sure where I will use this soft maple, but It saws nice.
Ugly wood makes ugly lumber, but great table top slabs, shelves, bar tops. I find it is always better to live edge it all. If the log is to big for the throat of the mill, I saw one side down to 28 inches wide, then turn it 90 degrees and slab it thru. Number the slabs so that they are book matched. i would take one side of that crotch and slab it. It will make a beautiful table.
Ain't having fun.....fun. :)