A day cutting wood

[Magicman]

I love to tell customers that "if they had taken one step closer to the log they would have gotten the limb sawed off".   :D  It's good for a laugh, and still gets the point across.   ;)

[Jim_Rogers]

In another post I posted this picture:



And the other ends looked like this:



I told the customer that these two huge rotten logs weren't worth fighting with to get only a few planks out of. So, he cut them up and split them here in my yard and hauled them out.

That left the four top sections off of these trees. Everyone of them had a crotch in them.

I cut the crotches off:



 



 

And I set the crotches aside:



 

Above is only one of the three.

I decided not to cut the crotch of one of them.

That leaves me with these three monsters to start sawing on today:



 

It will certainly be "A Day Cutting Wood"......

Jim Rogers

[thecfarm]

My cedar pile looks like that.  :(  Not in size though.

[Peter Drouin]

Sometimes you have to do what you have to Jim  :D :D
Best of luck with them my friend.

[Jim_Rogers]

First log on the mill:



 

Just started cutting 2" x 12" x 10' 10" long planks for furniture. And the water bottle hose is leaking.

I've got to go to town and get a fitting to splice it back together. It's always something.

I can't wait till the customer gets here and he sees these planks. At 125 lbs each he's going to have a workout unloading them at his place.

Jim Rogers

[Peter Drouin]

Jim how did you bend the loader arm, on a big log like that ?

[Jim_Rogers]

Jim how did you bend the loader arm, on a big log like that ?

Plowing snow with the backhoe too close to the machine with the loader arm down.
And I didn't hit it that hard, I was really surprised when I saw it.
Now I put the loader arms up every time so I can clean out next to the mill.
Note to self, finish roof......

Jim Rogers

[Magicman]

Both of my loader arms have looked like that.  One when I bought it and the other when I returned to saw one morning and the customer had decided to clean things up with his tractor/boxblade.   :-\

[Peter Drouin]

Both of my loader arms have looked like that.  One when I bought it and the other when I returned to saw one morning and the customer had decided to clean things up with his tractor/boxblade.   :-\

If I do it it's one thing. If a customer did it I would lose my temper and tell him so then packup and leave. all the time, I have customers want to load or push the logs to or set logs on my mill. Or want to help change the blade, I tell them NO stay away. I allways tell them. If you hit my mill I will not understand. 
no one touches my mill, no one, ;D

[backwoods sawyer]

Have straitened mine a time or two.
When it comes time to replace them the old loading arm will go on the trailer.

I had a local customer with a single tree, he lives on top of a mountain, and has a locked gate at the bottom of a long, steep, winding drive, he rescheduled six times in the process of getting his logs together, rain, cat broke down ect.

When I done the site eval it was made clear that there was no turn around on the goat trail and that the mill would have to be backed in all the way up and around the hill to a small landing. It was also pointed out that a lower landing would be a much better location, just pull in and set up type location. He chose the upper landing and parked the backhoe and tractor on it making for a tight setup.

He had a nice 28' log and was clear he needed four 20' 3x12  He measured it off at 20'2" laid a piece of moss on the log, I was setting up the mill and noticed the log pinch his saw, I had a wedge in my hand so drove it in so he could retrieve his saw. When he stepped back we noticed he had made pair of 14' logs. Felt bad for him as he danced around. He has more trees on the hill, just has to go thru the whole process of getting one ready again.

2 hours from gate to finish including set up and figuring out what to do with 14' logs. 

For some getting a tree ready to mill is a simple task to carry out, for others it can be a much bigger and time consuming challenge.




 

[drobertson]

Only had one issue years ago with damage, not that bad, folks around here are sure not to interfere with the operation, regardless.    david

[Peter Drouin]

Backwoods sawyer, I have had to do that before, back all the way in  :D
I see the wheel off the ground in the pic. I bring boards with me to drive up on to help level the mill. And have cut cookies to put under the legs too. Good job

[Peter Drouin]

Only had one issue years ago with damage, not that bad, folks around here are sure not to interfere with the operation, regardless.    david

It's just the folks in NH can't stand around , they want to help , so I try to find them some to do , like go get more trees  :D

[Magicman]

I have also had to pull in, unhook and turn the sawmill around by hand.  It seems that virtually every setup is different.

[Peter Drouin]

I have also had to pull in, unhook and turn the sawmill around by hand.  It seems that virtually every setup is different.

I have done that , one time the mill stared to roll away on me, I had to pull the cable for the electric brake to stop the mill  :D :D :D

[Peter Drouin]

More of the timber frame getting cut , A lot of boards when you box the pith. some of the 8x9x24' came out of a 24" log [ top end]
I did cut the 1" into 2 12'




  

  

 

the customer has been trucking wood out for days  :D :D :D

tomorrow all 12' logs. all 1" to whatever wide  :D :D

[Dave Shepard]

You got'em trained?  :D Keep that stuff moving out the door.

[Peter Drouin]

You got'em trained?  :D Keep that stuff moving out the door.

:D :D :D :D I try

[Dave Shepard]

My millyard is tiny. If there is a flake of sawdust in the way everything grinds to a halt.  :D

[Peter Drouin]

My yard is full of logs , I fact [ my logs] I like to keep the length together now there all mixup :D

[Jim_Rogers]

About those monster red oak logs I was sawing, here is a shot of some of the crotch grain in the first piece.



 

Next came loading the biggest of all of them.



 

The mill couldn't roll it over by itself. I had to give it a little help with the backhoe bucket:



 

With the saw all the way to the top, I made the first cut:



 

As you can see by the shadows this was early in the morning.

After I made the first cut I tried to make a second one to start cutting it down to size before I had to "Bibby" it.
But I forgot that the gas tank was about empty and I was suppose to fill it up before I started sawing.
So wouldn't you know it, 2/3 of the way through the second cut it runs out of gas. Now I can't back out of the cut and I can't reach the tank.
What a bone head thing to do.

I had to get the step ladder and go up there and get the tank down and put 1 gallon or so in it to get through the cut. And then I lowered it down to remove it and fill it up full.
I never did that before.

Here is some of the 2x12's that he wanted:



 

He has hauled out two logs of lumber already and I have one more to cut up.
I cut the crotch off it today, and it's next to the mill ready to load. Got rained out several times today. Note to self, finish roof.

Jim Rogers

[beenthere]

Is that the roof in the background?

[Jim_Rogers]

Is that the roof in the background?

It was going to be, but most likely I'll have to take it all apart and start over. it sat too long unfinished.

Jim Rogers

[Peter Drouin]

Good job with the monsters  8) 8)

[Leigh Family Farm]

Second note to self: check gas tank before starting to saw!  :D :D ;)