Whatcha Sawin' 2022 ??

[burdman_22]

I've finally started milling a large white oak in Athens, AL. We've had several hiccups...but we've managed to get two slabs out of it thus far, as well as a couple neat videos of me using my truck to roll the tree and later roll the top of the tree (after we cut it off).

Family picture below. My dad up top, my younger brother on the left, and me on the right. This was after we'd bucked the top from this chunk of tree and rolled it out of the way with my truck.




 
Dad picking up wedges after our first cut.





Dad after sweeping the first cut. Very promising look at the top of the first slab.

 

 

Dad showing off the top of the second slab.



 

Second slab removed...my head is poking over the top in the middle. Skid steer is a bit undersized....my dad and brother had to ride on the back to keep it from tipping over while carrying this slab...for the others we're going to have to back the trailer up beside the log and load one end at a time.



 

My brother taking a break after loading the second slab. I'm glad he brought his drone along, it has made photography much easier and enabled us all three to be in shots together!
 


 

[Walnut Beast]

Looks like you had fun and came away with some treasures. 

[TimW]

I hear there is a sawmill around here somewhere.

 

25 foot long.  38 inches at the butt.  I rolled it off the trailer.  I tried to lift one end and drag it with the tractor.  I could not lift one end.

I cut it into two 12.5 foot pieces.  Was able to grapple the smaller  log and haul it to the stack.  The big one I had to drag.   The grapple could not curl it all the way.  Really too large a diameter for the grapple.   Lord, I miss my telehandler.
           hugs,  Brandi

[Magicman]

38" Butt.  Welcome to my world Brandi, but thankfully you have a wide.   8)

[jb616]

@burdman_22 "Second slab removed...my head is poking over the top in the middle. Skid steer is a bit undersized....my dad and brother had to ride on the back to keep it from tipping over while carrying this slab...for the others we're going to have to back the trailer up beside the log and load one end at a time."

Careful doing that, I watched a video of a person doing that when they slipped off, fell down and the rear of the vehicle they were trying to hold down dropped on top of them. Didn't end well. 

[TimW]

38" Butt.  Welcome to my world Brandi, but thankfully you have a wide.   8)

Lynn,
    I bibbyed all around the big end, about a foot up, to fit on my wide mill.  I think it will go now.  Got an order for fifty 1x12x8s.  Thinking about bucking the big one down to 8 foot.  I should get all 50 out of it.
hugs,  Brandi

[Patrick NC]

Started on another cedar order this afternoon. 

 
Customer wants 125 2x4x12s and 500' of 1x6s.

[burdman_22]

 

 

 

[WV Sawmiller]

bm-22,

  Those are some awful pretty slabs but I would not want to be the guy moving them around. :D And that poor guy in the red shirt in the middle looks like he has been tied up and tortured and the guys on the end are fixing to roll that big slab over on him and squash him like a bug if he doesn't give up the information that they want. :D :D

  I need to give a shout out to Christian and Pat from WM service team who came by yesterday and did my bi-annual (? - Every other year) factory service and alignment on my mill. They were very professional and showed me some normal wear areas to keep watching and I was very well pleased with their workmanship. We finished just as the rain tried to set in. Now I just need to go saw up a bunch of stock I have on the yard.

[burdman_22]

Would love suggestions from folks on where to start with pricing....I dont even know how to get an idea of a ballpark figure. I know different folks will pay different things, but when people ask I dont even have anything I can tell them. I've had two local people ask as well as the CEO of a company in Ohio that makes conference tables. They are who id rather sell to, as I know they have the equipment to handle them...kilns, flattened, etc...but he wants a figure and I dont know where to start :(

[Resonator]

Would love suggestions from folks on where to start with pricing....I dont even know how to get an idea of a ballpark figure. I know different folks will pay different things, but when people ask I dont even have anything I can tell them. I've had two local people ask as well as the CEO of a company in Ohio that makes conference tables. They are who id rather sell to, as I know they have the equipment to handle them...kilns, flattened, etc...but he wants a figure and I dont know where to start

My opinion fresh off the mill price should be less than kiln dried slab price. Be sure to figure the cost of transporting them also. If it hadn't been said already, make sure to seal the ends. Take good pictures of grain, and notes on widest size also. Huge tables are a "statement" piece and if there is a "wow" factor to the appearance, you can ask more because of it. I would also price them a little high, you can always negotiate down with a customer, very difficult to go back up. Oh and lift with the forks, not the back. ;D

[PA_Walnut]

I use my BF dimensional pricing as a start. Measure width each and end middle and average x length x thickness to establish slab general price. Then I make additions or subtractions, based on quality.

All my slabs are kiln dried and surfaced, so that is part of the baseline BF calcs, but generally not optional. I tell customers that green slabs are like purchase a cow's rump, when you want to have steak for dinner.  ;D

[mudfarmer]

At the circle mill we normally cut pine construction lumber from 8-16ft. Yesterday we sawed 8x8x25ft and 8x10x27ft larch beams for a timber frame.  Trying to not make a habit of it  ;D



 

 

[IndiLina]

 my bi-annual (? - Every other year) factory service and alignment on my mill.

biennial    
Just mentioning this because I think it is a handy word to have in the toolbox. 

[WV Sawmiller]

  Thanks for the correction. I did not think I was using the correct term. ;)

   Now I wonder why American English does not incorporate the use of a Fortnight more often and why we don't use more $2 bills. :D

[Resonator]

They were very professional and showed me some normal wear areas to keep watching

What specific wear areas do they recommend to watch?

[WV Sawmiller]

  One specific area I had not paid much attention too was my rollers. They lifted the head with a bar and I could see a small groove starting in them. It is not affecting anything yet and looks to be a very easy changeout when the time comes.

   He also used a combination square that sat better on the rails to measure the blade height when checking/adjusting the blade tilt and tooth height. He measured from the bottom of the tooth to get his marks while I had always measured from the back side of my band. It wall works out when you adjust the pointer on your scale but his technique was more stable and accurate to read.

   I'd lost a couple of spacer on my last roller change a few hours ago which had my roller loose and a point of concern and the first thing they fixed.

   If you have never used them I highly recommend getting on their route as it is educational and a confidence builder your mill is adjusted and running right.

[Resonator]

Thanks for the info.
I don't think they ran a service loop in my area during the pandemic, (I would usually would get a card in the mail when they are scheduling). My mill will be 5 years old this year, definitely would like to get it checked over for wear. 

[Walnut Beast]

At the circle mill we normally cut pine construction lumber from 8-16ft. Yesterday we sawed 8x8x25ft and 8x10x27ft larch beams for a timber frame.  Trying to not make a habit of it  ;D



 

Nice operation💪

[WV Sawmiller]

Resonator,

   You can go to the WM home page and under services they list the service loop schedule and I don't see WI on there this year. I am sure you can contact them and get on their list. How far are you from your nearest dealer? As I remember they will do the same thing and you can save a mileage fee if close enough. So another option is schedule with them to have them do one.

[Patrick NC]

Here's another 500' of Cedar going out tomorrow.  Got another order for 700' to start on. Won't get it all done tomorrow,  but if I can get 4-500' it will be a good start.

 

[Peter Drouin]

At the circle mill we normally cut pine construction lumber from 8-16ft. Yesterday we sawed 8x8x25ft and 8x10x27ft larch beams for a timber frame.  Trying to not make a habit of it  ;D



 

 

 nice setup.

[Nebraska]

 

 

So some random events transpired ???and I ended up trading some poor/(a few  good) quality cedar 4x4s for landscape edging for maybe 1500 board ft of Cotton Wood for some dimensional lumber for the barn project.


 
Two good  straight logs 18ft and top log will give about a ten ft before a crotch and a bend. I will end up quartering  the biggest. Split the big butt log, as I didn't have enough loader to handle it whole.

[WV Sawmiller]

 

 

I used up all my stock siding and framing on my last little composting toilet so I got out and sawed 5-6 of these little spruce logs today. Picture shows first load and I got another later. All told I got 51 3/4" X 8" boards or enough to side 2 more toilets/shed, 30 3" battens and a handful of 4' 2X4 & 2X6's. About 318 bf in a little over 2 hours. No speed records but steady and I'm happy with the wood. I guess I cut 60-70% of what I had in spruce and will finish it in one more session. I need to cut another poplar tree and cut some tops to make some more 2X4 for framing and one small order. 

[Nebraska]

Ended up with about 1000 bf useable cottonwood out of the load, took the stick to it and measured after I trimmed  them to length this evening .  Still will work out well.