My Lucky Day. (or where's the other 3?)

[Jeff]

In this part of Northern Michigan we are pretty lucky to have large forest lands that are pretty much inhabited only by nuts and squirrels and hunters. We don't get that much metal. Its increasing, but its still usually just nails or bullets. Our mill has been there since 1971 the sawmill itself updated in 1984 the debarker around 1994. We still have the original Morbark chipper and other support decks and conveyors. Metal detectors just were not put in around here then or even later on, but I know one of the mills in the next county have installed one because they have gone to a merry-go-round bandmill/resaw.

I would rather be around my saw when it hit iron, then a band head rig with that big ribbon of teeth.

There was zero outward signs of metal in this log, even looking back at the slabs and things. In aspen, stain is usually very localized to the area around the tramp metal. The picture below is the block I cut from the log. It contains almost all of the associated stain.

[Corley5]

The worst things I've hit are nails and barbed wire.  Grandpa hit some bad stuff like big spikes and lag bolts.  He refused to saw black walnut as up here the only place they grow are around old homesteads so every tree is almost sure to have hardware in it.  He knew this from experience.  
  That shoe looks like it'd be bad to hit.  At least if something flys a part you've got a nice safe cab for protection.  It does have bullet proof glass ???  I wouldn't like to hit something of that magnitude with my mill .

[Jeff]

Yep, from the waist up when yer sitting its bullet proof glass. From the waist down its 1/2" plywood.   :-/

[Corley5]

That's good and bad   ;);D

[woodhaven]

Buzz-sawyer,
The crack is hair line enough so the only way you can see it is flexing the blade. I know if I drilled a small hole at each end of the crack to stop any father splitting before welding it would take care of the crack. I have never had the blade on my mill and don't want to waste money on it. But if I could make it usable I would at least have a spare. Right now the only 1 blade and its on the mill. I have been looking at this thing for years up against the shop wall and temped to try something.

Jeff,
 Your pic might be the best idea.

[sawmill_john]

Jeff looks like you could not have hit that better if you tried!  I'm glad to hear no one got injured, I haven't hit any thing worth mentioning since september, I've been working on getting the owner to put in a side bar add but he doesn't want to spend the money right now, I'll keep at it.

John

[Tobacco Plug]

Every now and then I get a custom sawing job for someone who really knows about wood and has some common sense.  The man I am sawing for right now is one of those people.  He cut some oaks off his place, near his pasture.  He tried to get as much of the butt log as possible, but when there was a chance of there being metal in the log due to an old barbed wire fence, he cut off the log about six feet high.  He pointed out to me some mineral stain and told me that the tree had a fence running through it, that he had made sure he cut it high enough, and if I did hit metal that he would of course pay for the blade.  Nice man.  Good customer.  However, for every one like him I get five who don't give a DanG about where the logs came from or even give a thought as to old fences or signs or tree houses or whatever.  They just don't use any common sense and when I hit tramp metal and charge them for the blade they want to "negotiate" by saying that the blade isn't completely ruined and "Can't you sharpen that out?", rather than paying my customary  (and explained beforehand) charge of $25.  Jackasses!  I even had one fellow who didn't mind paying the charges as long as the wood got sawn.  I had taken what would have been more than a normal day's worth of blades to the job and used every one of them.  Sure I was paid for them, but I didn't have blades for the next job the next day.  Sometimes I think I should charge more for hitting tramp metal, as often it takes quite a while to get the blade out if it is broken, and the $25 just covers the cost of a blade, not the down time to change it.  Granted it is usually not a lot of time, but it does add up.  Sorry to ramble, but that was on my mind.  ;)

[dail_h]

   Woodhaven,
   Try Stewart's Saw in Gatesville N C ,they have been in buisness for a long time and do good work. Just not very cheap

[Tom]

Those are feelings that I bet are felt by us all.  As a sawyer you realize that your tools are not limitless.  I have had concerns about not having any blades left for the next job too. There isn't much you can do about it but try to explain to the next customer why you aren't working.  the only way I have solved the problem is to hold back 5 blades in my shop.  When I run out of blades on the customer that is paying for blades and tearing them up, I tell him "I'm out of blades until I can order some or make some".  Then he gets to wait, I get to work and the next customer isn't impacted.    It's what some righteous folks may call a "white lie" but I don't know how else to do it.

I'm glad that you are holding your temper and trying to satisfy a customer.   That's my kind of guy.  Most customers are ignorant to the sawmill business and their first effort is a learning experience.  It's easy to turn them off to the whole procedure if we come down on them like a ruthless dictator.  Now the 3rd time, they should be learning something and sternness isn't as much out of order. :D

[Tobacco Plug]

the only way I have solved the problem is to hold back 5 blades in my shop.  When I run out of blades on the customer that is paying for blades and tearing them up, I tell him "I'm out of blades until I can order some or make some".  Then he gets to wait, I get to work and the next customer isn't impacted.    It's what some righteous folks may call a "white lie" but I don't know how else to do it.

I'm glad that you are holding your temper and trying to satisfy a customer.   That's my kind of guy.  Most customers are ignorant to the sawmill business and their first effort is a learning experience.  It's easy to turn them off to the whole procedure if we come down on them like a ruthless dictator.  Now the 3rd time, they should be learning something and sternness isn't as much out of order. :D

That's a good idea, Tom.

Yeah, it helps that the sawmill makes lots of noise, sometimes.  That way you can mutter under your breath and no one hears you!  You've got to be patient and remember that you would do some pretty dumb things if you tried to do thier job for a day.
 ;D

[Phorester]

A local sawmiller told me he once found a gate hinge buried in a log.

[SwampDonkey]

There is an old clothes line pulley embedded in a maple in the front yard, completely overgrown. I used to see it there 30 years ago, then it slowly got absorbed. :D :D

I am Borg, resistance is futile. :D

[Phorester]

A Treckie, I see.  A truer saying in our case working with trees and wood might be,

I am TREE.  Resistance is futile.