DIAGRAM HOW A LOG IS CUT INTO LUMBER--Cub Scout Project

puddin · April 07, 2010, 10:52:25 AM

Our Cub den has been building some elementary wood projects. The boys love working with tools and wood.

I would like to find a diagram that shows how a log is cut into various sizes of lumber. I have searched the net but it is too big and I am tired of looking.

Does anyone here know a manufacturer that will send me such a diagram?

We tried explaining how this works but these 7 year olds just can get the picture. There is nothing like a diagram to show something like this.

Thanks in advance for your assistance.

Cub Scout mom

jdtuttle · April 07, 2010, 11:08:56 AM

Check with woodmizer. Sponsor on the right.
jim

DouginUtah · April 07, 2010, 12:09:26 PM

Your other right. :D :D

Tom · April 07, 2010, 04:50:13 PM

Every effort has been made to keep the forum family oriented, so don't hesitate to have the scouts looking over your shoulder as you page through posts. They can see tree harvesting equipment, tractors stuck in the woods, trees being taken down, sawmills of all different types at work and much more.

There are as many ways to get lumber from logs as there are logs. It's an art as much as a science. Sawyers must concern themselves with Size of log, Shape of log, sweep of log, cracks in the log, limbs, knots, rot and other "discrepancies" .

Here is one drawing that shows a way to quartersaw.

Here is another

A diagram showing how to saw with reaction wood

hear is one showing timbers

Here is one showing shrinkage that can be expected depending on the direction of grain in the board.

The Forum is full of photographs and drawings on how to saw a log. Look in the Photo galleries, under "forum extras" to peruse the member's albums, or just look through the forum. There are Ten Years of knowledge in these pages.

Jeff · April 07, 2010, 05:02:02 PM

I've taken a photo of a poster I have here and uploaded the high resolution file for you. You can download it by clicking the smaller image below.

Hope it works for your intended purpose.

metalspinner · April 07, 2010, 05:35:38 PM

puddin,

It sounds to me that a field trip is in order for your cubbies.

I'll bet there's a sawmill within 5 miles of where ever you are. ;)

I had a meeting here at the house once when the portable mill was cutting my log pile. It spawned tons of questions about recycling, resources, furniture, houses, etc...

fishpharmer · April 07, 2010, 06:48:19 PM

Puddin, that's an awesome project. 8) 8) 8)

Ianab · April 07, 2010, 06:53:53 PM

If you cant get to see a sawmill here is a video of a whole log being sawn.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oF7aYVwi7Uw

On a big commercial mill it's hard to follow the process as the log get flipped around, pieces get resawn or edged later in the chain. But with a smaller mill it's easier to follow what is going on, and on the swingblade the log doesn't even move during the process. So you can see how a cutting pattern like Jeff posted could be sawn just my moving the saw head into the appropiate positions.

But there are lots of ways to break down a log, different cutting patterns, different designs of sawmills etc.

Ian

ARKANSAWYER · April 07, 2010, 06:54:40 PM

Looks like the net got really small and all he needed is in one place with just one request. Now that is an APP.

beenthere · April 07, 2010, 07:11:10 PM

Puddin
Welcome to the forum.

Some good pics of diagrams.

al.rubra · January 12, 2012, 02:12:07 PM

Quote from: Jeff on April 07, 2010, 05:02:02 PM
I've taken a photo of a poster I have here and uploaded the high resolution file for you. You can download it by clicking the smaller image below.

Hope it works for your intended purpose.

Jeff - That is an awesome poster you have! Who produced it? Where can I get one?

Thanks,
Ryan
Lucas Model 8-30

Jeff · January 12, 2012, 03:03:55 PM

They were produced by a now defunct Paper company that was bought out by another company. I can't remember which one now, I'd have to dig out the posters buried somewhere in the closet. At the time, we had heard there were a bunch of these poster sets, but they were not allowed to be released because they had a different company's name on the bottom. Ada from the DNR and I tried to get some of them, but it was a lost cause. This has been over 10 years ago now. Last I knew, there are still a bunch of the poster sets still in storage somewhere, or they were destroyed. It's a crying shame for sure.

Funny, that original poster never did come back, or at least never acknowledged it.

beenthere · January 12, 2012, 03:08:53 PM

I recollect that is a Weyerhaeuser rendering on one or more of their posters. I have a poster somewhere....?? ? ..not going to look

Jeff · January 12, 2012, 04:53:57 PM

I remembered. The Company was Champion, and it was bought by International Paper.

Actually I dug in the closet and found them. Here are a couple more. You can click on these as well. I'm not sure, but I'd say there are between 20 and 30 different posters in the set.

SwampDonkey · January 12, 2012, 05:05:58 PM

When we had national forestry programs (Cooperation Agreements) the federal government produced a lot of posters and educational stuff as well. Probably couldn't even get one of those now, as governments change and shift focus and clean out the closets. ;)

Too bad some people just register to ask a question and disappear. Maybe it's an indicator, of what I don't know. :D

al.rubra · January 12, 2012, 10:45:10 PM

Thanks Jeff - that artwork is really nice. Would love to have it on my wall. I wonder if it is a painting or digital creation. Whatever it was, somebody did a great job. I'll check out Champion/International Paper/American Forest Foundation, but it sounds like the source is probably long gone now. Your high res photo will have to suffice! I'm currently downloading your two newly posted photos over my slow connection - they look like they will be very nice as well. Thanks again.

Cheers,
Ryan

jueston · January 13, 2012, 08:58:58 PM

those posters are pretty awesome, my first thought when i saw it was "where can i get one?"....

to bad they all got destroyed or they sit in storage somewhere....

maybe someone should do some research and find out if they are in storage, i'm sure we can put togather a crack team to go get them in the middle of the night, and the distribute them to the forum memberes....

;) :D ;D 8)

SPIKER · January 13, 2012, 09:55:23 PM

I had some of those from a few years back, ok maybe a decade now when I worked for I.P. there were a TON of them brought in and yes they had some other company name on them. they were set to be ground up for scrap they even copied them and put IP name on them if I remember right.
I had 4 or 5 copies untill maybe a year or two back when I gave them to a teacher at the yard sale for her class. she took maybe half of them and rest ended up tossed... :(
mark

Jeff · January 13, 2012, 11:02:46 PM

There are 4 or 5 of the posters that I.P. reworked and made available for a short time, and that link is on the forum somewhere. I googled International paper posters and found that there are 5 that are available yet as PDF downloads. You would have to have some sort of large format printer thought to make nice posters like was originally available.

http://www.internationalpaper.com/US/EN/Company/LearningCenter/Posters.html

SwampDonkey · January 14, 2012, 04:52:05 AM

You could take it to a print shop. I have no Idea what they charge, but there is a reason stuff is now printed in China. :

Ron Scott · January 14, 2012, 06:31:07 PM

The USDA-Forest Service and Smokey Bear also had many such posters. One might check with USFS offices on availability.

red · December 05, 2019, 05:30:52 PM

Some very good diagrams for log patterns

red · October 07, 2021, 04:08:21 PM

Again some of my favorite posters

metalspinner · October 24, 2021, 09:05:18 PM

A small, firewood-sized log cut apart on a home shop bandsaw would be a great learning tool. Cheap enough that each scout can take one home. I'm sure a parent or grand parent in the pack would have access to a shop of some kind to prepare the logs.