What do you saw out of pine logs?

[Larry]

I've started getting a lot of free pine logs.  I'm wondering what some of you saw out of them.

My thoughts are:

Dimension lumber but that seems a hard sell
Paneling
Landscape timbers for treating

[bugdust]

Larry, recently I've sawed dimensional lumber consisting of 2"X4", 6", 8" framing and 1" sheeting and siding. I haven't had any problem selling eastern hemlock, matter of fact I can't seem to get enough logs to saw. Most want hemlock for outdoor buildings. I don't have acess to a treating facility, so anything to be used in place of treated I suggest white oak. I'm in the process of sawing white pine (long needle), which makes nice paneling. I also use white pine as lap siding with some type of stain.

[sawman]

   we generally only saw pine when we get orders for it.
  Just recently heard that our pallet mill will buy for pallet lmbr.

[paul case]

hey larry,
sounds like a good thing you got going. free is almost always good. i would advertise the pine as beams and see if you find any takers on craigslist. my few ads on there has been sending me some business. beams should be worth as much money as you can make from them, i think.
are you in the new house yet? pc

[WDH]

Larry,

I have a bunch of pine too to mill because the drought killed a number of big natural shortleaf on my property.  I believe that I am going to saw 4/4 mostly because these trees average 60 - 70 years old and a lot of the lumber will be clear.  I assume that I might be able to sell some of it as paneling or as stock for yellow pine furniture.  I am planning to build a solar kiln, and I thought that I could save money by sawing out pine boards for board and batten siding for the kiln. 

Dimension lumber is too cheap to compete with because I will not sell anything for less than $1.00/BF unless it is very poor grade, buggy, or warped, etc.  Cannot sell dimension pine for that around here.

[dutchman]

When I get free pine I cut the cant to a random size.
I have different length and sizes for cutting to fill orders.
Most of it goes as siding for sheds.

[Chuck White]

The majority of my sawing is Eastern White Pine.

I saw it into framing lumber, 2x4, 2x6, 2x8, 2x10, 2x12, and 1" lumber for sheathing, board & batten siding and lap-siding.

If I were to have my own pine logs already cut and no market for it yet, I'd do same as dutchman, saw it into cants, stack them up, off the ground, sticker and cover them.

[KingTimber]

It depends on the tree.
And your market.
If you have access to a tie and treatment market, then shoot for that with the lower grade stuff. People will always buy 2x4s, 2x6s and boards 8 inches and over for Out buildings, barns, camps, sheds and so on. Rought cut is a hard sell for someone who is nailing up sheetrock. You can always cant it up and resaw it later. Your dimensional stuff should be nominal sized like what they buy at the store. I add 1/8 inch for the kerf. I run .100 set blades and 1/8 is .125 thousands of an inch. So a 2x4 would be cut as 1,5/8 inches by 3,5/8 inches and a 2x6 jumps up to 5,5/8 inches. Boards I cut one inch off the scale. They come out just over 7/8 and if you keep a sharp blade with little wander it will plane out to 3/4 just fine. Big long straight stuff I beam up or drive into 2x8's 10's or 12's. Just remember nominal goes to a 3/4 inch loss after 6 inches. A 2x8 is 7,1/4 inches wide. Cut your beams full sized so if you have to resaw them into dimensional you have some room for kerf and deflection. I have cut 2x6's 6 and a half inches wide before. Let them air dry then throw them back on the mill and finish trim them down to 5 and a half. It makes for a much more accurate piece. Make contact with some fence guys. They may have a need for 4x4's and narrow boards. Those fellas who move and jack buildings look for sills for replacement and use a pile of 6x6 to crib up. Occasionaly I get a fella looking for dump truck side boards. Someone always has a bridge that needs redecking. And those tie logs will have a few boards on the outside. Crafty people who make birdhouses and such will use up shorts and narrows if priced right. The problem with the lumber business is you are either in a niche market or you have to produce tractor trailer loads. Don't get discouraged and chop it up for firewood cause as soon as you do 20 people will pull in the yard looking for what you just cut up. The real money is to saw and install. Partner up with a guy that builds garages or restores barns. I have made a pile of money sawing out cedar than building docks and decks with it.
Have fun and be safe.....

[DanG]

I found that full-cut dimension lumber played well to the country folk around here.  If my 2bys were only an inch and a half, they would turn their nose up at it.

[Planman1954]

What do I saw out of pine logs? I saw out a barn, a fence, and some shelves. Oh, and also a deer stand! That's this year.  :D

[Brad_S.]

I saw as much 1" x 10" as I can and air dry it for Board and Bat siding. Big seller!
If you have down time, you can knock out those little storage sheds that suburbanites love so much in pretty short order.

[Captain]

Just about anyting that does not require rot resistance we use EWP for up here.  Many good suggestions already.

Captain

[Magicman]

That's a tough call.  As WDH said, trying to sell dimension framing lumber is out.  I've also had customers call that were going to buy logs and have me saw dimension framing lumber.  My reply was to forget it.  Go and buy your lumber.

When I get free logs and don't need the lumber for myself, I just give them to the next customer and they pay me to saw them to their specifications.  If I sell the lumber, I only get my saw price plus a small hauling fee.

OK, so I'm crazy.  The fact is, you are not going to make a bunch of money out of those logs anyway, so why not use them for customer goodwill.  I've seen those gestures pay back many times over with future jobs.

Here was a lightning killed SYP that was given to me.  The landowner said to "just get rid of it".   I knew a customer that was needing lumber and didn't have enough logs to saw to finish building his cabin.

This one tree produced 2781 bf of dimensional framing lumber.  We felled it one day and finished sawing it the next.  I just moved the mill to the logs.

[kderby]

Nice sticks Magic Man! 8) 8) 8)

Barn boards sell.  I tell my wife that when I buy (speculate) on yet another truck load of pine.  The good material I sell as siding for residential.  Grade down becomes barn or wood shed siding.  Then grade back up for interior rustic paneling (blue and buggy).  The dry lumber stores well.

Dimensional lumber is in competition with big industry and I don't do it.  Large cants (even with some wane) store well and are readily resawn.  The resawing gives the cant a bright fresh look and trues it up when dry.  When I get a call for a 8"x10"x 14' timber, I say "got it."

I love pine and have some beautiful material like heart pine flooring, wild rustic paneling and specialty wide/thick lumber.  There it sits.  I have learned that "No one makes high end furniture out of pine."  Most of what you mill will be of low value.  Mill it and market it accordingly.

Don't forget barter.  If you are getting the logs free, trade lumber for services like a farrier, chiropracter or plumber.  Then you both win!  Ask your dentist/doctor if he will trade for some barn boards. ;D ;D

That is my humble opinion.

Happy New Year.

KD

[Banjo picker]

I think Paul had a good idea about the beams....I think I may try that myself...I have some pine logs that have been here a while...and need to do something with them...I thought I had them sold as siding this week, but the guy went with red oak..Of coarse there was not a red oak log on the lot...so I went and cut some trees an he now has red oak siding...Tim

[Brad_S.]

If he is using that red oak as external siding, he will be back for the pine in just a couple of years!

[Banjo picker]

Thats what they are using it for and he paid quite a bit more for it...I used some (30' )
on the fence I built...I run out of white oak...so I will know when he is ready for more. ;D  Tim

[Larry]

I tried sawing a few beams last spring but they cracked during the summer heat.  Still ok for beams but I wouldn't want to re-saw.  Decided to saw most into 1" and see what happens.  That should keep good.

For somebody that's sawed mostly hardwoods for the last 17 years sawing pine is like dying and going to heaven.   Even the half froze saws good.  I never dreamed sawing could be this much fun. ;D

Paul, if I had the house all finished I would get bored fishing and sawing.  Maybe this summer.

[Raider Bill]

I tried sawing a few beams last spring but they cracked during the summer heat.  Still ok for beams but I wouldn't want to re-saw.  Decided to saw most into 1" and see what happens.  That should keep good.

For somebody that's sawed mostly hardwoods for the last 17 years sawing pine is like dying and going to heaven.   Even the half froze saws good.  I never dreamed sawing could be this much fun. ;D

Paul, if I had the house all finished I would get bored fishing and sawing.  Maybe this summer.

Larry,
Don't finish it, it's a trap! :D

[Larry]

Your absolutely right.  As soon as I finish she will be thinking up gazebos, swimming pools, and who knows what other kinds of foolishness.  I got more important ways to waste use my time :D.

[woodmills1]

I have a number of pine sellers


some are on bid contract(the best way to go)
mostly high school shops

dunnage   steel or granite companies


speaciaty chair makers  windsor or others



others no contract

local farmers
concrete formers (mostly footings and sidewalks)
local builders who do barns and garages
speacialty table makers



pine  is easy to get here so I also cut some nice wide stuff  easy to sell to the right customer

good luck then