Whatcha Sawin' 2021 ??

[WV Sawmiller]

 

I set this dead ash log up to saw yesterday as a test for my power feed problem but a storm came up and I could not saw it till today. It yielded 198 bf of 4/4 boards. Ten were 16" wide, five were 12" a 10" and an 8".


Finished boards waiting on sawhorses 

Slabs on the forks go straight to the slab pile. Thanks to Richiway for that tip. It is working well.

  My power feed problem remains so I'll post that separate and see if anyone has troubleshooting suggestions.

[terrifictimbersllc]

Today 2589 BF (intl log scale) random width 1-1/8" red oak.
Est 2900 if boards were measured but there was no edging of boards, just 4 waste slabs per log,  so I charged log scale.

21 logs mostly 12-13 ft up to 19" diameter.

Arrived 7:30 am, ready to pull out at 3:00 pm.
55 miles each way. 

2-3 helpers pulled all the wood and scraps off the back of the mill.


 

[WDH]

There is a whack of stickering to be done. 

[DPatton]

It is a shame that it wasn't stickered right off the saw. I usually try to make suggestions to help my clients reduce the number of times they are going to handle the logs, slabs, and lumber but it often falls on deaf ears. Definitely a nice whack of boards.

[WV Sawmiller]

 

10' ash log waiting to be milled 

 small crooked 10' ash log on the loading arms

 Cant with 5 more boards to saw and 3 flitches for edging when the mill died.


Finished 1" boards. 14" on the right, 6" on the left a couple of 12" in the middle.

   I wanted to test my feed system repairs. Started okay but still a little jerky feeling. Then after 1 hour on the engine the feed started making noises and jumping. I shut it down and found feed motor too hot to touch. I assume that is part of the problem. 

[caveman]

Sorry it didn't go better for you, Howard.  You'll get it worked out soon enough.  It's better to deal with those issues at home.  Eventually we may take our circus on the road but it is nice to have the mill under cover and at home when stuff goes awry.  Even with the best equipment made, when milling lumber one has to work on stuff regularly.  Good luck with your repair.

[WV Sawmiller]

   I'm still waiting on my motor and drum switch from WM which look like will arrive tomorrow from 2 of their sites so no sawing today. I did make another carrier to put the belts and spares in. I have been sticking them in with the blades. This is a much smaller version of the case I use for my bands but is the same design. I'll still add 2 ropes at the top to close and carry them.


I just used some walnut stickers I had left over and the sides are from a 12" wide 1/4" trim cut I made on an ash log a couple days ago. It was too pretty to trash so I stickered weighted and saved it. 

[Hackeldam Wood Products]

My power feed was never smooth from new so I took a guess and changed the speed switch. Never worked better.

[dustintheblood]

So hey everyone.  2020 was a complete gong show and dirty rotten in every way for me.

Upside is that 2021 has shaped up well.  I'm managing the rebuild of a major sawmill, and things are flying along.  Here's a couple of pics of the old machines getting yanked out to put the new sawline in.  Given'r 169% before winter comes hard and fast

 

 

[Magicman]

Hot today but at least it was not raining so I had a very nice day sawing.  Being under a huge Sawtooth Oak helped.  That plus 4 excellent tailgunners.  I never put my hand on a single board nor log.


 
26 mostly SYP logs that were all good except the one on the bottom-center.  I skimmed a few jacket 2X4 & 2X6's but the rest was junk.


 
1939 bf of mostly framing lumber with a few 1X4's and 1X12's.  Of course there were the 'customary' ERC logs that were sawn into 1".

[TimW]

So hey everyone.  2020 was a complete gong show and dirty rotten in every way for me.

Upside is that 2021 has shaped up well.  I'm managing the rebuild of a major sawmill, and things are flying along.  Here's a couple of pics of the old machines getting yanked out to put the new sawline in.  Given'r 169% before winter comes hard and fast

 

Glad to see a sawmill coming back.  Keep the photos coming.  How long before winter hits Y'all?
             hugs,  Brandi

[HemlockKing]

 

 

 

 Was planning on sawing the rest of this log up when I had a good
Idea. Need a bench, one that ties into nature and don't stick out too much, I like to walk down here, would be nice to sit and enjoy. Here's the end result. Barely took 20 min fastest bench I've ever made lol 

[kelLOGg]

Nice bench. I see multiple people that would like one. It's on my todo list. 

[HemlockKing]

Nice bench. I see multiple people that would like one. It's on my todo list.

Thank you sir. The same as mine? 
I like the bark on but I know it'll unfortunately fall off 

[kelLOGg]

Yes, the same as yours. Details of your seat-to-stump joinery would nice.

[caveman]

John and I finished up a job today, sold some quartersawn sycamore and beams for a timber frame build that the build was a little shy on.  We also spent a few hours cleaning up around the mill.  The load that was to go out today will be delayed a week due to the threat of a tropical storm.  They customer's driver only works on Saturdays and he was apprehensive about making the trip up from Okeechobee today.  I suspect next week's weather will be more eventful.  I informed him that the wood would be moldy but he does not care about that.



 
I also found an owl in a board that I was sawing last night.


 
We still have a good bit of cedar, live oak and eucalyptus to saw.

[hacknchop]

John and I finished up a job today, sold some quartersawn sycamore and beams for a timber frame build that the build was a little shy on.  We also spent a few hours cleaning up around the mill.  The load that was to go out today will be delayed a week due to the threat of a tropical storm.  They customer's driver only works on Saturdays and he was apprehensive about making the trip up from Okeechobee today.  I suspect next week's weather will be more eventful.  I informed him that the wood would be moldy but he does not care about that.



 
I also found an owl in a board that I was sawing last night.


 
We still have a good bit of cedar, live oak and eucalyptus to saw.

I was seeing a lot of of different things in the boards I was cutting, Doctor cut back on my medication and they disappeared.

[cutterboy]

HemlockKing, I like your bench. I have a couple of out of the way places I like to sit. I think your bench might be just the thing. Thanks for posting.

[WDH]

Love that bench.  Have to have one. 

[kelLOGg]

14 years ago someone drove a nail in a cedar log and they put it exactly in and parallel to the kerf in the last cut of the last log I was sawing for a customer. Of course, I discovered it on my own ;D when I saw sparks, smoke and heard a loud screech. It was impeccable planning but with a circular saw I found the evidence perfectly placed.  On the band every tooth (up, down and raker) were bent down but none broken. After lunch I will try to reset and sharpen and find out if there is residual steel left behind.



 

[Old Greenhorn]

Man, you hit that nail on the head, AND the shank! You get the prize for that one.

[Nebraska]

Haven't touched the mill  for 3 months because I decided to make a change in the set up...Well I just finished pouring a concrete pad for the mill and raising the bunks to knee high. Finally caught up some loose ends (new drive belt, fixed a leak on lube tank and had it set up again.. So I grabbed a little junky  red cedar just to see how it would cut..  Did fine  made some 5/4 boards for trim, put another cedar log on that i knew had a bit of heart rot show ing on the stump end. Well that one blossomed into a full fledged termite and carpenter ant party in the middle 4 inches so it got well soaked with solubor and the really buggy part is fixing to be burnt really soon.  Any surviving bugs will dehydrate quickly, cut 5/8" so it's getting a full sun air dry away from all the buildings.  I will salvage some short pieces of live edge siding. So my first sawing session for 3 months wouldn't  be a total bust I  sawed a little 13" Hackberry that had been laying long enough. It was a bit spalted but turned out nice. It eventually will become shelves.  Should have taken the picture the other direction because now all I see is the two big knots. Oh well.   At least I got some sawing done...


br>

[WDH]

Hackberry makes some beautiful lumber but the spiral grain makes it a nightmare to dry flat unless quartersawn, and to quartersaw, you need big logs.  Otherwise saw extra thick so you can flatten out the boards to your desired finished thickness. 

[kelLOGg]

Man, you hit that nail on the head, AND the shank! You get the prize for that one.

Hitting the nail on the head usually sounds good but not always 😳. All the teeth were "set" to about 0.020 on the same side and it was tricky and time consuming to reset properly -including the rakers. I turned the board around in case there was still steel in the board and finished the last cut-no more nails. Glad that's over. 

[HemlockKing]

Yes, the same as yours. Details of your seat-to-stump joinery would nice.

Kellog, all I did for the joinery was cut out a "step" on each round for the bench to sit on, also both side of the bench I cut the bottom ends flat parallel with top so they would sit flat on the step( as it was a half sawn long round bottom)