new guy cedar question

[amberg]

hello guys, I have some pretty good ERC about 10 to 18" I was thinking about milling some of into boards, what would be the best way to saw it, mill it into cants and then mill the boards or just cut straight through and edge them later? and how thick? they might be used for a covered porch floor. thanks!

 

[Trx250r180]

hello guys, I have some pretty good ERC about 10 to 18" I was thinking about milling some of into boards, what would be the best way to saw it, mill it into cants and then mill the boards or just cut straight through and edge them later? and how thick? they might be used for a covered porch floor. thanks!

my first couple passes ,i usually edge seperate till i get a cant or 2 ,then slice boards off the cant ,a porch floor with 16 inch span i used 1- 1/8 then planed one side to 1 inch thick using fir ,and it was pretty sturdy ,are you leaving rough ? cedar is pretty soft so it marks up and attracts dirt pretty fast if walking on it

I usually take a pencil and a square and draw rough on the small end of the log to figure out if can get 1 or 2 cants out of a log
what type of mill ? if alaska mill ,could slab it like this ,then make the lines and cut boards with a skillsaw or tablesaw

bottom is my norwood mill ,making 2x6 and 6x6 cedar fence boards out of a cant

 

[amberg]

trx250 the boards will be rough cut, the old house was built in 1890 and the porch is L shaped with the boards cut at a 45 at the L, and the floor joists are
set on 2' centers, 21' long x 8' wide the long way, and 14' x 8' the short way, there is 2 large freezers sitting on it and I also stack 30 bags of wood pellets on it and a house generator and a table and air compressor, so it has some weight on it. 3/4" oak on it now, but it is getting weathered on the ends where the
rain and snow blow in about 1 foot. I think 5/4 cedar will work. as for a mill I don't have one as of now, but I am think I am going to try the panther pro 18"carriage mill, my hips and knees won't let me use a alaska mill. I have also looked at the norwood like you have, how do you like it?

 

[Trx250r180]

The norwood is limited to 13-6 boards with 16 ft ladder track,i mounted it to a skid i made of 6-12 beams too keep itstable and moveble ,for the price i have made a lot of nice boards it does ok ,idobreak a bar stud once in a while on the saw so need to keep spare studs ,i have not seen a panther will jave too look it up

 

[amberg]

The norwood is limited to 13-6 boards with 16 ft ladder track,i mounted it to a skid i made of 6-12 beams too keep itstable and moveble ,for the price i have made a lot of nice boards it does ok ,idobreak a bar stud once in a while on the saw so need to keep spare studs ,i have not seen a panther will jave too look it up

thanks for the norwood info, I really like that deck, it looks like it has some kind of a sealer on it. that cedar does not look like the same kind of cedar that we have here. did you check out the (panther mills)

 

[Trx250r180]

thanks for the norwood info, I really like that deck, it looks like it has some kind of a sealer on it. that cedar does not look like the same kind of cedar that we have here. did you check out the (panther mills)

The panther mills look pretty nice ,i like how it supports the bar tip ,on my norwood it is not supported at the tip so it is possible for bar do dive and mess a cut up ,the deck is actually doug fir ,with a waterbased polyeurethane floor sealer says varathane on the can ,it seems to last longer outside without peeling ,i have tried spar varnish ,but the oil base seems to peel around here ,wood moves too much with our damp climate
the cedar here has kind of a red color to it ,here the first image is close up of some fence boards ,second pics are doug fir ,the doug fir was popular in older houses for flooring ,is a softwood ,but harder than the cedar ,but cedar is known to last longer so outdoors is a good choice . this is the log i made my floor boards from

 

[amberg]

those pictures helped me see more of what I have been looking for. are you using ripping chain to cut those boards with? they look real smooth to me. are those wedges used to keep from marking the cant?

 

[Trx250r180]

those pictures helped me see more of what I have been looking for. are you using ripping chain to cut those boards with? they look real smooth to me. are those wedges used to keep from marking the cant?

I have used ripping and chisel chain ,ripping or semi chisel will have a round outer corner so will not dig in as hard for marks ,but i get nice boards with chisel also ,you will have to sharpen at about 10 degrees instead of 25-30 like reg chain ,main thing is not to force the saw too much ,let it feed on its own with minimal pressure for a nice finish ,a few feet into a cut i will wedge the end of the log where i started so the upper board does not set on the bar and mark it up ,if doing a long pass like 12 feet i will wedge both sides about halfway down the log ,the wedges on the side do 2 things ,they support a wider area for clamping ,and stop the dog bolt from digging a hole into the cant ,a scrap chunk of wood will work also

On the norwood ,i just stand up and walk along that ladder holding handlebars with remote throttle ,i like that because it keeps the sound further away and the exhaust smell of the saw away from your face ,is very easy on the back also because you stand up without hunching over ,something to consider if doing several hours of milling at once

That little peavey is a back saver also for flipping the cants upright ,as are those small forks on a tractor or skid loader ,logs are heavier than they look ,if you look close under the dust can see the wood beams i mounted the mill and ladder to ,i can pick up the whole setup and move it with the skid loader this way and it stays square ,i had it mounted to my car trailer for a while ,that was a nice flat base also ,but i need the trailer eventually

the left hand chain is ripping ,the rh is 3/8 or .404 chisel at 10 degrees ,notice how much thinner the ripping chain is over reg .

 

[amberg]

that is a big difference in those chains, I have some 3/8 semi chisel that I could grind back to 10 degrees if I done it a little at a time. my first problem is that I have to make myself get the mill. I have 2 farm tractors with forks to move and load on the mill with etc. next problem is my hips and knees don't like that kind of work any more. it will be a real slow process for me. how do you like the ford skid steer, looks like the perfect size for moving decent size logs with.

 

[Trx250r180]

The mill i have is not too hard on the body,the hard part is moving the cants, and flipping them, the skid steer is old but i use the heck out of it, it weighs about 3000-3500 lbs so i can transport it with my half ton pickup on a car trailer,i fabbed the forks off a small forklift that was scrapped,it has a 54 inch wide bicket also,power is wisconsin v4 gas so easy to work on

 

[amberg]

we used to have a v4 wisconsin on a turner square baler back in the 60,s we rigged a belt and pulley of the 2n ford to start it, after we got it started we
never cut it off until we were finished for the day. also a big new holland skid steer in 1977, it would pick up round bales that weighed 1500#. liked a lot of gas though. I saw a new post on the panther mill here, check it out, tell me what you think.

 

[amberg]

Trx250r180

You have been a great source of info for me, and I thank you for that.

I hope my legs hold out for me, so I can take advantage of everything.

thanks!

amberg







11

 

[Foragefarmer]

I was milling some cedar in central va last weekend.

 

[MontanaTed]

This is great information and pictures guys!

 

[amberg]

thanks for the pictures foragefarmer, are those boards cut 5/4? those trees are about the size of the ones I have, still standing. are you familiar with
the lake anna area?

 

[Foragefarmer]

4/4 it is staying rough cut for some 4' gates for a client. I know Anna fairly well, I am near Zion Crossroads on the south side of Louisa.

 

[amberg]

4/4 it is staying rough cut for some 4' gates for a client. I know Anna fairly well, I am near Zion Crossroads on the south side of Louisa.

I guess that I can't tell by the pictures on thickness, is the sap wood better milled right off the stump or let lay for while? we used to rent a 500 acre farm in green springs in 1982 to grow corn, soybeans, and wheat on, it was behind the Fisher dairy farm, think it was called WEST END FARM owned by Henry Taylor at the time. while hunting today I saw
a couple more maybe good cedars where we select cut about 35 acres this spring. I also have a cedar on the creek bank that was a blow over on the creek bank that is still alive from hurricane Isabell that may be over 30" on the butt log. I will try to get a better look at it this week


can I send you a pm? or you send me one.

Thanks charlie!

P.S. which saw are you running on the mill?

 

[Foragefarmer]

I guess that I can't tell by the pictures on thickness, is the sap wood better milled right off the stump or let lay for while? we used to rent a 500 acre farm in green springs in 1982 to grow corn, soybeans, and wheat on, it was behind the Fisher dairy farm, think it was called WEST END FARM owned by Henry Taylor at the time. while hunting today I saw
a couple more maybe good cedars where we select cut about 35 acres this spring. I also have a cedar on the creek bank that was a blow over on the creek bank that is still alive from hurricane Isabell that may be over 30" on the butt log. I will try to get a better look at it this week


can I send you a pm? or you send me one.

Thanks charlie!

P.S. which saw are you running on the mill?

The trees I milled I cut last year.

I think I know the farm you are talking about. I think it is next to Brackets farm? I am a little further west than Green Springs.

I am running a 394xp.

Will do on the PM.

 

[mdavlee]

I rented a house one year for the outage right up from the crossroads where 22 hits 15.

 

[amberg]

I rented a house one year for the outage right up from the c where