Scrounging Firewood (and other stuff)

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Perfect temps for splittin Sean. The wind sucks though today.That's a beast of a splitter.
Yep great day got nearly the entire pile finished off today, very happy with the progress.
Thanks the splitter works well. Learned a lot building it. Next one will be better.
 
Just a thought for you fellas discussing the bandmills. The hourly rate depends on what kind and type of mill the sawyer has. A hydraulic mill at 100 per hour is far cheaper than a manual mill at 60 per hour. I would suggest that you go to his place and watch him mill for a couple of hours before you decide on paying money or trading wood. A hydraulic mill with a seasoned sawyer is like hauling logs with a log truck and a newbie sawyer on a manual mill is like using Duncan's van for hauling those same logs. I have a manual mill and very little experience I would never saw by the hour as it's not fair to either of us. Most guys charge by the board foot and that rate depends on the quality of your logs. If you want 1" boards sawn and show up with fence post sized logs the board foot rate is going to be higher. Wouldn't hurt to spend a little time in the Milling Forum to help you decide either. FYI, in my opinion manual mills are reasonably cheap if you have access to logs, have some spare time and want some lumber I would just buy a cheap manual and do it when you want and sell it when you are done with it.
 
Just a thought for you fellas discussing the bandmills. The hourly rate depends on what kind and type of mill the sawyer has. A hydraulic mill at 100 per hour is far cheaper than a manual mill at 60 per hour. I would suggest that you go to his place and watch him mill for a couple of hours before you decide on paying money or trading wood. A hydraulic mill with a seasoned sawyer is like hauling logs with a log truck and a newbie sawyer on a manual mill is like using Duncan's van for hauling those same logs. I have a manual mill and very little experience I would never saw by the hour as it's not fair to either of us. Most guys charge by the board foot and that rate depends on the quality of your logs. If you want 1" boards sawn and show up with fence post sized logs the board foot rate is going to be higher. Wouldn't hurt to spend a little time in the Milling Forum to help you decide either. FYI, in my opinion manual mills are reasonably cheap if you have access to logs, have some spare time and want some lumber I would just buy a cheap manual and do it when you want and sell it when you are done with it.

Good points. I haven’t been to his place, I only talked to him on the phone. It would be a good idea to watch him work. What I have are two 12’ lengths of black oak (30” X 35” oval felling cut). He thought making it all 1” boards would take over an hour, maybe two hours. Does that help decide if it’s hydraulic? He didn’t say. I might have one made 1”, and the other log made 2”.

I‘ve considered getting my own sawmill, the ones I looked at were 5-7 thousand. Norwood. I previously decided not to spend the money, I’ve been reconsidering. Even if I do, I need to clear and level a spot for it. And like you said, it could be sold afterward.
 
"..... I might have one made 1”, and the other log made 2”. ......"
Might not be a good idea. First, how much WIDE 8/4 Oak do you really need? If you making benches or something like that, then maybe. But usually, in my experience, you'll want more 4/4 boards than 8/4. And usually the better 4/4 boards come off the outside of the log where you want wide boards. Once closer to the pith, the 8/4 boards are sawn from around any cracking.

The point I'm trying to make is I'd hate to see higher quality 4/4 lumber to be sacrificed just so a whole log can be sawn into 8/4 to speed things up. Each log needs to be read and not seeing yours, I don't know. Please any sawyers out there feel free to correct me.
 
Hydraulic usually means faster. Manual means flipping the log by hand so big logs take man power and time. Support equipment makes a difference too. A chunk of your wood 2" thick, 30" wide and 12' long is tough to move by hand as it weighs just around 200 lbs. Also depends if you want the edges left on it or cut off for boards.
 
"..... I might have one made 1”, and the other log made 2”. ......"
Might not be a good idea. First, how much WIDE 8/4 Oak do you really need? If you making benches or something like that, then maybe. But usually, in my experience, you'll want more 4/4 boards than 8/4. And usually the better 4/4 boards come off the outside of the log where you want wide boards. Once closer to the pith, the 8/4 boards are sawn from around any cracking.

The point I'm trying to make is I'd hate to see higher quality 4/4 lumber to be sacrificed just so a whole log can be sawn into 8/4 to speed things up. Each log needs to be read and not seeing yours, I don't know. Please any sawyers out there feel free to correct me.

I don’t understand your use of 8/4, do you mean 8” X 4”? If so, what does that have to do with my saying 1” or 2”. But now that I’m thinking along these lines, I will want some 4” X 4”.
 
I don’t understand your use of 8/4, do you mean 8” X 4”? If so, what does that have to do with my saying 1” or 2”. But now that I’m thinking along these lines, I will want some 4” X 4”.
I didn't think you'd want a whole log of 2" thick (8/4) lumber unless you specifically had a use for it. Would be good for the tops of woodworking benches, though. I assumed these were clear furniture grade logs and that more of it should go into 1" thick (4/4) boards than thicker ones. If you have a use for 4" x 4", then of course, go for it.
 
I didn't think you'd want a whole log of 2" thick (8/4) lumber unless you specifically had a use for it. Would be good for the tops of woodworking benches, though. I assumed these were clear furniture grade logs and that more of it should go into 1" thick (4/4) boards than thicker ones. If you have a use for 4" x 4", then of course, go for it.

What is 8/4 lumber?
 
My varmint gun is a .177 breakbarrel Ruger. Ammo is cheap and its lethal on small game. View attachment 884393
Nice, my break barrel is a 223 too lol.
It looks similar to this one.
Screen Shot 2021-01-14 at 10.34.42 AM.png
I have a .17 HMR I normally use, but I was getting ready to sight this 223 in and then sell it. It just happened to be at the ready so it took the call, I wasn't thinking I would hit it as I hadn't sighted it in after mounting a new scope on it.
Good enough for a quick job and to sell it :yes:.
Screen Shot 2021-01-12 at 10.27.57 AM.png
 
I like to make my hardwood boards 2" thick, but that is because I air dry it and it checks less and warps less than if you do it thinner (IMO).

It is a good thickness for benches and tables.

I think it is too thick and too heavy to use as flooring unless it is softwood.

I think a 2" X 30" X 12' Oak would weigh a lot more than that! 2" X 22" x 7.5' gets pretty darn heavy!
 
We want to use 2” thick for the loft floor in our cabin.
Sorry I didn't answer your question ( I went to bed, lol) but others chimed in.
You have to also consider the span of your trusses. If they are 24" apart, then as others have said, 2" flooring would be overkill. I knew a guy who brought logs to the mill and have everything milled thick for his shed/man cave he was building in an open pole barn style. His flooring was thick. So if your loft is only supported around the edges, then 1-1/2" x 12" boards might be appropriate.
 
My daughter played Basketball from middle school thru college. We took her down town to see a Mystics game. There was an old black guy leaning against the wall with a guitar singing. I remember his lyrics, “you all came to see some basketball, all I need is some alcohol”. I handed him a twenty, and thanked him for his entertainment. I knew where he was headed. When I worked for UPS I had a pan handler on a corner where I made a left every day. If I ate at McD’s that day, I’d bring him a value meal with a Dr Pepper. His sign read: homeless, hungry, need help, Vietnam Vet, God bless. He was way younger than me, and I’m too young to be a Vietnam vet. Don’t have expectations of pan handlers. You did what you could. Maybe the next guy gave him a Big Mac to go with his Night Train.
 
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