What are you building with your milled wood? merged

[820wards]

That's too bad Jerry, I hope it clears up soon.

I've got a week to got before I can get the splints off my fingers but even after that I know I have to take it easy as the knuckles are still sore and swollen.

Thanks Bob,

I just got back from our cabin in the CA gold country just to take it easy. Hope your hand is doing better? You don't realize how much you miss using a particular limb until you can't use it. My leg/back is doing much better that means my drumming in the band will be getting better.

Saw these guys this morning when I got up.

One of them kept pecking on my truck bumper

take care,
jerry-

 

[mtngun]

Looking more gambrelish.

 

[BobL]

I'm dead jealous.

 

[jimdad07]

Looking more gambrelish.

I'm with Bob, dead jealous. What are the dimensions on your barn? I am planning a new shop with a 28' x 28' footprint, otherwise here in New York and in my town in particular, I would have to break the frost line (3'0 with a frost wall with no breaks in it. They get you coming and going around here.
I'm going with the timber framed wood shop with a full attic. Starting to mill the beams after deer season.

 

[mtngun]

What are the dimensions on your barn?

24 x 36.

My concrete piers are not below the frost line, so they will move around a bit. I'm not concerned about it, the traditional barn in this area uses a foundation consisting of a log or a beam propped up on a few rocks, and some of those 75+ year old barns are still in service. They may be a bit out of level, but it's a frigging barn, not a billiard table.

 

[jimdad07]

24 x 36.

My concrete piers are not below the frost line, so they will move around a bit. I'm not concerned about it, the traditional barn in this area uses a foundation consisting of a log or a beam propped up on a few rocks, and some of those 75+ year old barns are still in service. They may be a bit out of level, but it's a frigging barn, not a billiard table.

How far down is frost line out your way? Must be pretty good.

 

[mtngun]

I don't know, there is no data on that. Drive a few miles in any direction and you are in a different climate zone, so it is impossible to set any local standards.

But probably not much different than other northern climates.

 

[Timberframed]

Mntgun needs to be more concerned about wind sheer than frost lift. Thus the Gambrel. Good job!

 

[irishcountry]

MTNgun

That is one awesome barn !!! Great job !! Can't wait to see it all done !

 

[headleyj]

MTN - are you drying your lumber ahead of time? If so, for how long? Is it to a certain MC?

 

[mtngun]

Headleyj, the lumber is mostly dry, though I'm not fussy about it. In fact, some people actually prefer to frame with green douglas fir, because it is much, much easier to nail when it is green.

Most of the deadfall that I cut is already 1/2 dry when I mill it. After edging and stacking with stickers, it quickly dries even more.

The only place I insist on using well dried lumber is flooring.

 

[headleyj]

Headleyj, the lumber is mostly dry, though I'm not fussy about it. In fact, some people actually prefer to frame with green douglas fir, because it is much, much easier to nail when it is green.

Most of the deadfall that I cut is already 1/2 dry when I mill it. After edging and stacking with stickers, it quickly dries even more.

The only place I insist on using well dried lumber is flooring.

just toyed with the idea of milling mine for a barn and this is a ? I have. Thanks man - kudos on teh barn - looks tough!

 

[mtngun]

Rafters finished. On to purlins ....

 

[betterbuilt]

nice job mtngun. I bet your feeling pretty good. I bet you'll feel even better when the roof is on. Are you doing that all alone?

 

[mtngun]

Are you doing that all alone?

Yep.

 

[fiasco]

DIY mill and sled shed start

Against my better judgement, I'll show you what I've started building today with a bunch of pine I've salvaged on the little 2.75 acre parcel I call home.

First the mill. I bought a Beam Machine a little over a year ago, but didn't get much time to try it out. Finally this year, I've been able to get a bit of time and have my "big" (ha, ha) saw running, a Jonsered 2159. I bought a couple of loops of ripping chain from Bailey's and went at it. The Beam Machine was OK for making, well, beams, but not so hot for boards.

Being the cheapskate that I am (and also a stay at home dad with two little boys), I couldn't fathom ponying up for an Alaskan to see if I liked milling, so I built my own "mini Alaskan". It isn't pretty, I used a little flat stock, some angle iron and some pieces of a trash pump frame I had kicking around, and after some fiddling and a little very ugly welding, here's what I ended up with (sorry, they're cell phone pics):

Here it is sort of "in action":

Yep, it's pretty ugly. Nope, it doesn't mill all that square. But for a first test, I consider it a success. Now I just need to learn how to file these ripping chains a LOT better, although the regular 3/8" chain still does an OK job. It's slow going with a 59cc saw, so now I want more power! Sure would like to stumble into a blown up Makita 6401 to make into an 84cc terror....

After several afternoons of milling a few dead white pines I'd dropped I had a pile like this:

I did do a bit of work with a table saw in an effort to square up some boards for the deck/floor. Nothing too fancy...had to plug the table saw into a 20 amp circuit so it would stop tripping the breaker. Made me a bunch of 2ish by 6" boards to start.

Haven't gotten too far yet, but I figure if I post, I'll have to keep going!

 

[teatersroad]

Yep.

Tell me you're not milling your skip sheeting as well.

Frost heave on footings will be no problem, the barn will move up and down on those waves just fine. Kreicky, think of wooden boats. It is frost heave on stem walls and foundations that would wreak havoc, bust 'em all to heck all. Lotta work there bud. I renovated an old farmstead bunkhouse across the way from you ( Zumwalt) awhile back.

And nice work there Fiasco.

 

[jimdad07]

Against my better judgement, I'll show you what I've started building today with a bunch of pine I've salvaged on the little 2.75 acre parcel I call home.

First the mill. I bought a Beam Machine a little over a year ago, but didn't get much time to try it out. Finally this year, I've been able to get a bit of time and have my "big" (ha, ha) saw running, a Jonsered 2159. I bought a couple of loops of ripping chain from Bailey's and went at it. The Beam Machine was OK for making, well, beams, but not so hot for boards.

Being the cheapskate that I am (and also a stay at home dad with two little boys), I couldn't fathom ponying up for an Alaskan to see if I liked milling, so I built my own "mini Alaskan". It isn't pretty, I used a little flat stock, some angle iron and some pieces of a trash pump frame I had kicking around, and after some fiddling and a little very ugly welding, here's what I ended up with (sorry, they're cell phone pics):

Here it is sort of "in action":

Yep, it's pretty ugly. Nope, it doesn't mill all that square. But for a first test, I consider it a success. Now I just need to learn how to file these ripping chains a LOT better, although the regular 3/8" chain still does an OK job. It's slow going with a 59cc saw, so now I want more power! Sure would like to stumble into a blown up Makita 6401 to make into an 84cc terror....

After several afternoons of milling a few dead white pines I'd dropped I had a pile like this:

I did do a bit of work with a table saw in an effort to square up some boards for the deck/floor. Nothing too fancy...had to plug the table saw into a 20 amp circuit so it would stop tripping the breaker. Made me a bunch of 2ish by 6" boards to start.

Haven't gotten too far yet, but I figure if I post, I'll have to keep going!

Nothing wrong with your mill, we all have to start somewhere and there is no money like saved money. Keep posting your progress.

 

[BobL]

Good on you for having a go at "rolling your own".

.
.
Being the cheapskate that I am (and also a stay at home dad with two little boys), I couldn't fathom ponying up for an Alaskan to see if I liked milling, so I built my own "mini Alaskan". )

I don't want to make a big deal out of it but technically speaking it's an alaskan if the bar is held at both ends.

The problem of holding the bar only at one end is highlighted by the gap shown in this pic.
This worries me since it suggests the bar and mill are either not that robust and/or not parallel.
An outcome of will be that uneven thickness boards or (hopefully not) worse it will break.



Seeing as you got this far it will be nothing for you to implement a bolt on bar at both ends type alaskan. You may of course need a longer bar and a bigger saw.

It never ends!

 

[fiasco]

Good on you for having a go at "rolling your own".



I don't want to make a big deal out of it but technically speaking it's an alaskan if the bar is held at both ends.

The problem of holding the bar only at one end is highlighted by the gap shown in this pic.
This worries me since it suggests the bar and mill are either not that robust and/or not parallel.
An outcome of will be that uneven thickness boards or (hopefully not) worse it will break.

Seeing as you got this far it will be nothing for you to implement a bolt on bar at both ends type alaskan. You may of course need a longer bar and a bigger saw.

It never ends!

Yes, I may add that to this mill, or go for version 2. Unfortunately, I WILL need a larger bar (18" isn't enough), and with only 59cc's of saw, more bar will require more saw!