Milled with the 084!

[hautions11]

It was raining when I left work tonight, but I was bound and determined to try the 084 on the alaskan. I have one full 8' log left about 30" and exactly half of another 8 footer at 26". The half log is just getting in to some pretty rays. The set-up. 32" bar converted to 3/8 063 chain. Brand new Stihl RM safety chain with the safety features ground off. No ripping grind at all. I just got the chains to the right length Thursday. I thought I would use them a few times and then get them ground next week to a Bailey's style at leaste. I stretched the Alaskan out for the new bar length and got 26" of cut without taking the dogs off. It fit the log just fine, as I have put some small flats on the sides. The 084 is a monster! Even without ripping chain it was a lot faster then my 064 on the same log and the 064 had Bailey's chain on it. I cut three real nice 24" quartersawn pieces in a half hour. It is a lot nicer working at a kool 54 degrees rather then 94! It was getting dark and I was alone, so no action shots. I wanted to try a couple of cuts tonight to see if I had any problems lurking. The saw is a little irregular at idle. I tried a little tuning, but I ended up turning the idle speed up a little and it was fine. It probably needs a carb rebuild. If anyone remembers, this was an Ebay saw that the owner said needed work. His description was it blubbered and tended to die after warming up. The 3-4 times I have run it have been OK, but there is a small tuning issue of some kind. The saw sat a lot in the last few years, so I am thinking carb diaphram. I was VERY excited with the overall performance and I can't wait to try some good ripping chain grinds. The larger log that is left will be quartersawn. I want to put a small flat on one side and then use the beam machine to split the log and then split the halves. I have a 24" bar converted to 3/8 as well and that would work real nice for the quartered pieces. Pictures tomorrow! I'll drag one of the kids down to get some action shots. Thanks for everyones support, knowledge and good suggestions over the course of my project.

 

[t_andersen]

can't wait for the pictures...

 

[woodshop]

Glad you got your 084 going, and got some milling in before dark. I have on occasion used regular chisel chain for ripping with pretty good results. But in some situations, nothing beats raw power. You never said what kind of wood this 30" 8 footer and half of another, was. You did mention rays, so does that mean oak maybe?

 

[hautions11]

oak

Yes red oak. It has been down a year and a half also, so it is not too green. I think that makes it harder to cut. It is the end of the tree I have been cutting for a while.

The 30" piece is closest to the root ball. It should be pretty clear.

 

[aggiewoodbutchr]

Nice looking logs. Glad you're happy with your 084.

 

[hautions11]

084

Aggie, where is your brute?? We are all waiting for some of those pics with the monster 72" Bar. The weather looks great today, I'm at work, but plan on making a little noise later.

 

[aggiewoodbutchr]

Aggie, where is your brute?? We are all waiting for some of those pics with the monster 72" Bar. The weather looks great today, I'm at work, but plan on making a little noise later.

Supposedly it's in the mail.

 

[oldsaw]

Power is a very cool thing. 120ccs of saw makes the milling go much easier.

Mark

 

[hautions11]

Millin

What a great day I had in the woods today. This is a great time of the year and I had some more fun milling. Here is the start to the day with my weapons of choice.

Woodshop, I know you put boards in your van, but I am forced to use the trailer. Otherwise Kerri complains about the smell of gas when I'm done. Can you imagine that!
Here are the last two log sections I have left.

The nearest section, I have been plain sawing. The far log is slated for quartersawing and that is my mission today.

Here is the first cut.

I still get really excited when I split a log open for the first time. This one has some beautifull grain. After halving the log I will quarter the two pieces. I forgot the allen wrench to the beam machine. so I screwed a 2 X 4 to the faces and cut along the board to get a straight line. I did not do that on the first cut and it was not very even.

I could not raise the section very high off the ground and got a little dirt. After quartering I changed chains. I am just using straight Stihl RM chain. Milling grind next week.

 

[hautions11]

Millin

Now to fix my uneven first cut on the log, I screwed a 2 X 4 to the face of the quarter and shimmed any low spots. I atjusted the depth of cut to net a 2" board. It worked pretty well.

The next cut was much straighter. Even using the 2 X 4 as a guide made a nice clean cut. Here is the first board.

Wonderfull grain and some great rays. After a cut on the other side of the quarter I was left with a nice clean cant to start cutting alternate sides to maintain the quartersawn effect.

I switched to the 24" bar and still used std RM chain. The 16 to 18" cuts seem to fly by. Hers is another nice board.

As the quarter gets smaller it sure is easier to roll back and forth.

Her is a close up of some of the intersting grain. Other then a couple of small knots, thia log was pretty clear.

 

[dustytools]

It sure does make all the hard work and sweat worthwile doesnt it? Nice looking cuts BTW.

 

[hautions11]

Millin

In looking around at the rest of the trees in the area I made one discovery. Even though I assumed this was a red oak as they are more common here, ther are a number of white oaks as well. Note the two leaf types. Round tips for white oak??

Since this tree had been down a while when I first saw it, I'm not sure what it is. Is ther any way to tell from the wood? Comon tree Guru's.

I started about 1:00 and finished about 6:30, with an hour run to the Stihl shop for a cant hook and a bar nut for the 084. Here is my haul for the day.

And a close up of some of the wide ones.

What a fun day and I am really impressed with the 084. It still runs a little rough down low, but it really hauls through the wood. I can't wait to try some milling grinds. Since I have several more quarters to go I can compare cut times in similar wood. I got a line on a nice 20" cherry tree form one of the neighbors on the lake. He lost the top out of one and wants to take the second one out that is right next to it. nice straight 20 foot sections. So much wood and so little time. I hope you like the pics.

 

[CaseyForrest]

The larger leaf looks like Pin Oak.

Nice shots, btw. I am going to be quarter sawing some White Oak for a member here in a couple weeks. I should be able to get some action shots since he will be doing some of the milling.

 

[aggiewoodbutchr]

Nice work! If you take a razor, slice an end gain wafer and post a good closeup picture I shoud be able it ID it for you. The cut needs to be as smooth as possible. It looks to be a red variety but water oak looks redish until it dries and it's on the white side.

 

[aggiewoodbutchr]

Nice work! If you take a razor, slice an end gain wafer and post a good closeup picture I should be able it ID it for you. The cut needs to be as smooth as possible. It looks to be a red variety but water oak looks reddish until it dries and it's on the white side.

 

[oldsaw]

The larger leaf looks like Pin Oak.

Nice shots, btw. I am going to be quarter sawing some White Oak for a member here in a couple weeks. I should be able to get some action shots since he will be doing some of the milling.

It's not the pin oak we have in Missouri. It is, however, something of the red oak family. Pin oaks have much deeper pockets between the leaf fingers with much longer, thinner fingers.

Mark

 

[woodshop]

Woodshop, I know you put boards in your van, but I am forced to use the trailer. Otherwise Kerri complains about the smell of gas when I'm done. Can you imagine that!

No imagination necessary, I get the same flak from the wife AND my 3 daughters about gas smell, among other things. Example... 300 bd ft of red oak left in a closed van for long in summer releases lots of acidic smelling moisture. Takes a day of airing out to get rid of it. I recently bought one of those HB fordable 4X8 trailers, but havn't got it operational yet.

Nice milling pics, LOVE to see milling pics... thanks. Red or white oak? Fresh cut red oak (northern red, scarlet, pin etc) has an acidic smell to it, almost rancid, where white oak has a somewhat sweeter smell when milled. Like aggie, I too could tell you which one if you posted a good clear end grain pic sliced with a razor or utility knife. I agree, white oak can be reddish when first milled, but does turn a greenish tan, less red tone as it dries. Beautiful ray figure on those quartersawn pieces. As much as I dislike getting different width boards, as it makes stickering, drying and also storage more of a pain, it's worth it to get that effect. White oak with its larger rays than red, has even more ray figure when pure quartersawn. They both dry straighter when quartersawn though... and the finished wood is more stable in the woodshop. It's definitely an advantage if you take the extra time to do it.

I recently was offered a HUGE white oak, 40" at base, and 42 ft till the first branch!! (biggest tree I ever milled). Blew down in a storm, took another 36" white oak with it as well as a 30" beech tree. My point is, with logs over 36", I've been able to slab off the sides to get a huge 28" square cant. I then slice that into quarters with the csm, but they are 14 x 14 square quarters, which makes quartersawing much easier as you flip them 90 degrees back and forth taking quartersawn boards. Once the cant gets down to about a 6x6 I finish it off through and through as I have a specific need for 6/4 wood about that width. (happens to be that wooden nut and bolt in my avatar).

Hautions glad you have the milling bug... another one bites the dust.

 

[hautions11]

Oak

Without taking a slice from the end, I have decided it is red oak, by the smell. It is very strong when I split the tops for firewood this spring, I did not realize that white oak does not have that distinct smell. I have heard people descride it as smelling like vomit. There must be something wrong with me, as I have always liked the smell. I have enough oak drying right now, I want some of that Cherry and some Ash that I will be cutting down this Fall. I have read that Ash, even green has a very low moisture content. What is anyones experience with drying it? Is it a wood that tends to warp and twist? Any figure from quatersawing?

 

[TedChristiansen]

Hautions,

I have cut quite a bit of ash in the last year - lots trees are being cut down because of Emerald Ash Borer. If the tree was already dying, the moisture content when you mill it into lumber can be low. I have had some that after cutting dried to 12" in my basement in as little as 4 months. Some of it moved a bit, but for the most part it dries pretty well.

Ted

 

[CaseyForrest]

Without taking a slice from the end, I have decided it is red oak, by the smell. It is very strong when I split the tops for firewood this spring, I did not realize that white oak does not have that distinct smell. I have heard people descride it as smelling like vomit. There must be something wrong with me, as I have always liked the smell. I have enough oak drying right now, I want some of that Cherry and some Ash that I will be cutting down this Fall. I have read that Ash, even green has a very low moisture content. What is anyones experience with drying it? Is it a wood that tends to warp and twist? Any figure from quatersawing?

Most of the playhouse I built is White Ash. I had the 2x4 and 2x6 stacked outside, uncovered. I dont know the MC of it, but I was screwing it together within 4 months. Other than it still shrinking, it hasnt twisted or warped at all. and VERY strong.