Milling in the sunny Shuswap

[RPM]

I've been browsing the site for a while now and have finally got some time to send a note. Heres a nice stick of Douglas-fir that was left behind on a high lead logging show and looked lonely. There was some debate as to whether or not it would be fire wood or lumber. Theres lots of firewood out there and only so much clear VG doug-fir. The log measured 51' long and 34" at the butt and after my friend and I had our way with it...well a picture or two is worth a thousand words....

Thanks for all the great posts and pics.

I've got a few pictures so I guess I'll be back...

 

[oldsaw]

Absolutely incredible. That view is......I can't even begin to describe it.

WOW!!!!!

Welcome aboard

Mark

 

[woodshop]

I agree, I loved that veiw ALMOST as much as seeing the Doug fir logs... we don't get trees like that here on the east coast. At least not ones "left over" from a show laying there all ready to be sliced up.

Trade ya some cherry and walnut for one of those clear firs?

 

[Adkpk]

Way to go RPM! Keep turning round logs into square ones.

 

[aggiewoodbutchr]

Heck, with that view I might even turn square ones in to round ones. Sure beats cow pastures and corn fields.

 

[aquan8tor]

I've been browsing the site for a while now and have finally got some time to send a note. Heres a nice stick of Douglas-fir that was left behind on a high lead logging show and looked lonely. There was some debate as to whether or not it would be fire wood or lumber. Theres lots of firewood out there and only so much clear VG doug-fir. The log measured 51' long and 34" at the butt and after my friend and I had our way with it...well a picture or two is worth a thousand words....

Thanks for all the great posts and pics.

I've got a few pictures so I guess I'll be back...

I want Some of those!!!!!!!!!

 

[olyman]

Heck, with that view I might even turn square ones in to round ones. Sure beats cow pastures and corn fields.

now aggie--you mind eggsplaning that to me--since im in the land of corn fields and cow pastures--and i happen to like it????? hmmmmmmm???????????

 

[Adkpk]

Heck, with that view I might even turn square ones in to round ones.

opcorn:

 

[smithie55]

Welcome.

Nice place to spend a day milling.
What lake is that in the back ground?

Nice looking rings

I really like milling doug fir.

You'll get some nice lumber out of that stuff, what dimensions are you going to mill?

Would love to see some pics after you turn it in to some boards.

 

[RPM]

Thats Shuswap Lake in the background looking towards the east. This log and the view are the exception and not the rule around here. That day was hot - into the 90's in the open - we started around 6am and the saws started complaining around 2. We were pretty lucky that it was still there - I've had my eye on it for over a year now. Too big for the fire wood cutters I guess.

We broke the log down into 8' x 4"/6"/8" x 18-24" cants. Most of what I have has been milled into 5/4 , 6/4 and 8/4 stock. I've two cants that will get ripped into 4x4's. Probably half clears (VG and flat sawn) with the other bit having the odd knot that can be worked around. I have to pull the covers off the pile and take a few pictures for show and tell. The rest will have to wait untill the fall to finish once it cools down. Half an hour in the heat and my saw is telling me its time to quit.

 

[RPM]

I agree, I loved that veiw ALMOST as much as seeing the Doug fir logs... we don't get trees like that here on the east coast. At least not ones "left over" from a show laying there all ready to be sliced up.

Trade ya some cherry and walnut for one of those clear firs?

Let me know when you're coming to town and I'll gladly swap you for some cherry. The only hardwoods we have around here is western birch, red alder and bigleaf maple - all are nice and I've worked with all three - but they're not readily accessible like the softwoods are.

All the wood working mags I read (mostly from the east coast) have some awesome projects where cherry / walnut / maple is used like its going out of style (like this months Fine Woodworking cover 'Build a Shaker trestle table- I hate that Becksvoort guy). Its not quite the same building it out of pine. If I want cherry to work with out west here I'm looking at $8-12 bdf. It gets a little pricey.

So anyone else coming this way I like quater sawn white oak too!!

 

[woodshop]

Let me know when you're coming to town and I'll gladly swap you for some cherry... If I want cherry to work with out west here I'm looking at $8-12 bdf. It gets a little pricey. So anyone else coming this way I like quater sawn white oak too!!

Well you're a tad out of the way, but hey if I didn't have this pesky job I'd gladly take a 3000 mile trip to swap wood and check out your beautiful scenery. Nature of the beast with geography that ones mans junk wood is another mans $12/bd ft treasure. Example... I'm up to my ears in oak at the moment. Sliced up 800bd ft of quarter sawn white oak last fall from a blowdown, and left another thousand or more in logs there I just didn't get back to get yet. Probably won't before the firewood guys and or the bugs get it. BUT... I crave some of that old growth clear Doug fir you showed us in those pics. Location location location. The Aussies have some fantastic hard as a rock dense wood down there I would give an arm and a leg for, but gosh they're across a few big ponds. Can't even take couple weeks vacation and drive there as I could to you in BC. Havn't been out west in couple years, but seriously, next time I do take a trip out there I'll load up the van with some cherry and oak and swap it for some of your BC treasure.