Milling lumber woodshop style

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Tree Machine said:
You're helping enlighten a lot of guys with a truly unique, and do-able system. Feed us some more photos !
Click to expand...
tree machine... that log carrier in your ripsaw-7 pic... tell us more about it. Was looking into one to tow behind the ATV. Even thought of maybe fabricating my own. btw, nice stack of wood there. Looks like you're into this as much as I am.
 
me luvs me arches

Thanks, Ray. Yea, that second thread got started in November 2002; almost 2 1-2 years ago. Wow. I reminisce because that was the very first thread I ever got really into at arboristsite. I think I had about 7 posts at that point. I had to run out and buy Photoshop, and learn it, just so I could hang with you dogs. The first few arch posts on that thread are all messed up because I didn't know what the heck I was doing with the image software. But I got it figgered out.

Thank you for hanging with me in that, (sniff) 'newbie moment'.

Anyway, yea, that's where I'd have sent you. Answers your arch questions fer sher.

The arches, if you can afford them, are a joy. I work alone for probably 19 out of 20 jobs, so for me the arches are like having specialized employees in wait, I just never have to pay them and they never, ever wuss out. Arches are amazing works of mechanics and physics. They're exceptional at doing what they're designed to do. In a personal milling operation, arches work a variety of jobs and amp the swiftness of moving bulk wood.

Here's a few pics I came across.

now lets get back on the topic of milling wood with Chainsaws and the RipSaw. Thanks for pulling this image up. It's one of my favorire shots, and represent a successful haul. This stuff under the arch was WoodMizer'd.
attachment_3149.php
 
Thanks tree, and Ray... NEAT stuff... I especially like that last pic, slab5, the bench. a man of my ilk... as I usually over-engineer stuff, if only because I can, and want it to outlast me. ( I designed and built a 2-story garage on my property, the county inspector looked at it and told me it would be here 200 years from now)

OK so whats the damage on that carrier? I have a 2" ball on my minivan, that thing would do wonders grabbing a log from somewhere that would be inconvenient to mill where it sits. As you know, milling takes time, makes a lot of mess with its fine sawdust, and of course is noisy. Some folks you don't want to foist that upon. Can you pop me the website for your particular brand and model?

Also... before we get too fairy-tale land here... its important to note that as with everything in life, there are some downsides to milling using my system. For one thing, you have to be pretty organized about your setup. All the pieces have to fit together, and it take a few Ripsaw sessions before it melds and you get efficient and come home with a couple hundred bd ft of wet lumber. I have spent all day putzing in the woods and come home with only a handful of boards. Things don't always flow smoothly. It does fill that niche though, between zero and a $10k pull behind bandmill, for less than $3K, and its extreme portability is where it really shines.

Milling an 8ft long 32" oak this Sat... will take more pics and post for those interested.
 
OK THANKS... checked out that website from other post... ouch... not cheap huh. But if it does the job, it will pay for itself eventually. An investment. Need to look into it more.
 
Rrrrrrrr.

CRAP ! I just wrote a hole slug of info to go along with these pictures, and it was all lost when my 'browser unexpectedly quit'. :cry: I'll have to get back with that later, but here are the 'uncaptioned images'.

WoodShop, we know you've got many, many more pics. Feed us the nourishment we need.
 
Yes, two different sizes. I would recommend,understanding what I know of this topic, is the smaller arch with the bigger one's tires. This is an option you only need request. Let's talk more about milling !
 
Should have titled this thread, "woodshop/tree machine milling pic marathon"... or maybe "you TOO can be a one man sawmill operation on the cheap"

This is how I get 1000 lb logs up and onto those custom horses so easier to mill. Floor jack gets it off ground till its almost upright, then cant hook can straiten it out. Make sure you have a chock ready on other side or it will continue on over, taking our your foot or anything else in its path.
 
"more more more... how do ya like it how do ya like it... more more more... how do ya like it how do ya like it" (think early 70's... female vocalist... name escapes me now)
 
wow... tree... gorgeous lumber... where did you get that nice oak with nary a limb... and only a little band of sapwood, rest good stuff. That's a peeler for sure. You're lucky to have a bunch of guys help you push that on around. This one man operation would have been dead in the water if I couldn't have milled right where it lay. Ever figure out how many board ft of lumber you got out of that thing? Looks like premium stuff. Other than benches, have anything specific for that stash of lumber in last pic? Or are you like me, building up a wood "bank"... kindof a stash for future use. Problem with stashing away lumber, is that if you don't take care of it, it degrades. Over time insects, forms of rot, weather all take a toll. You have to have a place for it. I'm in the process of building an 8x16 platform that I plan to store lumber, heavy tarp cover, but it will breath so it won't rot.
 
I never calculated board feet, but the unfortunate thing is it all the wood from those Giant oak logs got stolen. Very bummer. Lesson: Don't store valable stuff on other peoples' property

I went from one-man operation to hiring a guy for the day, and of course the sawyer, and then other people showed up out of curiosity and I put them to work, I was running video cam that day. I'm not used to a crew either. It was a Woodmizer day.

:Eye: Gotta catch some shuteye.
 
I too am enjoying this thread. I'm just putting the finishing touches on a manual bandsaw, and have a small Alaskan mill and want to start being creative with my woodlot. Totally green with this woodworking stuff tho.
Tree Machine, when you make stuff like the bench, do you let the slabs dry for a while or do you do it green? I was thinking if it was green, maybe it tightens up the joints while it dries, but maybe also it would be more prone to warp and twist. I've got a variety of trees to work with, but mostly hemlock. I slabbed some up last year just for benches and such and it seemed to work ok. It twisted a bit during the summer.
 
Green. Like in this cute bench example. The lady wanted a piece of the wood for 'the memory'. She was pickin around in the scraps and I said, "You give me ten minutes. I'll make you something nice."

Of course, it took longer than 10 minutes but that's not the point here at all.

To watch your client's almost pee with excitement as you're creating this thing in front of their eyes, I would have to say is beyond the point of money or time. It's one of those crowning treeguy moments.

I got the pictires, not of the client dancing in circles and applauding, but of the pictures. This bench is the gift that keeps on giving. Very, simple. Over ten, but under 20 minute, welcome to bench-making 101.
 
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tawilson said:
I too am enjoying this thread. I'm just putting the finishing touches on a manual bandsaw, and have a small Alaskan mill and want to start being creative with my woodlot. Totally green with this woodworking stuff tho.
Tree Machine, when you make stuff like the bench, do you let the slabs dry for a while or do you do it green? I was thinking if it was green, maybe it tightens up the joints while it dries, but maybe also it would be more prone to warp and twist. I've got a variety of trees to work with, but mostly hemlock. I slabbed some up last year just for benches and such and it seemed to work ok. It twisted a bit during the summer.
Click to expand...
In general, wood shrinks as it dries. How much depends on species and orientation of cut (plainsawn or quartersawn), with quatersawn shrinking the least. That said, on large slabs, depending on how they are attached to each other, tenons or whatnot, you might be able to get away with doing it green. I saw an article in one of the woodworking mags about somebody who makes rustic tables and chairs out of green saplings and small branches. The piece moves a little as it dries, but stays together.

Major bummer about your wood being stolen Tree... I can relate though. When a logger in 1982 I was selling firewood on the side and I had just cut and split by hand about 2 cords of oak and was storing in shed of a friend. Shed was close to a road and one night somebody took off with it. Lot of work just to keep a thief warm.

Water under the bridge...

tawilson what do you mean by a "manual bandsaw"?
 

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