pics of milling sycam.

[smitty12]

milled some sycamore today. This is my first shot at milling. I dont have my slabbing rails yet so I just used an old ladder. Decided to practice on sycamore since its soft and I dont know what Im doing yet and my saw is still relatively new.

This is also with a regular chain so the boards ar a little rough.

 

[Jim Shockey]

Nice looking boards. I use a latter all the time when I use the Alaskan, It seems to be a lot more stable for the first cut. Keep the pictures coming, we love them. Jim

 

[dustytools]

Good looking pictures Smitty. Ive heard of several others using a ladder for the first pass. Had I had access to one when I started milling I doubt if I would have built my rails. Awesome job!

 

[tawilson]

Nice. Looks to me like a ladder will do everything the rails will do, and maybe more. You can still climb with it.

 

[Finnbear]

You just use the ladder for the first cut? How do you fasten it to the log? Nice looking lumber-looks like Ash.
Finnbear

 

[00juice]

Nice first job. Is that really sycamore though. Just looks different.
Nice looking lab.

 

[smitty12]

Yeah it's sycamore. the top of the tree had alot of white bark on it above where you can see on the pics. I just nailed the ladder to the tree through some holes in the rungs. It looked ok until I put the saw on it. Then the whole thing went crooked. I wouldnt recommend it if you are trying to do some precision sawing. I'm still planning on buying some slabbing rails from Granberg or somewhere else if somone has some suggestions. I like the fact that you can use extensions so you can mill longer boards.

 

[MikeInParadise]

You just use the ladder for the first cut? How do you fasten it to the log? Nice looking lumber-looks like Ash.
Finnbear

Just use a board and some fender washers

More pics in this post

http://www.arboristsite.com/showthread.php?p=530457#post530457

 

[smitty12]

your way looks a whole lot cheaper than buying rails. I think I'll try it. It Looks like the bottom of the board is way down on the log and would make your first cut take too much wood. Maybe its just the picture.

 

[MikeInParadise]

your way looks a whole lot cheaper than buying rails. I think I'll try it. It Looks like the bottom of the board is way down on the log and would make your first cut take too much wood. Maybe its just the picture.

Sometimes I do put the ladder down on the log to keep the ladder closer to the top of the log as it is more stable, the more contact on the log, and then I just turn over the first cut and take a board or two off of it.

 

[TedChristiansen]

It's always difficult to tell from pictures, but that doesnt look like sycamore. Here are some American Sycamore bark pictures:

http://images.google.com/images?svnum=10&hl=en&q=sycamore+bark&btnG=Search

Ted

 

[smitty12]

another syc. picture

This pic shows the top of the try behind laying behind my nosy dog. You can see the white flaking bark typical of a sycamore if you look there. I do have other trees where the white bark is all the way down the tree. So I'm still sticking with sycamore. What do you think if not??

 

[begleytree]

Its sycamore. Just a younger one that still has a lot of bark flakes.
-Ralph

 

[sILlogger]

sycamore

definitely sycamore, (wide growth rings, pink wood, knots in lumber from old limbs, and then there is he patented little brown heartwood-and as u prolly noticed that stuff is heavy as he!! when is it green) all typical sycamore characteristics, there are several more growing around the one that was felled in the pics, im guessing it was growing is a low lying area that is wet several times a year,

just my hair brained idea!!!

what part of IL are u from smitty12, cuz that kinda looks like my back yard?

 

[TedChristiansen]

Tree identification can be difficult - I am learning all the time.

I haven't cut any sycamore before, but plan to in the next few weeks. I plan to quartersaw it on my Logosol Woodworkers Mill to get this figure:

http://www.curlywoods.com/qtr_sycamore.html

Ted

 

[sILlogger]

sycamore

i wish i could start getting grade prices out of some of the sycamore that ive sawn because ive cut some big'ens, 4ft+ on the stump, 90 ft. logs, 16-18" on the skinny end, that would make some decent cash if a guy could get grade prices

 

[smitty12]

Im from Troy but my farm where these pics were taken is up by Carlinville. You called it right on the area where I was working. It's near a large creek and gets waterlogged every time it rains. There are alot of large Cottonwoods and Walnuts there too. Whats Walnut good for?? I am just getting into this and trying to learn what trees are good for what.

I would never thought of milling the sycamore had it not been for this website. On the other hand I probably wouldnt have spent the $1000 on the mill either!

 

[sILlogger]

Trees!!!

walnut can be a high priced commodity if it is a good one, i cut some early last summer that were 32-36" on the stump, sold 2-10 footers at $6 a bf, those 2 logs brought 3500, if u have any great deal of walnut, or trees of any quality, i know people that would pay top dollar for them, i rode my harley in the Troy Veterans day parade, went to a bar up there that had some great blackberry brandy, where at around carlinville is the farm, used to run around there quite a bit, anywhere around Beaver Dam? we are only about an 1-1 1/2 away from each other, im from over by mt. vernon.

 

[smitty12]

I meant cottonwood

I meant to ask what Cottonwood was good for...not Walnut. Again, I am tryng to stockpile to finish off about 1100 square feet in a pole barn.

Thanks

 

[Railomatic]

Very nice clean timber is sycamore, your dogs knows where there is a clean spot to lie down.
Using a ladder is the way to go here, metal to metal contact nice and slipery as well, not so slipery without a set of roller though, much harder to push.

Here are a few pictures of a big ash I did a couple of years ago, 28 inchs by 14 feet, using a ladder and rollers on the mill.

After you have sliced things up, don't forget to stand the planks upright to dry, if you sticker them horizontally you will get stick marks in the grain, which go quite a ways into the wood and can spoil the boards.