# Quarter Sawn



## stimber1 (Jan 25, 2015)

Hi ever body, I have 2 ea. 30 inch white oak logs i am going to mill in a month or 2. I have been milling my own lumber for 4 years or so but i never have quarter sawn any lumber. Does anybody have any diagrams of proper quarter sawn lumber or any suggestions. Thanks in advance:thumbsup:


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## Alchymist (Jan 2, 2011)

http://www.core77.com/blog/materials/how_logs_are_turned_into_boards_part_2_quartersawn_24891.asp


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## Steve Neul (Sep 2, 2011)

To really get the lateral banding of quarter sawing the cut needs to be in a direct line to the center of the tree.


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## stimber1 (Jan 25, 2015)

Looking at the diagram at that link i thought that what true quarter sawn was. I will probably do a quarter sawn and rift sawn combo. I can make a jig to brace the log in my bandmill. Thanks for the help guys.


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## FishFactory (Nov 8, 2013)

Quarter sawing yields a lot more waste than plain or rift sawing. Maybe do a combination to cut down on waste. That's why we don't quarter saw much. You really need a good size log too, which you have so you may get a good amount.


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## stimber1 (Jan 25, 2015)

I tried moving the logs up to the house yesterday because we got below zero. My 863 Bobcat would not lift the logs high enough to manuever out of the timber. I am going to cut down to 7 ft lengths so I can handle them better. I think I will do the combination quarter sawn /rift sawn. I dont like wasting that much wood.


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## Post Oakie (Aug 20, 2013)

is the diameter capacity of your mill? One technique is to quarter the log (with a chain saw, if necessary), then put each quarter on, one at a time. Rotating the log 90 degrees after each cut gives a high percentage of quarter sawn lumber. As an alternative, you can cut three 3" thick slabs out of the center, then set up the left-over pieces up and mill them to get more quarter sawn boards. Maybe these drawings will help illustrate...

This is the overall cutting pattern I try to use, though I leave natural edges on the slabbing cuts, if possible.










I remove some thick slabs from the center. They may be up to 3" thick for table tops, bar tops, and other heavy use.









Then I put the two remaining pieces back on the mill.









You can get a little more quarter grain by rotating the quarter log after each cut like this:


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## stimber1 (Jan 25, 2015)

Thanks for the info Post Oakie. Those diagrams are really helpful. I thinks that's what i will do. My mill can cut 30" diameter logs. Saturday morning I was able to move the logs up to house and down to the mill without having to cut them down any. I quess the hydro oil got warmed up enough and I was able to move them.:thumbsup:


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## Post Oakie (Aug 20, 2013)

You're welcome. I did those in sketchup (a great FREE 3D graphics program) for another project. Just remember to constantly "read" the log. If you get an interesting grain pattern, keep sawing boards from that side. Every log is different, and there are few hard & fast rules. That's what keeps things interesting... I love seeing what's inside an old log, and the uglier the better!


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