# More logs



## Daren (Oct 14, 2006)

The same dude who brought me a load of oak last week brought me another this morning. Seems he is contracted to clear some timber for a new housing development. The developer was smart and hired an arborist to remove just some of the trees in an attractive/selective way instead the usual bulldose and pile. :smile: 

He is selling the lesser logs to a pallet company/splitting the real junk for firewood...and bringing me the nice ones. Boy, he did just that this morning. 5 honeylocust and 3 smaller osage (compared to the locust, but still nice logs) One of the locust is 34" X 12' . According to the calculator that one weighs 4600 lbs, no picking it up with my skidsteer :no:, gonna have to cut it in 1/2 to even budge it. Another is 34" x 7', I may be able to move that one :huh:. The locust are all over 24", a couple just straight as a telephone pole.
Good thing I am organizing my shed. If this one dude keeps dumping 1000 bft a week in the yard I am going to need the room, that is not counting the strays that trickle in from others.


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## dirtclod (May 7, 2008)

Nice haul. I'm still looking for some locust and hedge, mulhberry, yellowwood...

Ours dropped off a large red oak last week. Took him two loads to haul it. Most of it will go to firewood. The best log is 31" at the small end, maybe 40" at the other, and 8' long. Too big for the mill so I'll have to cut it in half. He dropped off another load yesterday. A small white oak with two millable logs 8' and 10' and another red oak ~18" that I'll get two 8' logs and the rest will be made into firewood.


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## raskgle (Dec 10, 2007)

*dirtclod*

Where are you in Ky if around richmond if so may buy some lumber. if for sale and neer.


dirtclod said:


> Nice haul. I'm still looking for some locust and hedge, mulhberry, yellowwood...
> 
> Ours dropped off a large red oak last week. Took him two loads to haul it. Most of it will go to firewood. The best log is 31" at the small end, maybe 40" at the other, and 8' long. Too big for the mill so I'll have to cut it in half. He dropped off another load yesterday. A small white oak with two millable logs 8' and 10' and another red oak ~18" that I'll get two 8' logs and the rest will be made into firewood.


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## dirtclod (May 7, 2008)

raskgle,

I'm near E'town/Fort Knox. I've got a thread started in Classifieds. If you're interested and gas prices don't get you down, PM me.

Daren,

Give us some pictures of the osage and locust as you're milling it.


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## Daren (Oct 14, 2006)

dirtclod said:


> Daren,
> 
> Give us some pictures of the osage and locust as you're milling it.


Of course. I see some 24" wide locust slabs :thumbsup:. I have other logs to get to first that will spoil faster in the summer heat...I don't think those osage and locust will rot in the next couple weeks .

3 months ago I was thinking about just doing this sawmill stuff part time (sharpening business kinda took off, that was _suppose_ to be part time) because I hurt sometimes, like all over, you know what I am saying...now I am 2 months behind milling killer logs and more show up every week .

Oh well, what you gonna do ? That's what a guy gets for buying a mill. Hard work and worry:blush:, I hope I can do it till I am 80.


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## Daren (Oct 14, 2006)

dirtclod said:


> Daren,
> 
> Give us some pictures of the osage and locust as you're milling it.


I milled one of the small ones today (in the rain :smile Honeylocust is notorious for having punky spots in the lumber, especially in larger logs...not this one. Pretty nice lumber. I stickered it after the picture. Fresh sawn (in the rain, did I mention that) you can’t really see all the cool colors honeylocust has.


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## dirtclod (May 7, 2008)

Thanks for the pics.

I wonder if it darkens with age. I'd like to see it when it's dry and planed.

I've tried milling in the rain. The sawdust kept clinging to the track and making the rollers bump down the track.


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## Terry Beeson (May 29, 2008)

Wow.... I wish I had friends like that...

Nice lumber....


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## Daren (Oct 14, 2006)

dirtclod said:


> I wonder if it darkens with age. I'd like to see it when it's dry and planed.
> 
> I've tried milling in the rain. The sawdust kept clinging to the track and making the rollers bump down the track.


Yes it does darken. It planes out _very_ smooth.

Milling in the rain is nice. 70 degrees and a light mist beats 90 and no breeze and all sun, the break I needed to start July. Plus it makes the "lookers" drive right past...on a nice day they would stop and talk :whistling2:. My mill has "track sweepers" that touch the rail and push the dust off before the wheels. $5 fix to your problem, I will take a picture (worth a 1000 words so they say)


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## dirtclod (May 7, 2008)

I've got track wipers too. But it may have been coating the back side or blowing up on the roller itself. We determined the first time it happened not to try it again. Maybe dual track wipers and a roller wiper would solve everything. ...now how to rig all that up?:blink:


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## TexasTimbers (Oct 17, 2006)

Love that Honey Locust. I just planed a couple boards for my wife. She loves the pink hues that are in it. I haven't logged a really big one that doesn't have rot or punk. Sure would like to find a 24 - 30" solid one. Ohhhh that would be so nice. I can find them solid in the 12 - 18" range plenty, but even then about 50% of those will have pith punk. Still get some nice boards from them. 

Honey locust is one of my favorite woods, tied for first place with the other 100 species I love and log here. :laughing:


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## joasis (Sep 15, 2006)

I hope to find some of that one day....we have locust trees around, but no honey locust that I am aware of. My plumbing contractor has a degree in forestry...I need to ask him if I can remember it.


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## Kirk Allen (Nov 7, 2006)

Come get all you want Jay. I have tons of it here. 

Must be an Illinois thing as like Daren, the logs keep coming in and its time to turn work away. This part time gig has got plumb out of control!


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## jeffreythree (Jan 9, 2008)

Daren, how does that honey locust dry in one of your solar kilns? Any issues with it? I asked the local sawyer with a vacuum kiln and he has no clue. He did not even want to touch the stuff, kept raising his minimum load when I kept counting the number of trees I had. I am thinking it will be the first real load in my new solar kiln after I am sure my bug problem is killed off. He laughed at my solar kiln too.:thumbdown:


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## dirtclod (May 7, 2008)

jeffreythree said:


> He laughed at my solar kiln too.:thumbdown:


Whaddaya mean he laughed at it?:huh: All other things considered, the only issues with a solar kiln is getting it hot enough at that particular time of year to set the pitch or kill bugs. Let him put that in his vac-kiln energy bill and smoke it.:jester::smartass::laughing:


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## Daren (Oct 14, 2006)

jeffreythree said:


> Daren, how does that honey locust dry in one of your solar kilns?


I run a dehumidification kiln (solar just will not work for me here..._maybe_ 8 months a year, the d/h runs year round) Honey locust is very stable, super easy to dry. I am air drying several 100 bft right now, will finish it in the d/h for interior stuff/sell as "kiln dried". The rest is fine air dried. I have built many pieces for myself for the inside of the house from honey locust that was just air dried, no problems :no:.


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## Daren (Oct 14, 2006)

dirtclod said:


> Give us some pictures of the osage and locust as you're milling it.


I milled a couple of the small osage today (and some hard maple and red oak) Not very big once I got them down to a cant 10" wide boards, but they looked pretty nice. A little wane on one side in the picture, next board was clear. I just did not have much time for picture takin' I was trying to get what I could done between rains. I was milling and saw a lighting bolt strike a big pecan tree 1 block away . Weird day, alot of stopping and starting.


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## TexasTimbers (Oct 17, 2006)

We been millin a good bit of that yella wood lately too. Don't complain about the size of that log Daren. The drawback to really large Bois D Arc is that most of them have cracks and voids eminating from the pith and running the full length of the tree usually. Spells W-A-S-T-E. :thumbdown:

I don't even log osage over 24ish" anymore unless I have a hunch it might be solid, because although I do find the occassional solid monster, for the most part I know I can count on those 14" to 24" to be mostly to completely solid if all the external indicators tell me so. Them big mommas look impressive sometimes from the outside but looks are deceiving. 

I'll take a straight, solid 20" log over a crooked cracked 30"er any day and twice on Sunday. And remember, solid Osage pithwood is not undesirable for most uses. That cant you have there is a fine specimen. 

Save that dust. It is valuable. Trust me on that. We always have a Bois D' Arc inventory nowadays. Half the time we cut anymore it's just to make dust. :thumbsup:

Also, when you drag your blade across some really fine quartersawn stuff at least 8" wide with coloration of streaking, especially red, set it aside in at least 6/4. I supply a market segment that devours it. If it meets the conditions below and you are not getting at least $15BF green, let me know if you're interested. 


straight grain, clear, quartersawn
8" minimum width 6/4 min thick 32" minimum length; no pith allowed in this market niche
Red Streaking (browns okay reds better) even minimal is good but the more the better
I know you aren't attracted to milling for the shekels but like me, I know you get more satisfaction in filling these kinds of orders when the customer calls or emails and says stuff like "WOW this ibetter than you said it was! Do you have any more of this!?" :thumbsup:

Save that dust. Did I mention that? :laughing:


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## dirtclod (May 7, 2008)

Thanks for the pictures Daren.

I've yet to get any on the mill. It's native range is a bit west of here. But there's some growing around here, it's just rare.

TT,


> Half the time we cut anymore it's just to make dust. :thumbsup:


I know hedge is very rot resistent, it is used where rot resistance is needed, and to make bows, and the apples are used for insect repellants, but what's the sawdust used for that it would be more valuable than other species and who buys it?


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## Daren (Oct 14, 2006)

TexasTimbers said:


> Save that dust. Did I mention that? :laughing:


:wallbash:I was gonna do that, but forgot again. (bet 2 pounds went down the shower drain, wind in my face and misting rain...I was "yellow man" ) My dust shoot is different than yours, square, and my mill sets so low to the ground I can't get a bag on without dragging it. I told myself next time I milled it I would throw down a plastic tarp and save it, did I remember to do that ? :no:

I have some of those bigger ones you are talking about. I have a feeling I will get more sawdust than grade lumber from them. Like you mentioned there is obvious busted pith, most likely the whole middle of the logs are cracked into a million pieces. And the taper is mighty unfriendly.

The middle 2 boards on that log in the picture even had a hollow pith (bout 1/2" just gone) It was a straight log so the pith was perfectly centered...by not accident, just good sawyering . Ripped and jointed they will still be 4"-5" and clear though.

I doubt if I even mill today. It is already 80 degrees at 6:30 and the radar shows more storms moving in :thumbdown:. Off to the woodshop I go, I started a little project last night before I ran out of steam.


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## Daren (Oct 14, 2006)

dirtclod said:


> what's the sawdust used for that it would be more valuable than other species


Organic fabric dye.


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## TexasTimbers (Oct 17, 2006)

And pharmacuetical research, and something else "secretive" only because the customer won't tell me what he is doing with it. Buys it like it's gold is all I know.


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## dirtclod (May 7, 2008)

Why don't you make the whole log into sawdust...would you get more money that way?

Once apon a time they got a blue dye from blue ash, yellow from yellowwood, yellow to brown from butternut husk (I've seen references to orange from the inner bark and have seen orange inner bark), etc. What have I left out?


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## TexasTimbers (Oct 17, 2006)

I don't have any trouble making enough of it. I can have 100 lbs bagged and ready for shipment in a mtter of hours after an order is placed. 

There are many niche markets for many species. I am only scratching the surface. Don't want to give away any trade secrets but I will say niche markets are where it's at. 

One sawyer will be happy to get $7BF for his osage or whatever species, and I will take the exact same cut and species and try to find a specialty market for it, and get many times that. It's a matter of keeping up with the markets (plural, not market singular). Niche market buyers don't spend their time hunting for the lowest price (this is a general statement not a blanket one) they spend their time collecting money for their niche products. They want reliable, high quality wood sent the *exact* way they order it. If you can do that every single time and give them *more* than what you promise, and be a phone call away, you will earn their business and paid at a premium.

Just like the old timers around here. I bought my first circle mill a few years back from a local guy who bragged that he and his two boys had cut over 300,000BF with that mill the last full year they used it and sold it all at $1BF. 300,000BF even for a small tie mill is not hard to do at all in a years time. 

For me to make that same $300K does not take anywhere near 300,000BF of lumber. Or even 100,000BF at $3BF either. My talent seems to be more in finding niche markets than running a production mill operation. I hate that. It's way too close to hard work instead of a profitable hobby. 

I hope you don't miss my point. It is not how much money I do or don't make, it's that even today, if you let the production millers tell you the sky is falling you'll never go mining for niche markets. They are out there. There is more than I know because I discover them on a regular basis. If you knew there was gold in them thar hills you would be in them thar hills mining for it. I'm telling you there is alot of gold because most sawyers don't have a clue what side of the hill to mine. If they did I would not be getting $4 - $10 a pound for a waste product. 

In case you think I am being boastful I assure you I am not. No one can know what the future will bring. My little operation could have the rug snatched right out from under it in many ways I cannot even foresee, and I am always thankful for God's blessings and realize where they come from, not because I have invented any certain formula for success or have a crystal ball as I do not of course. All I am saying is that in this day and age, in almost any industry or endeavor you can think of, the world is your hunting ground and the internet is your weapon. Happy hunting. :gunsmilie:


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## bigredc (Sep 1, 2007)

Very nice wood. that's good stuff, having friends like that.


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