Mobile Saw Mill for Oak Tree in back garden

[l18oyd]

Hi

I have felled a long skinny Oak in my back garden and I am looking for someone to assist with Milling it so that I may use some of the wood for a log cabin where it has been felled. Happy to provide photos of the tree. It is about 30 ft long and 4ft in diameter.

 

I am hoping to build the cabin later this year.

 

At the moment the access to the back of the garden is restricted to a 1.2 meter opening. However, in May / June we should have knocked down our garage to allow better access.

 

Please let me know if anyone can assist. The postcode is HP3 near Bovingdon / Hemel Hempstead.

 

Thanks

[John Hughes]

I could help but I think there will be others who are closer to you. It sounds like a job for a Lucas mill.

If you find you do not have a enough timber for your project ,we can supply pine milled in woodland near Welwyn.

John

[agg221]

I think a lot depends on how soon you want it milled and what sizes you want it milled into.

 

Cutting it asap would minimise surface cracks - milling over the summer is most likely to result in damage.

 

If you know the dimensions you want then cutting straight to size is the best option, however if you are less sure then cutting it into 2" and 3" slabs (maybe a couple of 4" if you are using a construction with sole plates) will let it start drying. You can then cut these to width as required when you know the dimensions, using a large hand-held circular saw.

 

Not sure if you can get a Lucas through a 1.2m gap but if you can and you know the dimensions you need, I agree with John. If you can't, or you don't know the dimensions, or the longest sections you need exceed the capacity of a Lucas, you are pretty much left with an Alaskan chainsaw mill as the only option. This is also a good option if you need fairly large beams. An Alaskan will take a wider kerf and is not as fast but it would get the job done, particularly with a double-ended set up (which would be my preference for 4ft diameter).

 

I can assist with the Alaskan milling option if that turns out to be the best route.

 

One other thing though - do you know what sort of oak it was? If it's Turkey oak it may be best avoided.

 

Alec

[dan blocker]

If I were you and your going to the trouble and expense of having the tree milled I would have it cut to the sizes you require to build your cabin. You require some drawings and do a cutting list of the timber that you would require. Work out what the oak but would yield(ask whoever you get to do the milling) as they would be able to confirm what is possible - thats if there are no hidden horrors inside the butt such as rot, shake, fissures etc.

Good luck with the project, using your own timber for such a project is very rewarding - even though the tree will probably not provide as much timber as you would hope:001_rolleyes:

[agg221]

If I were you and your going to the trouble and expense of having the tree milled I would have it cut to the sizes you require to build your cabin. You require some drawings and do a cutting list of the timber that you would require.

 

Generally the best idea, but sometimes the timber supply and the design stage don't line up nicely. We were two years in the planning stage for our extension, during which I cut slabs to get them drying. I knew I needed 'something x 3" ' or 'something x 2" ' and had a good idea of length, so cut slightly over anticipated length and left them drying. It gave me something I could get on with and I could then rip them down to width once I knew the dimensions. It also meant the timber was closer to dry when I installed it and any defects which showed up could be cut around.

 

Alec

[skc101fc]

Yep, you'll get the lucas mill through 1.2 gap

 

Sent from my GT-I9505 using Arbtalk mobile app

[muttley9050]

I have a lucas mill just the other side of Aylesbury to you.

It will fit through a 1200mm gap and will cut just over 20ft lengths.

I will pm you my contact details incase you want to take it further.

Cheers

James

[l18oyd]

Hi - I have uploaded the drawing of the intended 'cabin'.  I believe the oak is an american skinny oak.   We hope to get underway with the later this month / early September.  I hope that the wood can be used to clad the cabin, or otherwise for the inside of it/ perhaps the floors?

 

@muttley9050 let me know if you are still available and interested to help out; I will need some 'carpenter' experience with the build as well.

 

I have not yet knocked down the garage, but think we can get it through the gap down the side of the property.

 

Thanks

Lloyd

Lloyd%27s Den (1).pdf

[muttley9050]

Sure I'll help out. Just let me know when you want to mill and ill book you in.

[se7enthdevil]

make sure it is not an american red oak as that will be useless as far as durability is concerned.

 

do you have pictures of leaves, acorns and bark???

Edited August 11, 2017 by se7enthdevil