arboriculturist

Ah that's good to hear you are up and running. Even though you had a few issues you still get hell of a lot for your money. I have a Panther Mill and Panther intersect and with the 1st cut system that came to around 2.5K without any saws of course and very slow even with lo-pro chain. Would love a Logosol but can't justify right now.

Creosote will destroy the sprayer diaphragm and o rings. I would always favour spraying and probably buy a lo cost fence coating sprayer you can afford to damage. How is the Woodlands Mill going by the way - sounds like you have been busy ? 😃

I have both machines and if you are processing below 375mm - its a no brainer as a Posch 375 wins hand down in all respects over the bar and chain. A significant degree faster without question. There is no jam ups with an experienced operator providing you are not afraid to use a saw on the odd length before they hit the log deck. If you produce volume don't spend your hard earned cash on anything other than a Posch as in this instance you get what you pay for 100%.

The seed has been planted in the general public's mind now. Many will be searching for that logo and basing their decision to purchase on that alone, even though many you speak to don't actually know what it represents. Due to all the media attention climate has been receiving and will continue to receive, end users are becoming more aware of the negatives of force drying firewood by burning fuel to speed up the drying process. When faced with a choice of buying the same product either Naturally Air Dried or Force Dried, a lot of people will by choosing the Naturally Air Dried versus Force Dried for both environmental and financial reasons, as forced dried has to cost more. Those who Naturally Air Dry are educating the public constantly, which may reflect on those who retail Forced Dried. I have noticed far far less people producing and retailing firewood than there were 2 years ago, as they have found easier ways to earn money.

These boys in the videos seem to be at the lower end of kiln drying hence my skepticism, maybe that is why these diy videos have put those on the forum from commenting. The stacking / stickering was beyond belief in one - fairly basic to get that part right. Good luck though.

I would be interested to know the internal plank centre MC level.

As we all know there have been numerous Threads about Kiln Drying timber for woodworking and the consensus seems to be that unless you have an absolute state of the art computer program commercial drying unit, then everything that goes in that Kiln needs to be air dried 1st. So 2" slabs kept for approx. 1 year, 3" slabs 2 years, 4" slabs 4 years etc. etc. Does that not make Kiln Drying not something to be undertaken lightly? Perhaps if you quarter saw everything resulting in the timber being far more stable, then you could reduce this lengthy air drying time ? There again quarter sawing is a major pain even with a Bandsaw Mill.

Pearls of wisdom - thanks for all the posts. I guess the plan would be to steer clear of anything other than fresh felled Douglas and fortunately I have 18t en-route so can set aside what we have been struggling with. I'll post my findings in due course.

I know you have milled a lot of timber so thanks for your views - I just can't believe this Douglas is so resistant to cutting even with a decent saw and out the box Stihl PMX chain !

Today's job is milling some 14" diameter Douglas that has been down for 6 - 9 months. Using the Panther 42" with a new Stihl PMX 3/8 lo-pro ripping chain and a Spud ported 660 it is taking 6 minutes a slab ! I have milled some oak recently of the same spec and it was way faster to mill. Maybe I am wrong but I have heard that Douglas that is not fresh felled can be very slow to mill and I would be interested to hear others views. Also are there other timbers that are a pain to mill when not green? Any replies much appreciated.

Don't waste your time discussing sale by weight, as sale by volume is now locked into legislation. Whatever your opinion, view or political persuasion, there will be far less retailers producing larger volumes and they will all be Ready to burn certified.

I'll try to track him down - thanks.

I have sent him the photos !

Superb ! I shall forward the info and let you know the outcome immediately. Thanks for taking the trouble.

If it’s 4x4 he could be ? Thanks