Big J

I wouldn't be able to sell boards from a swing mill easily. Customers are usually after reasonably wide boards, often with a waney edge. The new band mill on order has a 24ft x 3ft capacity, so should handle most things. It's versatility mainly that appeals - that I can take it to site and get most things through it - the band mills are very quick on softwood dimensional timber. With one labourer, I was turning out around 32 8ft 4x4 spruce posts an hour a couple of months ago for instance. At the rate I sold them at, it's £288 an hour, minus the negligible material costs. The new mill will be quicker, and with small softwood, much of the time is simply log handling (I could have cut nearly as many 16ft posts in that time). I'm just of the opinion that swing mills are a bit of a hobby machine. All large hardwood sawmills run bandmills, and there is a good reason for that.

If you have moving equipment, I would argue that a chainsaw mill and bandmill makes better use of large butts. For instance: A four foot diameter oak butt could be easily broken down into 4 perfectly accurate quarters with a chain mill (mill the log in half, ratchet strap up middle and one end, rotate 90 degrees, chain mill in half again, moving the ratchets when required). Then pop it onto the band mill and you have a quarter sawn butt, which is massively more stable, more attractive and more valuable. Jonathan

It depends what you are needing a mill for. A Peterson mill has the advantage of being fairly quick for dimensioned timber, but a bandsaw is more versatile and less wasteful. The LM1 is also a good chunk cheaper too. As soon as my LM2 arrives, I will do an extension video tour and demonstration of it.

The LM2 won't arrive until the middle to end of August I reckon. Extensions are an inexpensive upgrade, it runs a 1 1/4 inch band and I have no reason to believe that it is anything other than very accurate. The 6 post head should mean that it cuts very true. Incase anyone is interested, the Woodmizer LM40 will be for sale in August There is no one else importing them at the moment. I am trying to drum up enough interest to justify bringing over a container of the LM1s.

I've got a 50 inch bar for the Alaskan, giving about a 42 inch cut. I've also got extension rails to allow me to cut through the middle of a log (about a 26-28 inch vertical throat). What's the job?

You really do need to close your eBay account! How many machines are you able to use at the same time?!

Excellent work Clive.

Depends hugely on the timber, the thickness it's being cut to and the number of people there to help. Worst case scenario of sawmiller, thin boards and difficult logs would be 70 odd cubic foot. Best case scenario of easy logs, several helpers and reasonably thick boards 250-300 cubic foot. That's what I'd expect with the Woodmizer.

Firewood is a natural byproduct of the whole timber production process. A long time before you even get to the stage of harvesting saw logs, you have umteen thinnings to do, which for the most part will just provide firewood.

Thanks for sharing that Jesse - seems like you've hit the ground running. Just back from 5 days in the Hundsrueck/Eifel and it's resolved us to move. I'll post more and put up pictures too, but Germany is quite simply better than the UK in every measurable way (well apart from perhaps they ought to indicate more whilst driving!). There were roads we drove on where you didn't leave the forest for more than a couple hundred yards for 5-10 miles. Roads were perfect, everywhere. No traffic, food reasonably priced, beer and wine much cheaper, cleaner, warmer, drier, less wind, no neds/chavs, did I mention the endless forest?

I think that sadly, as with much in life, there is no perfect allrounder. If you were to arbitrarily say that a Husqvarna 560XP was just that, then it would be much too big for scrub clearance or work in young stands, as well as much too small for large hardwood felling and chainsaw milling. My best advice would be try to decide what it is you think you want to do and buy the most appropriate saw. Also, don't go bigger than you need to - it will cost more to purchase and run and most of that extra power can be found in a smaller saw with excellent chain sharpening technique. Jonathan

Bump!

Vast array of different aromas from different timber. You can usually tell what I've been cutting recently just from the smell when you walk into the barn. Good rule of thumb is that most softwoods smell nice and most hardwoods either don't, or don't have much of an aroma. Ash can smell really unpleasant with any hit of decay, same for elm. Oak is usually fine. Cherry smells like I'd imagine the colour green to be. My favourite is Deodar cedar. Spruce is underrated I think. I have to have a geeky chuckle when folk come to the mill and say 'I love the smell of wood!' - I feel like asking, which one?!

With a decent sized Oak of high quality, the main stem can be worth several thousand pounds, not including the firewood. That said, I can't see a situation where a softwood fell in a domestic situation would pay for itself from timber sales.

Certainly very interesting. Could you please post photos and also a slightly more precise location?

Let the Rayburn go out overnight - it's blustery but warm as hell here. Over 20 degrees in the living room last night (I like 16-17). I mourn the passing of winter

I would be quite happy to have you over helping with a day's sawmilling in exchange for firewood. Quite a lot is generally created in a days milling, and the offcuts are very easy to process. It is also an activity that can be done on a rainy day as the mill is indoors. I'm near Winchburgh.

Ah! Frontier Forestry clearing their yard. I've been there fairly recently and there is a lot there. Well worth it for someone reasonably local.

Link?

Quite a bit of that is coming to me anyway - Edinburgh council have donated 6 trees to the Scottish Furniture Makers Association. I'm not milling it (thankful really - Edinburgh Elm is heavy on metal) but I will be drying it. Shame that it gets cut short. I've spoken at length to them about it before, but they just don't seem to understand that they are reducing the value hugely by cutting to 6-7ft long. If the machinery won't lift it, get bigger machinery - a HIAB equipped truck is only about £45 an hour.

Is that Falkirk council? I shall have to give them a call. Thanks for that! Tom - certainly still interested in the Oak, and it being available later is ideal (with it being pippy - I've got lots of pippy!). Jonathan

Sorry to hear that you are having difficulties Simon. As others have said, you might well need to put your prices up. The first few years are always very tough, particularly in the transition from employment to self employment. I suspect that the time has come that you need to start whittling down your paid job. You'll never be able to make enough from your own business whilst still working for another. Try to keep one day a week off except in exceptional circumstances. It will make a huge difference to your productivity - I like my days off for being able to do non work related stuff, but it also gives me renewed vigour for work when I come back. Finally, try to articulate your goals with your missus, what it means for you both and what you are trying to achieve. Try to involve her as much as possible so that the venture is no longer that causes her to see less of you, but something that you are working together on for a shared goal. My wife has always been very involved (she does all my books, thank God!), regularly grafts at the mill (was helping with Oak milling yesterday) and we do this because we want to set ourselves up as best as possible for the future. Jonathan

If anyone has any very large Oak or Elm kicking around, I would be interested in purchasing it. I don't need too much - really only 10 or so tonnes of each. I would just like some very large trees to quarter saw. Not looking for pippy or burred ideally. Just clean lengths. 100 mile radius of Edinburgh and about the same radius of Brackley in Northamptonshire (as I could have it milled at Helmdon sawmills) suits. No shorter than 8ft (ideally 9-14ft) and diameters of 4-6ft. Must be of very good quality. Many thanks!

I would accept that for climbing, chainbrake usage is advised. Certainly, if I climbed I would. Different matter on the ground though. As others have mentioned, hearing someone slamming the brake on all the time is excruciating. Jonathan

The chain brake is there as a safety feature for kickback. It doesn't need to be on all the time you aren't cutting. If you are carrying the saw, it's by the front handle and it's not possible to engage the throttle. The only time that I use it is climbing up and down steep slopes or through very thick brash. Otherwise it just slows you down (I'll not hear argument to the contrary - it really does). Jonathan