Big J

Was just in Kincraig staying at the Suie Hotel this weekend past. Lovely spot. Can't help on the job front, but good luck!

Thanks for all of the info. I am still speaking to the manufacturer of the sawmill to try to get him to construct it with a fold down track section. Doing that would essentially mean that it could be towed on a normal licence. Speaking of licences, if I were to go for a C licence, would my +E entitlement on my B licence carry through? I did my 'trailer test' a couple of years ago and was wondering whether I would have to do it again for a C class vehicle. Jonathan

Hi Chris, Welcome to Arbtalk If the poplar is of a good size, Steve at Helmdon sawmills in Northamptonshire is in need of it. Needs to be about 18 inch top diameter if memory serves, in multiples of 2.3m. Best to speak to him though, and you'll be able to reach him on 01295 760305. He usually isn't around to pick up, but leave him a message and he'll get back to you. He usually uses about 37.5 tonnes a month (a load and a half) so 200 tonnes could easily be accommodated. Jonathan

Cooks - please do speak to Steve at Helmdon sawmills in Northamptonshire. He really does need quite a bit, and I think that you would at least cover your costs for felling and extraction in selling the timber to him. He pays £37 a tonne delivered in. I do have a vested interest I must add, as poplar makes marvelous stickers (little sticks for popping in between boards for drying) and I need some more from him. Jonathan

Makita DCS7901 - 79cc of lovely blue power. It's been my favourite saw for a long time, and whilst I have never milled with it, it will happily munch through a 4ft diameter beech on a 24 inch bar. It would be my recommendation. Stihl and Husqvarna don't deserve to have such a big market share IMO.

With that back story, I'd be hoping to get the mill for free!

Hello Simon, and welcome to Arbtalk! Great to hear that you want to stat milling. 36 inches is definitely as long as you will able to go with an 064. I have the 088 with a 50 inch bar and it struggles on that. I did previously have a 42 inch bar, which is about the right length for my saw. If you are wanting to mill bigger that about 28 inches (which is what your throat will be once the mill is mounted) then you will need a bigger saw. Best place to get your Alaskan milling kit from is alaskanmill.co.uk. Rob Dyer runs it and he answers to the name of Rob D here. Good luck with the milling, don't hesitate to ask questions and make sure to post some photos of your exploits! Jonathan

I'm sending some band up to Frank next week, and I'll see if I can get him to chuck in some freebies with the 1220. Good choice I think - seems very solidly constructed.

Sounds cunning!

There are lots of companies that do woodchip boilers and stoves. There is no reason to think that they aren't very good - the only issue I can see is moisture control. It's quite hard to dry chips unless the timber is dried first and then chipped. Given that most arboricultural waste is chipping straight away, that's not a possibility. I would be interested to see how it's done on a domestic scale! Jonathan

Actually priced up the timber that goes into constructing a box like that, and there is a whole load more than you would think. £37.50, whilst it might seem like a lot, is pretty cheap considering the £50-70 worth of timber in it and the time and effort to put them together. Nevertheless, wouldn't bother myself. I just use 5 pallets nailed together to form a box. Better ventilation than a potato box and as good as free to construct. Not terribly strong, but most issues are sorted by simply tying a bit of rope round the outside to hold it together. Jonathan

Not concrete by any stretch of the imagination, but hopefully this: Log Master It's not got much more capacity that the Woodmizer, but I'm not bothered. Anything over 32 inches gets halved now before it goes on the Woodmizer. I strongly dislike very wide boards as my back won't take it, and the same boards with the heart cut out dry far flatter. Everything is hydraulic on the Logmaster - no 12v motors at all. Jonathan

TimberKing - Portable Sawmills Since 1929 Frank Gamwell, up near Perth is the dealer for the UK. He is a very nice chap, and I went up to see a 2200 that had been freshly imported. Huge mill, and far too large to tow with a standard 4x4. How much of a hurry are you to get a mill? I could well be coming to a decision to sell mine within a month or so (wouldn't be able to physically sell it until a new one arrives). Jonathan

Price does vary according to quality and region, but I'll do my best: * Oak - £3-8 a hoppus foot dependent on quality. Low end for fencing/rough beam, high end for pippy clean logs. Burr Oak is on a whole other level. * Ash - £2-4 a hoppus foot. * Sycamore - depends on whether it's rippled, figured or plain. Plain would be £2-5 a cubic foot, figured about twice that and good rippled twice that again. * Cherry - easier to find further south than here. £3-5 a cubic foot in my mind. * Walnut - can't really say as I've only ever bought one walnut log. Jonathan

You can actually only tow 7m plus tongue on a B+E licence. That is the actual size of the Woodmizer too. The sawmill in question has an overall length of 11.4m, so is a good way out. Speaking to a police officer friend, he said it's just not worth the risk as they will simply confiscate it. I do love older Mercedes trucks, but they are quite expensive I suppose. Ideally, I would like to not have to purchase another vehicle for work, but I think that the sawmill is good enough to warrant it. I like the Ivecos are well - good to hear that they both have hefty towing capacities as information about that is quite hard to find online. Jonathan

Quick question. In discussions at the moment with a sawmill manufacturer about distributing here but being American the mills are huge, and too long to tow on a B+E licence. So, I'd have the get the C1+E licence, and my searches on the internet for best towing van (would like a van as would serve the purpose of being a vehicle I could deliver timber in) have been fruitless. Budget is limited, would need to tow 3 tonnes, medium wheel base. What do you reckon? Jonathan

Simply out of interest, could you post the pictures here with the dimensions? Nice to see sticks from various parts of the country even if I'm not in a position to buy them. Jonathan

What he said!

Very sorry to hear about this. I was just thinking that perhaps an HM Government e-petition might be a good way to get more publicity and hopefully some debate about the almost non existent punishments that exist for criminals whose thieving actions destroy small businesses. We're all insured, but being without our tools, even for a few weeks could sink many of us. If we get 100,000 signatures, they are supposed to debate it in the House of Commons. We're constantly told that small businesses are the backbone of the country, but little or nothing is done to protect us from the thieving scum that jeopardise our future. Jonathan

Hi Pan, I measure down from the rail I use for the first cut. Usually more or less accurate to within a quarter of an inch. Quarter sawing went very well today. In the end I could be bothered to properly quarter the log, so sawed the halves until a quarter was left, and then quarter sawed that. So effectively a little over half the boards from the log are quarter sawn with minimal effort. Here are a couple of photos of the best of the boards. Really wonderful quality log though - best quartersawn figure I've seen in my Oak cutting. Jonathan

Regarding quartersawn, I haven't done any myself yet, but I think that I might give it a go tomorrow. I have a large Oak butt (about 42 inches I think) in the yard and I reckon I'll give it a go. I will quarter it today with the chainsawmill. Speaking of which, I thought of an easy way to quarter a log with a standard Alaskan mill (standard except for longer uprights). Cut straight through the heart, end to end and ratchet strap the two halves together at the far end from where you started and then about one third the way up from where you started. Use a forklift to position the log so that the first cut you did is now vertical and then again cut through the heart, end to end. Should result in four very accurate quarters. These can then be resawn on the Woodmizer. Rob already covered the sawing of Burr - just keep rotating the log so that you are always chasing the flat sawn figure. It's almost the opposite of quarter sawing. No specific method for cutting either fruit trees or Yew. I only every get cherry (as far as fruit trees go) and it's usually reasonable to cut. Can be quite difficult on very old gnarly trees. Yew is always very hard and demands a slow and patient cut, and a very fresh band. Regarding getting the best out of my timber, I have found that I really do prefer to take larger logs than smaller. I like to halve them with the chainsaw mill and then mill the halves. This results in a board where the centre of the log has been removed, resulting in much more stable drying. Best size of log for me is 36-45 inches. Here are a couple of pictures to illustrate this: Jonathan

Good off road ability though - environmentally friendly too, what with the bio fuel and all that!

I'm sorry that I completely missed this thread - I'm too knackered to chime in now, but will post again tomorrow. Very interesting thread. Jonathan

Well it's settled. I'm getting a horse - does anyone know how many miles per bale (of hay) you get out of a Clydesdale?

There aren't really any mobile sawmill operators with a mill of that size. There is a Serra sawmill just north of us, but he doesn't really travel. You are going to be limited to chainsaw milling if you want full width boards. Jonathan