Squaredy

I bought a few tons of Poplar logs from a local tree surgeon a few days ago. Each log had a clear dark area in the middle (like you often get in Ash) which I assume is going to stay darker and will hopefully make for a more attractive board when slabbed. However I have little experience of milling Poplar, does anyone know more about this? Is it certain species which have this or all Poplars once they are mature? They weren't especially large for Poplar (2ft diameter or so) and the tree surgeon had no idea which Poplar they were. In case it helps I have attached a photo. Any thoughts?

I wish my shed looked like that...

You haven't stated that the shed is for running a business from. If like most people's sheds it is used for storing loads of stuff, no-one is likely to come round asking exactly what each piece of kit is used for, unless you have really made your home look like a business. All the council are likely to be interested in is whether you should have applied for planning permission. If they feel you should have done, then they will make you apply for retrospective planning. If the building is reasonably good looking and not out of place or out of proportion, and assuming you are not in an AONB or conservation area or the premises is listed they are unlikely to refuse. Of course there are costs involved. Bear in mind that most of the sheds and outbuildings people erect to the rear of their homes have no planning permission. My guess is he won't ring the council, and if he does they won't be that interested.

You could try Roger at Mendip Forestry. I only have experience of buying sawlogs from them, but I imagine they must sell plenty of firewood. They are not always easy to get hold of but usually ring you back eventually! The number will come up if you google it.

Maybe the owner should simply list it on ebay. Good photographs and as much description as possible and let the market decide - a no reserve auction will show what people are really willing to spend.

That also impresses me. But could you do that all day? Maybe I am just not as fit as some people but I am not sure I would want to use a chainsaw mill for more than an hour or so, if that. Using a full travel keyboard is quite tiring at my age...

I may still sell it, I really haven't decided which way I am going yet. If you are seriously interested feel free to PM me and we can discuss. Although it is still in daily use it has a few battle scars so would be fairly cheap for a Lucas Mill.

I am seriously thinking of modifying my Lucas mill to run a bandsaw blade rather than the circular blade. I don't think it would involve that much engineering. I know such ventures are always more complicated than they appear, but I think it is totally doable.

Hi Muttley, I am impressed with your results. 4 minutes for a 4m slab 4ft wide is very good. Have you replaced the Kohler engine with a V8? Or maybe you don't know your own strength?

Thank you very much Big J for the details. That gives me another option to look into.

Can't really help with your question, but would be interested in why don't rate the lucas slabber. Is it just the kerf or something else? Sorry I forgot to quote you. Please see my reply above.

Sorry I forgot to quote you. Please see my reply above.

And in response re the Lucas Mill slabber, my problem with it is firstly speed, secondly exhaustive effort of pushing for anything more than a few minutes, maintaining the sharpness of the chain (and of course fettling the bar), time it takes to swap over from the blade and back again and lastly kerf. It has its place I know but I currently have maybe 18 or 20 logs in my yard of 1m diameter or more which need milling as slabs....the thought of slabbing these with the Lucas Mill makes me feel old!

Thank you Big J that is very interesting. What model Trak Met is that? And how would you rate it? And yes I agree in principle with you about wide slabs, but there are species of course that are more stable and work well as a wide slab. On the occasions I have used my slabbing attachment for my Lucas Mill to produce slabs of 1.2m or so I find customers almost fight over them, and I usuaully end up selling them unseasoned for a good price.

I did indeed have a chat with the guys at Loglogic this afternoon. The Autotrek is even more than I thought (£60,000 or so) and the other one they used to make (Trekkasaw) they haven't done for years and the guy said he didn't think they would be likely to make any more as the safety specs have moved on a lot since they made them. He suggested I might be better off trying to find a second hand one. So, anyone selling their Trekkasaw???

Thanks for the suggestion. I am aware of the Trak Met range, but as far as I can see they do not have a very wide cut. I already have a Norwood with a 710mm cut, and I really need a 1.2M cut. The largest Trak Met seems to be only about a 900mm wide cut.

Thanks Mark. I am aware of Loglogic, and I know the Autotrek is £30,000 plus, and isn't wide enough. But I had overlooked the Trekkasaw, which their website says cuts 1.4m wide. I will have to find out the price. Thank you. When I get one I will be selling my Lucas mill cheapish if you are interested!

Has anyone got experience or knowledge of these sawmills? Scott and Sargeant in Sussex sell them and they seem good value. I am in need of a wide bandmill (4ft width milling capacity) and even a 40 year old machine of this type can cost £12,000+. They currently have a basic 4ft capacity mill brand new for £15,942 (plus VAT I guess). They are made in the Czech republic, but I won't let that put me off. My last major purchase was Canadian built (Norwood sawmill) and the quality of that was very disappointing. I do not need log handling, loading and turning capabilities, I just need to be able to slab wide logs. I currently use a Lucas mill which converts the logs fine, but of course it doesn't slab. Well, I do have the slabbing attachment for it but I do not rate that for professional milling. Anyone got any useful thoughts?

You didn't mention what area you are in. I could recommend someone in my neck of the woods (South East Wales).

No idea about the slime sorry, but if you are near South East Wales I could maybe buy the stem from you...if it is for sale.... Always after Elm and not so much of it around sadly.

I agree I don't think they care. I have also reported loads of stuff to them. Sometimes they get taken down, but you are right nothing really changes. If the criminals are in a developing country where poor policing and illegal activity are rife I guess there is not much they can do, but if the perpetrator is in the UK, or Europe surely the details should be passed to the police and action should be taken. There must be people getting robbed every day, and it just goes on and on. In fact in the UK I think I heard that cyber crime now exceeds bricks and mortar crime.

Yes I did wonder. Hey what do you know - I didn't even bid and yet the seller has now emailed me saying the winning bidder is a timewaster and offering it to me at a reduced price with his email address. Funny he didn't respond to my question whilst the auction was running, when I asked if he was OK with cash on collection.....

I was very curious about the mobile dimension saw which ended on ebay this afternoon. I would have bid, but I believe it was probably a scam. I am interested to know if anyone on Arbtalk knows the answer. If it does exist someone has got themselves a bargain, and good luck to them. If it is a scam, I hope the winning bidder is being cautious. Is everyone aware how awash with scams ebay is at the moment? Come to think of it this has been the case in my experience for at least 5 years. Luckily they are usually really easy to spot.

Most bulk bags are 800mm X 800mm X 800mm, so without bulging they hold half a cubic metre. An IBC cage is 1.2 cubic metre. So taking into account the bulging of the bag two bags will fill one cage. But remember there are lots of different size bags available.

The most prolific firewood seller in the UK is Certainly Wood. They probably have more customers than all the firewood sellers on here put together and they don't do it by being the cheapest.