Forest2Furniture

Have you checked out the website, failing that give Chris the UK rep a call, a lot easier then waiting for someone on here to answer.

No you didn't miss it, I didn't share it. Not a great one for airing my ailments in public. Heart related, bit of a wake up call to remind me I'm not immortal! Just as well I change from chainsaw milling to bandsaw milling last year.

Did the first bit of milling yesterday after health scare of 2 weeks ago. 2 sections of a nice Sweet Chestnut stem that had been lying around for a year or so. Fair bit of rot in the centre but still worth the effort.

The tree is on the deck with no foliage so not easy to tell what sort it is, I'll have a word with the estate ranger. Thanks for the advice.

Thanks, there's plenty of tree to a variety of dimensions

Thanks for the suggestion. Quarter sawn won't be a problem as it'll need to be broken down with the alaskan before going on the bandsaw mill.

I've got a 30" diameter 40' long cedar to mill up, does anyone have any suggestions what I should cut it to. I thought about milling into 6-8 inch slabs and then cutting cladding with the bandsaw mill but featheredge is a bit of a pain to do.

Before anyone gets on their high horse about this subject, I'm NOT talking about CS tickets/licences I'm talking about actually licensing the ownership of chainsaws in the same way as shotguns. Last year I had 3 large stihl chainsaws stolen from locked premises and just a few days ago I've had another 2 stolen from different locked premises, that's £5K worth of chainsaws in 16 months. My insurance premium will go through the roof next year because some thieving git has had it away to a car boot or internet sale site with my gear. So I was thinking, as you do when this sort of thing happens, how do we slow down the volume of chainsaw thefts? If we had to license our chainsaws in the same way as shotguns are licensed, because lets face it they're no less dangerous and the likes of ebay & facebook were stopped form advertising them for sale the attraction of stealing them would surely be reduced. It's illegal in this country to sell a knife to anyone under the age of 18 but not illegal to sell them a chainsaw. 5 years ago the thought of someone driving a vehicle into a crowd of people as an act of terrorism had never been heard of, now with the introduction of battery chainsaws it won't be long before some radical fruitloop walks into a crowded street with ones of those tucked under his coat. Think about it, do we want to have legislation thought out by knee jerk reactionary politicians thrust upon us or, as a responsible industry are we going to talk about it now.

Discovered yesterday afternoon that the yard buildings had been broken into on Friday night. Dewalt tough box of ring spanners, open ended spanners, sockets gone as well as Stihl ms066 with 25" bar & chain and Stihl ms230 with 16" bar & chain. Not expecting wonders from local plod, as per usual couldn't be bothered to come out, just dished out a crime number. Thieving scumbags know plod won't be bothered so they'll keep doing it, laughing all the way to the carboot. Thieving gits did however close the doors, slide the bolt back and wheel the loaded trailer back in front of the doors to make it less obvious.

Discovered yesterday afternoon that the yard buildings been broken into on Friday night. Dewalt tough box of ring spanners, open ended spanners, sockets gone as well as Stihl ms066 with 25" bar & chain and Stihl ms230 with 16" bar & chain. Not expecting wonders from local plod as per usual couldn't be bothered to come out, just dished out a crime number. Thieving gits did however close the doors, slide the bolt back and wheel the loaded trailer back in front of the doors to make it less obvious.

You'll stop all the cracking but you will reduce it. I use 50/50 mix pva & water

It's a tree I bought earlier this year so none of it's for a customer, it's all MINE! As for the Sycamore, due to the school holidays that had to go on hold as access during holidays is limited. As the trees have been lying on the ground for 6 months now, I take it they'll be of no use to you now in case the grain has been compressed.

It's a HM130 but it's not the mill that takes the weight it's the trailer, providing that's well supported at the ends and in the middle there shouldn't be a problem. The biggest section of Oak this time was 31"-24" over 9', the winch coped well but I did bend the ramps a tad!

Seriously impressed with it, wish I'd got one years ago. Leaves a good finish, for stuff that's being made in to cutting boards there's no need to put through the planner just sanding is all that is needed. I bought it late last year, I didn't get on with the lenox bands they supply so I now use ripper37, much better all round.

Ramps and electric winch and a cant hook from RobD one of woodchuck ones, brilliant for turning the big sections.

Milled a nice straight Oak last week 36' length in total 31" at widest 20" narrowest, split into 3 x 10' and a 5'.

Why is it acceptable for solicitors, accountants, doctors etc to get £500+ a day but not us.

I use the standard stihl spanner that came with the saw, so if you're saying the bar nuts are 19mm that's what the spark plug will be

And to finish, the boards sticked out. Not by me, by the customer. Ended up with a tidy few planks

I do a bit of milling on council land and have to supply a copy of my current PLI and a standard risk assessment. I'm not felling just milling.

Thanks Rob

Now the weather has calmed down I've been able to finish the Walnut tree. I used the side mill to split the last of the branch sections, the bans mill would have coped with the diameter but due to the bend I was likely to lose to much timber. Once the customer has sticked out all the timber he wants he says I can take the rest. Good result I think, I get paid for milling the tree and get a trailer wood as well, win, win!

Prices vary from area to area. You wouldn't get away with charging London prices in the midlands. I stopped giving hourly rate a few years ago as people expect to pay only for the milling time not set up. Day rate for chainsaw milling is £200-£250 I know some ask up to £400, if they can get good luck to them.

Customer has progressed from island units to worktops now so I was asked to mill 2 pieces @ 2" this morning just managed to do that before calling time as the temperature had reached 34 degrees and my body is not designed to work in that heat.

If they get it inside asap it should be OK, never had to much trouble milling in the heat before, not to the wood anyway, me on the other hand, that's another matter :big grin: Milled the first lot on Tuesday and left instructions that it must be moved that night but it was still out in the blazing sun on Saturday morning!