nick1854

Andrew forget the cost and the logistics those boards look fantastic. That stack is sitting there waiting patiently, and you can look at it every day and wonder what you are going to make......That timber has a story You mention brown oak. From the photo it doesn't look like it to me. Brown oak is caused by beefsteak fungus growing on the tree. The staining colours the wood right through, whilst it still retains its structure. Most I have seen is a rich brown colour. I bet that drying timber smells fantastic too. Just noticed that there is an owl in the first pair of book-matched boards.

I am pleased with the Willy Wonka table. Just hope someone else likes it at the craft fair at the weekend. There is definately a dragon in the graining (see last picture).

I have finished the table at last. [/url][/img] [/img]

The wood is very soft and tears easily. You need very sharp hand tools........or a belt-sander. It is also really light in weight when dry. Give it a go, I always learn something new from using a new (to me) timber.

Thanks for the comments. Rhob it actually makes a nice comfortable seat, not for faries though (feet won't touch the ground). Delabodge I have always wanted to visit that pub, another reason to now. This plank was from the outside of the log and was quite restrained. Some of the inner boards were psychedelic...

A few more:

This is the sequoia table I mentioned on the milling forum. The plank was cut by BigJ, is 3 inches thick and seems to have dried out in a year! I haven't done the finish sanding yet, and am looking forward to cleaning it up and putting some oil on. The legs are mortised into the top about 30mm. Sequoia is probably not the best choice for a table top as it marks easily, but I wanted to make a table like this and this is the timber I had. If this works I will try and post a few more

Steph I don't have any direct experience of Alaskan milling, but have bought quite a bit of timber cut this way. Some of it has had a rough finished surface, whereas other stuff has been smooth enough to use off the saw (certainly for cladding). I suppose this is all down to the Alaskan set-up, blade type, sharpness etc. Nick

Hi Steph I did think you might know someone and was surprised Richard hadn't asked......but he has now! I would have thought it is a job for a mobile mill as the timber required is boards (and a decent quantity) rather than big section stuff. Nick

Just wondering if there is anyone local able to mill softwoods (douglas, spruce, larch) into boards with a mobile mill. I think the largest logs are 70cm diameter. The site will be in the Hexham area, probably cutting in October. The timber will be used to clad a new building to be used for star-gazing and watching wildlife. Could you do this Jonathan? Though I suspect your woodmizer will be long gone by October. Thanks

Give the scrub plane a go. I bought a dead cheap no.4 and put a curve on the blade (about 4mm across the width). I did this by eye on a water cooled grinder (tormek). It is fantastice for flattening wide boards and can be quite quick. As Woodworks says cut across the grain. This can give a really good finish straight off the plane (similar to an adze), and several times I have left it like that on the finished piece.

Beautiful and worth the time spent on it. I love steeply pitched shingle roofs.

Rob It's not a solar panel just a roof-light, made with the twin-wall stuff used on conservatory roofs (ripped off by the wind in a storm). RD this one is for her, potting shed! I do have one of my own though: http://i296.photobucket.com/albums/mm173/nick1854/DSCF0220.jpg

For RD. I am shed building at the moment. I wanted to use larch for cladding but the budget didn't stretch that far. Hope this helps with your shed addiction.... http://i296.photobucket.com/albums/mm173/nick1854/DSCF0109.jpg

Andrew I have no experience of drying solid oak burr but like Jonathan would love to see some pictures. Bet you can't wait to see inside the log...Are you planning a dining table with a solid burr top?

No offence taken, just jealous!

Delabodge If I had the space and money then I would also have a big old British made planer. Just wanted to make the point that for doing a few boards 5 quid and some elbow grease can get good results.

For doing the job by hand, one tool I would recommend looking out for is a scrub plane. It's purely manual, but like side axes or adzes, it's one of those hand tools which actually does a better, faster job than any power tool I've come across. You can either leave the surface it creates 'as is' or quickly dress it off with a jointer plane (hand or electric) before sanding. Alec Another vote for the scrub plane here. Mine is a car-boot stanley No.4 that I have converted by grinding the blade to a shallow curve. With a sharp blade you can finish wide boards easily, and the finish from the plane is attractive. Going across the grain you get a scalloped effect.

Yes rough cut it oversize and leave it to dry somewhere out of direct sunlight with some air flow around it. The timber will be more stable and less likely to cup (dry into a curve) if you quarter-saw the mantle (with the growth rings at 90 degrees to the wide face of the board). Seeing as though it is such a big lump you may be able to do this and get the contrast between the darker heartwood and lighter sapwood.

Just a note that there is a 3 phase woodmiser LT20 (2004) up for sale at the next collective sale at Hexham Mart. The website blurb says it is well maintained and there are a couple of photos too. Auction is on Sat 23rd March.

Some nice looking ash boards you have there. I love that pink tinge it has. I have some similar bits that look like a sunrise. I did some small scale "milling" the other day with my bandsaw and a piece of yew. It is addictive. There is something about the colours when you do that first cut, and you are the first person ever to see that pattern.

OK that makes sense now. Lots of nice stable quarter-sawn planks there....great for a chunky table top and laminated legs... I get the hindsight thing as I recently finished a fire-place mantle and hugely under-estimated my time and the final cost. I think I have learnt from that, I hope.

Fantastic. I wonder how long that process took to work out.

Andrew Your saw looks like the type that was used for cross-cutting timber. I have a similar one on the wall in my shed (decorative purposes only!). My saw is definately a ripsaw, but over the years of sharpening the teeth angle has changed. Also some of them are different sizes. Despite this it works really well. I was surprised how well it cut, biting into the timber using the weight of the blade. It wasn't as difficult as you may think... I like your collection of "home-sawed" timber. You will have stuff there that you can't buy. It is really satisfying seeing the whole process from tree to item through. Nakashima (japanese carpenter) on a small scale. You did well breaking down a 30" diameter log. Does the mini-mill allow you to cut vertically so you can remove planks that aren't the full width of the log? What are your plans for this wood, I really like ash and it can be just as beautiful as oak and elm.

Andrew, the saw: Closer: Well worth having one, and not alot to go wrong. Good cardio-vascular exercise too.