# Fresh off the sawmill



## Post_Oakie (Aug 20, 2012)

I'm interested in sharing experiences with anyone who has even thought about using a small sawmill on the homestead. My wife and I built our passive solar home over thirty years ago, raised a couple of kids, and countless cats, dogs, ferrets, and an iguana in it. I hauled logs for the house to a local sawmill, and got "sawdust in my veins". I now run a Norwood portable band saw, and cut for my own use, as well as for fun & profit. Current project is a bath house/ rainwater/ graywater collection system. A lot of the boards were nailed in place within hours of cutting on the sawmill.

Cutting the tree









Milling lumber









Putting up the framing









Final product









I get by with a little help from my friend...


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## elkhound (May 30, 2006)

outstanding...cant wait to see how this turns out.i hope you will share the completed project and show the inside workings of this.


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## Bret (Oct 3, 2003)

Good work on so many levels.

Inspiring. Also, good use of safty equpment.


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## Forestdude (Jun 9, 2012)

Awesome! One day I'd like to get me a small mill, but at least I got 2 neighbors with one for now. Those guys are retired and have to turn away business because of the demand. The only thing about buying a mill, is that you pretty much gotta have a tractor too. Double wammy. Liked the pictures, thanks for sharing!


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## ihuntgsps (Mar 10, 2008)

very impressive.

question...when using the lumber without first drying it won't you have a bunch of shrinkage as it dries down?


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## Jim S. (Apr 22, 2004)

ihuntgsps said:


> very impressive.
> 
> question...when using the lumber without first drying it won't you have a bunch of shrinkage as it dries down?


Yes it does shrink. Resided my barn with 1x8 sawmill oak, put the boards tight up against each other last fall. They have about a half-inch gap between each now. 

Refloored my flat trailer, too, tight as I could wedge them together. Same gap now.

I knew both would happen, both are OK with me.

Key when nailing them up is to get nails across the width and good purlin support, or they can cup and warp.

But a very economical material to use, and if you do not like the gaps you can come back with a batten strip. That's what they're for.


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## ihuntgsps (Mar 10, 2008)

my concern would be more of the what the effect would be on the framing drying/shrinking? 

I was wondering if any issue with fasteners holding with all the movement between the 4x4's, 2x's, and 1x's?

Love the idea of sawing my own wood to use in constructing my future buildings but was always under the understanding you had to have the wood dry before use. 

If this isn't necessary why do the lumber companies dry their lumber?


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## TnAndy (Sep 15, 2005)

The issue of green lumber on a home would be the shrinkage affecting things like sheetrock. Using it on a barn or shed where interior finish isn't an issue is fine.

To dry, all you need do is stack green lumber on sticks with a cover ( as my piles below show ) for 4-6months per inch thickness, and it will air dry to 20% or less, which is what kiln dried framing lumber is.


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## clovis (May 13, 2002)

Wow...that is impressive!!!!


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## TnAndy (Sep 15, 2005)

I run a LT40 Woodmizer mill that I bought new in 1991. A few of the projects I've built using it:

14x64 lumber/storage shed at the mill site.










Ash dining table and side benches:



















24x24 hay storage barn:










35x75 shop building: 
(Have a 1200bdft dry kiln in one corner for drying cabinet and furniture lumber down to 6% MC )










One of 3 rental properties....a 1900sqft 4bdrm, 2 1/2 bath. The framing under tin in the post above went into them. Also, the trim ( red oak ) and cabinet lumber came off my mill. $34/sqft turnkey. ( I did all the labor except heat pump, carpet upstairs, and concrete driveway )











I gave $14,000 for my mill new, and figure it's made me 1/2 million bucks, easy.....and I rarely sell any lumber as such or do custom sawing.....I use all I can produce in value enhanced projects. That table, for example, used one ash log ( yep....whole table/benches came from one NICE clear log ), and a bit of scrap walnut for the inlays/pegs/etc. The lumber might have brought $200 if I'd sold it.....the table, quite a bit more !


You can't sell lumber ( IMHO )and compete with big sawmills.....but you CAN make a dadgum lot of money using cheaply produced lumber, combined with your own labor, to produce products or projects on your own place. THAT is the real value of owning a small sawmill.


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## TnAndy (Sep 15, 2005)

Of course, as Post Oakie and his dog will tell ya.....it's a LOT of dadgum actual, real, honest WORK.




















A kitchen out off my mill and out of my shop:











3 cord portable ( well, you can drag 'em with a tractor, empty ) wood sheds:




























What do you need around your place ??

Chicken chalet ? Build one !










Hog house with a hinged roof so you can clean out easy ?
Build one !










SkyZebo out in the trees so your wife can sit and enjoy ? Build one !




















Yeah.....if you can't find uses for cheap lumber, you just ain't trying....


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## RonM (Jan 6, 2008)

Pretty talented chap you are......


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## blooba (Feb 9, 2010)

TnAndy, Gotta say I like that SkyZebo, what a way to maximize the view.


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## ErinP (Aug 23, 2007)

I envy you guys that have all those trees (my mouth fairly drools at the thought of all those projects, just waiting to happen), but I would never be able to stand not being able to SEE!


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## TnAndy (Sep 15, 2005)

If you can see, you can also BE seen.....by those not so friendly, like crooks, tax assessors, and so on.....


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## Ross (May 9, 2002)

TnAndy said:


> If you can see, you can also BE seen.....by those not so friendly, like* crooks, tax assessors,* and so on.....


 You repeat yourself! 
Would you say air dry lumber is superior to kiln dried?


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## TnAndy (Sep 15, 2005)

Ross,

Yes....I did seem to repeat myself there, huh ? ....ahahahahaa

And yes, I think air dried is often superior to kiln dried. 

Many times big sawmills will dry way to fast ( time and inventory IS money to them ) simply to get the moisture content to the right level. What that does is collapse the cell structure of the wood and cause a defect called "case hardening".....it's very easy to recognize when you rip a piece of lumber.....the saw kerf closes up immediately behind the blade, and will actually bind the blade to the point of stopping it. That is a piece of lumber that was dried too fast.

Air drying, on the other hand, is a fairly slow process, and results in far less chance of this.

I have a small kiln ( about 1200bdft ) in my shop that I use to take cabinet/furniture lumber on down in the 6-8% MC range. I use an old window AC unit ( waste heat from it ) to raise the room temp to about 130 degree, and as the water comes off the wood, it hits the cold coil, and drips off into a bucket. Even then, I start with air dried wood at about 15-20% MC.


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## Ross (May 9, 2002)

Property tax is the most bent tax there is. If you invest your money and or work to better your property you pay more tax. Unreal.


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## ErinP (Aug 23, 2007)

TnAndy said:


> If you can see, you can also BE seen.....by those not so friendly, like crooks, tax assessors, and so on.....


You don't have to cut off your view of the world in order to do that...just live further out.


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## texican (Oct 4, 2003)

TnAndy said:


> Ross,
> 
> Yes....I did seem to repeat myself there, huh ? ....ahahahahaa
> 
> ...


Actually went out and bought a new table saw, before I learned about case hardening...


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## legacy (Oct 16, 2005)

SkyZebo! Love that!

Just curious about what kind foudation you used on that. Looks like cut stone.

Great posts!


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## TnAndy (Sep 15, 2005)

8" split faced cinder block. Basement and sub-basement under it.....right at 15' from the base to where the floor starts.


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## Forestdude (Jun 9, 2012)

Nice work TnAndy! Thanks for sharing! SkyZebo, man that is sweet! If that ain't a back porch luxury hunting stand I don't know what is


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## francismilker (Jan 12, 2006)

Just bought a HN126 Woodland mill. The price is pretty reasonable for a small project mill. I owned a woodmizer back in the 90's and loved every minute of it. Problem was, someone asked me what I'd take for it. I priced it at what I thought was very high and he wrote a check! I don't have time to dedicate much time and energy to sawing lumber these days so I'm going to try my luck at this smaller mill. Here's a link:

Portable Sawmills for sale. Woodland Mills Ontario Canada

Having access to all the "free" lumber around the place sure will cause a person to build more stuff!


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## backwoodsdream (Sep 20, 2012)

Oh my.... what a dream! I don't understand the whole "can't see anything" comment. The view is amazing!!! Beautiful trees with mountains poking up over them. Perfect.

Our land has been recently selectively logged. I don't want to lose any more timber or I would feel naked. Very impressed with you, mister!


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## old school (Aug 26, 2012)

You look worn out in the resting mode from sawing all the lumber.


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## Post_Oakie (Aug 20, 2012)

Great to see all the messages, especially the photos of projects. I feel like a slacker! Most of my work is for other people, and I don't often have time to cut for my own projects. Yes, it's a lot of hard work, but that keeps me in fair condition. As for drying most of what I do is air dried, though anything with tight tolerances and used indoors (flooring, paneling, furniture) needs to be kiln dry. One of my biggest projects with my portable sawmill was cutting the siding for this 100+ year old dairy barn.









I'm amazed at some of the boneheaded policies out there. I talked last week with a guy from Connecticut who milled lumber for a barn and was forced to pay the sales tax he would have paid if he had bought it at a lumber yard. What's next... a tax on your own garden???


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## legacy (Oct 16, 2005)

_...I talked last week with a guy from Connecticut who milled lumber for a barn and was forced to pay the sales tax he would have paid if he had bought it at a lumber yard. What's next... a tax on your own garden??? _

States are already collecting taxes on rainwater collection and homemade ethanol and biodiesel. It's certainly not farfetched.


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## TnAndy (Sep 15, 2005)

Post_Oakie said:


> I talked last week with a guy from Connecticut who milled lumber for a barn and was forced to pay the sales tax he would have paid if he had bought it at a lumber yard. What's next... a tax on your own garden???



Would like to know a bit more detail about that story. Like was it his own timber to begin with ?
I'd be examining the sales tax law REAL CLOSE to see if that's even legal.

But IF that's the case, I WOULD be asking about home vegetable gardens, and firewood taken from your own land and stuff like that. If you 're-purpose' something on your land and owe sales tax on it because you didn't buy that product in the market, I'd be for forcing the State to open the entire can of worms, and deal with the citizen's ire.


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## ErinP (Aug 23, 2007)

I'm guessing that he has a commercial sawmill, usually pays sales tax on what he sells and this falls under the "personal use" clause.

Ie, a farmer's market owner might very well have to pay tax on their produce for the same reason. But a personal gardener would not.


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## PineCreek Ranch (Sep 14, 2012)

Do you every use a solar kiln? I am looking at getting a saw. I think I may have to start with a chainsaw mill and work my way up from there.


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## texican (Oct 4, 2003)

PineCreek Ranch said:


> Do you every use a solar kiln? I am looking at getting a saw. I think I may have to start with a chainsaw mill and work my way up from there.


I'd seriously look into the size of the chainsaw you'd need to do much chainsaw milling. IF you already have a huge powerful chainsaw, not as much of an issue... if you don't, you could easily spend over 700 on a decent saw. That and the price of the chainsaw mill attachments add up... for about twice that much you could get a bandsaw mill... a woodmizer lt-10 is only about ? $2500... and, when through, you can easily sell it to someone else and not lose much at all.


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