Converting ash trees to boards - worth it?

[DomValente]

Secondly, and one for the forum, How would I store it? Does it need to be inside? Or would undercover outside suffice?

Cheers,

It would be preferable to keep it inside but if you don't have the space its a moot point.

Dom

 

[Mike Saville]

Space inside would be a problem - outside I could manage . . .

 

[devonwoody]

You could combine pleasure and business.

 

[ByronBlack]

There is a video up on finewoodworking.com at the moment on the very subject:

How to dry timber:
http://www.taunton.com/finewoodworking/ ... x?id=29500

You have to be a member (Only about $4 a month - well worth it) The video runs for about 10mins and seems quite informative.

 

[stairman]

Give us a clue, are you in the UK? A county in your profile would be useful. Tell us about your kiln, is it powered? How big is it? Any chance of a few pictures?

I built a Kiln 10 years ago for a mate out of polistiren using a arrowsmith drier what ever they recommended as a drying time I ether doubled it or added 1/3 and only had one pice with any shakes

the timber consisted of oak elm beech and ash all dried at the same time

I worked out that the costs (mobile saw mill/ materials for kiln /drier & elect ) worked out at about half of what it would half cost to buy the wood

I still use the drier to keep my timber store dry

 

[stairman]

You will also need to take time to
work out the various thicknesses you want
cut a lot of spacing sticks 25mm x 25mm (I think I spaced then 300mm apart )
time to put the timber into the kiln think it took me 2 days for the 5 trees
then checking temp & amount of water coming out each day to start with then once a week once the water slowed down

 

[spadge]

Hi,

I would look at it from the standpoint of whether you have a use for the quantity of wood you will have after planking up 8 large trees.

Unless you have some big projects planned are really going to be able to use it all? If not you will end up with a lot left over, which you will presumably end up selling.

The question then is whether it is cheaper to pay someone to plank it up, use what you need and sell on the remainder or to just clear the trees and buy the wood you need?

Cheers

Grahame

 

[dexteria]

Here is a picture of some Japaneese Larch that I planked today. The Logosol is a good option if you already have a decent chainsaw and safety gear. The one in the picture is an 039 but for larger stuff I have an 066.

The Logosol gives a decent finish but it is very tiring in use as you are so bent over.

Cheers

Mark

 

[Paul.J]

After seeing what Dexteria's done i'd have a go.
Great job with the chainsaw Mark :shock:
Paul.J.

 

[Mike Saville]

That does look tempting to have a go at . . . . I suspect however that is a lot of work. I'm waiting for some quotes on getting it sawn/dried. Perhaps it's something I'll look at if these quotes are horrific! :shock:

Cheers,

 

[Losos]

Space inside would be a problem - outside I could manage . . .

Jim, a year ago I felled an Ash tree on my property and cut it into 6 x 2 Mt. long logs which are currently stacked up outside. Just covered on top. I removed some of the bark (Yes there will be beetles and grubs of various sorts there) but it was a time consuming job so I haven't done three of them.

I have a timber mill at the top of my road who might slab it for me if I want. Thinking about moving it indoors this year.

 

[wizer]

a bit late with this. but I just came across an article on building a wood dryer:

lmk if anyone would like it.

 

[Mike Saville]

Here is a picture of some Japaneese Larch that I planked today. The Logosol is a good option if you already have a decent chainsaw and safety gear. The one in the picture is an 039 but for larger stuff I have an 066.

The Logosol gives a decent finish but it is very tiring in use as you are so bent over.

Hi, I already have a 52cc Makita chainsaw with an 18inch bar. Do you think this would be up to the job? I've had a look at the Logosol website and can't find much detail about what it is or how you use it so any extra info you could supply would be very useful.

The quotes I've had so far for mobile milling have been VERY expensive, I am waiting on a couple of more local people though. Just want to start to look at my options in case the others come in similarly priced.

Cheers,

 

[dexteria]

Hi,

The 039 I used for cutting the larch is about 50cc and 3hp and it coped really well. However today I cut some 25" elm and used the 066 which is 90cc and around 7hp and it coped but was slow going.

How the Makita would cope with the ash, I'm not sure. My experiences with brands other than Stihl or Husky has been that they lack torque although I have no experience of Makita chainsaws.

The timberjig I use attaches to the chainsaw and lets you guide the saw along a log on a homemade rail.

You can see more clearly in the video on the US logosol site. For some reason this has more info than the UK site.



You would also need a ripping chain which has a courser cut than a standard crosscut chain.

Hope this helps

Cheers

Mark

http://www.logosol.com/_sawmills/bigmillsystem/bigmill_timberjig.php?play=timberjig

 

[dexteria]

Some Elm. The bottom 2/3 of the tree was riddled with metal and this is what was left. The log that I was cutting in the picture is about 25" dia and has some really nice figure. The base dia of the tree was about 3' and I was told that this was the last biggish Scottish Elm left on the estate and its a helluva big estate.

5 Oak trees came down last winter and ended up as firewood. I think the longterm forecast for Nov/Dec is windy :wink:

Cheers

Mark

 

[Mike Saville]

Thanks, I'll give the US site a look.