Milling Lumber (grudgingly) #1: What would you do?

Be careful with the hangups. I use a winch to pull them down before I ever take a saw to them. Also be very careful of the root ball. When you cut the log free, the root ball can/will fall back in the hole and the end of the stump shoot up with great force.

-- Hal, Tennessee http://www.first285.com

Thanks for the advice. I’ve never cut off a “fresh” root ball. Frankly, I probably won’t attempt this myself.

-- Some problems are best solved with an optimistic approach. Optimism shines a light on alternatives that are otherwise not visible.

Looks like a big bunch of unfinished furniture to me!!!

This is what I did…step by step From tree to lasting memory

http://lumberjocks.com/gpastor/blog/24342
http://lumberjocks.com/gpastor/blog/24355
http://lumberjocks.com/gpastor/blog/24364
http://lumberjocks.com/gpastor/blog/24427
http://lumberjocks.com/gpastor/blog/24452
http://lumberjocks.com/gpastor/blog/24481
http://lumberjocks.com/gpastor/blog/24518

-- Gray hair is a crown of splendor; it is attained by a righteous life. Proverbs 16:31

Do not do this !!! http://youtu.be/agcLlKcXp40

-- Gray hair is a crown of splendor; it is attained by a righteous life. Proverbs 16:31

Sounds like a good opportunity for wood to me. I still don’t understand why there is such an aversion to red oak on this board?!

-- Chris ~~Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past."

not a big fan of red oak, but I know many are. if it was me I’d probably go for Quarter Sawing this if you don’t care much for it to at least have some good stable stock.

-- ㊍ When in doubt - There is no doubt - Go the safer route.

If you were not so far from Montana, I would offer to take a few of those logs off your hands, but looking
at those long straight logs, you should have some real nice wood ready for use after a lot of hard work. The
only problem is the work necessary to handle all those trees at once. Out here there are many loggers with
plenty of experience cutting trees and logs, hopefully you will have one or two out there that will be able to
help you with your problem. Thank you for sharing.

-- As ever, Gus-the 74 yr young apprentice carpenter

Get a hold of your local WoodMizer dealer and other portable mill dealers, ask if there is anybody local that has one of their rigs.

You can do a lot with oak, things you make with it tends to give it “countyr” look. That is not a bad thing.

-- David in Damascus, MD

You can just call me. I will come from California with my saw, loader, and truck/trailer and just take it off your hands. I DO LOVE RED OAK.
When I get done with it. much of it will go to a local high school wood shop, thus supporting the Wood Working Dept of that school.
Ira

-- Rustfever, Central California

Yes, I will need some way to cut those leaners and haul the logs out of the woods into the open. Then I’ll be looking for someone with a portable mill. I’ve been reading up on quarter sawing red oak. Seems like that’s what’s wanted most for furniture.

-- Some problems are best solved with an optimistic approach. Optimism shines a light on alternatives that are otherwise not visible.

Nice problem to have. Please let me know if you need any help with the project. Would be willing to help for some red oak. Down here, that stuff is pricey.

Well, when life gives you lemons, make lemonade. But this used to be a beautiful forested area with a canopy – so you felt sort of closed in and shady. Now the canopy is gone and all that’s left are the scrub trees – mostly holly. It’s very sad. I am heart broken.

-- Some problems are best solved with an optimistic approach. Optimism shines a light on alternatives that are otherwise not visible.

I suppose it is a regional thing. I live in SW Oklahoma and it is the wood of choice here. I bought some furniture from a local store around 20 years ago and the owner told us he was the #1 seller of the oak design we bought from Keller. Of course now Keller has gone out of business because of the foreign market. It is really popular here.

From what I have experienced, an even mix of flat and QS is ideal. QS oak can split fairly easily if not careful where flat sawn wood will not.

In some applications, the grain patterns in flat sawn will actually look better. Either way, if the piece is of a large size, to much of the same thing may not be the best thing.

-- David in Damascus, MD