For reference, the butt end is a little over 26”. My plan is to cut the main trunk into 2” live edge slabs for now. I have several crotch pieces that I should get some nice figure, for white oak. Will have a lot of fire wood for the pizza oven, too. Got it limbed up this afternoon.
I had to cut down a water oak a few years ago. I took it to a friend that has a sawmill and he cut it into 2" slabs. I like 2" slabs because I can resaw it to 1" and then plane it down for 3/4" boards.
A couple of weeks ago I cleaned up the brush around the house. We had a frozen rain and snow event which is rare for East Texas. I had limbs and small trees down all over the place. I have it all piled up but we have a burn ban in place. Soon I will be able to roast marshmallows on the pile of limbs and brush.
I had a Poulan saw for a long time. I was always poulaning and poulaning on it to get it started. I went and bought a Hasquavarna Rancher with a 26" bar. That chain saw cut through some standing dead hickory like a hot knife through butter. It is heavy but it starts on the first or second pull. A few of my friends have Echo and they love those chainsaws. Stihl has gotten so expensive that I did not even consider them.
Growing up we heated exclusively with wood in Northern NY. These pics remind me of those bygone days (quite wonderful I might add). 20 face cord a year. All hand split by my dad, my brother, and I. I spent many an hour pretending I was in the Olympics of Woodsplitting. Of course I was the world champion.
@gdon_2003 Stihl is the only way to go as far as I’m concerned. It’s a family thing like Carhartt, Leatherman, and peanut butter on home made donuts.
@Redlander you jerk. You restoked my deep desire to fulfill one of my bucket list items to own a Woodmizer!
@Redlander I had planned to put it on the mill yesterday, but by the time I got it down and limbed, it was late in the day and I just didn’t want to fool with it anymore. If the weather cooperates, It’ll get slabbed this weekend. I’ll add some slabbing photos in this thread.
@SirGariff If you would like to relive your younger days, come on down and I’ll let you split all the wood you want and I’ll provide the beverage of your choice and the gold medal for your world championship splitting, well, maybe not solid gold, how about a gold like substance And while you’re here, you can get your fill of running the Woodmizer. I’ve got quite a large pile of southern yellow pine logs that need milling.
@HeuristicBishop I prefer the 2" slabs because I plan to make some live edge table tops and, as you mentioned, it gives me more options. I can always put a slab back on the mill and cut 4/4 boards when I need them.
You have to have the land. When I was growing up and into my mid 20’s we lived on a 275 acre farm in northern NY. All flat land. Plenty of land. No money!
Moved to Western NC, now living on .7 acre with 4 buildings on our land and a slope from the front back of the fairly square property of ~40" - 50’. In essence I’m all built out
Growing up we would haul logs from our 275 acre farm a mile away to mill lumber at a large circular saw sawmill. My brother and I would tail the end and it was always exciting to see what would be revealed in the white oak, elm, butternut, cherry, brown ash, etc. That’s what your lumber makes me feel.
Gary, that is what draws me to the sawmill, every cut is like opening a present on Christmas morning and, like on Christmas morning, sometimes you love what you get and sometimes you just smile and make the next cut.
