Yes , I have done that , cuts were rough, but I had Lenght , Planner with rollers & tractors cleaned it up , say a week , for $$$$ for a Nice Beam . Sloth I like Tn's AO , warmer than mine
WORK SLOW & BY YOURSELF , YOU WILL LEARN !! DAMAGE WOOD , BLADES , BUT NOT YOU !! THIS IS SAFE IF YOU ARE. Learn slow & watch U-tube . I had a trainer & still furbared , Still got all 21 fidgets
I have been thinking of getting a saw mill since the price of lumber is out the roof and son #3 is looking to build a house. I have mature southern Pines 60-80 years old guessing, at least 40-60 trees I could harvest. Don't know anything about what's a good mill for my son and I to operate. Any advice would be helpful
Most of the portable ones I've seen around my AO have been Woodmizers . But I have no personal experience on them. I was looking at them a few years ago , but ,, things changed for me.
@johnbb Woodmizers is the Choice I made , due to PARTS , and they back there products over any harbour freight or other off shore crap. You will learn by breaking things !! I learn't well !!! You must have a tractor or a way to lift / move the log . I can cut 20 feet long on my mills . I cut Fir , Red or white Cedar , pine ,poplar ,hemlock. My kerf is 1/16 with my woodmizers , Alaska mill is 3/8 " Sloth
IF you plan to use your own lumber off the mill, be sure to check to see if building codes apply in your location. Many places restrict you to grade stamped lumber, knocking out home made stuff. I worked with my local state legislator and got a law passed in Tennessee that allows us to use sawmill lumber, and there are other States with similar "Native Species" laws that do the same, but check that first before you go down the sawmill road. Assuming you do buy one, I'm clearly biased on Woodmizer products, but there are a lot of clones out there today (not so much when I bought mine in 1991) that will do the job, especially for the small producer. You also might consider used....they show up on Craig's List from time to time, and there are websites dedicated to selling used sawmills.....do a web search and you'll find several. You might also check for local sawmilling services. Lot of small band mill owners provide cutting on your location for a reasonable fee. If you go that route, have your logs down and piled together so they can be ready to saw when the mill comes. Having a tractor on site to move logs, lumber and slab waste will cut the cost of the miller having to bring some way to move stuff.
Scope out a place to set the mill up that won't leave a pile of sawdust on good soil or your fave grassy area. Don't forget to have a place to stack the cut wood for a while for it to dry down and get warpage out of its mind.
SC,, in some areas have some pretty lax building codes,, I've seen people get away with some sketchy stuff down there.. good luck
Tennessee is the same. Some counties have gotten all gung-ho about code enforcement (like ours....job creation for the inept in my opinion), others don't bother. Best thing to do is find out how your county stands on it, and basically tell them what you're going to want to do.
it's a business decision with some hefty $$$$ attached - time table involved also - seen wayyyyyyyyyy toooo many of those DIY homebuild reality shows that went to absolute shit over trying to DIY everything - it shouldn't be a "hobby" in anyway ... just seen where a female prepper was talking about 70+ year old "Dad" setting up a sawmill - plans on running himself for his own usage - ambitious as hell but not exactly in that overall practical category ....
Just found out In Charleston County SC home milled lumber can only be used in flooring and siding not structural, after Hurricane Hugo in 89 they got real strict on building codes. Yet the 100+ year old homes near the town I live close to stood up to 145 mph winds real well--- all built with local milled southern pine. How on earth did our ancestors survive without the government looking out for them (sarcasm)
Exactly the point I made with my legislator and the others on the committee it had to get thru to go on to be law. SENATE BILL 822 By Bailey HOUSE BILL 978 By Hill M AN ACTto amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 5; Title 6; Title 43, Chapter 28, Part 3 and Title 68, Chapter 120, relative to native species lumber. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE: SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 43, Chapter 28, Part 3,is amended by adding the following as a new, appropriately designated section: (a) This sectionshall be known and may be cited as the “Tennessee Native Species Lumber Act.” (b) As used in this section: (1) “Agricultural building” means any structure used primarily for agricultural purposes or for forest product production; (2) “Commercial sawmill” means any type of sawmill that produces lumber for sale; (3) “End user” means any person who purchases native lumber from a commercial sawmill for the purpose of residential construction; (4) “Grader” means the owner of a commercial sawmill, or the owner’s designated employee, who has visually inspected each piece of lumber; and (5) “Native timber” means any hardwood or softwood species growingwithin the borders of this state. (c) (1) The operator of any commercial sawmill may, when requested by the end user of the native lumber, certify in writing to the purchaser that the quality and safe working stresses of the lumber are equal to or better than No. 2 grade, in accordance with the conditions set forth in the American Softwood Standard PS 20–70 of the United States department of commerce, as amended; provided, that the minimum grade of lumber use din load-bearing wall members shall be stud grade. (2) The certification provided pursuant to subdivision (c)(1) shall includeA) The name of the wood species; (B) The quantity of wood certified;(C) The location where the wood is to be used; (D) Whether or not the wood is seasoned; (E) The name of the commercial sawmill where the wood was cut; (F) The name of the grader; and(G) The date on which the wood was cut at the commercial sawmill and graded. (3) (A) Upon the request of the local building official, the end user shall provide written certification of the quality and safe working stresses of the native lumber provided by the commercial sawmill operator pursuant to subdivision (c)(1),as part of the building permit application. (B) The certification provided pursuant to subdivision (c)(3)(A) shall be accepted by code officials in lieu of any grade stamp requirements. (d) Any person who uses the native timber harvested from and used entirely on the person’s own property shall, if required, certify that the lumber meets the requirements of any building codes . (e) No certification of native lumber shall be required in the construction of an agricultural building. SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law, the public welfare requiring it.
We ran into the same BS building codes up here . A total frigging JOKE ! If I cut a full 2" X 12" Fir plank (Not dimensional sizing ) they will not allow that , but a beam of OSB and spruce top and bottom looking like a I beam for floor I-joists , that's good and passes , but in a fire it is only strong for 8 mins , while the full fir plank / joists last over 30 mins. Thats why firemen up here are good at washing the ashes away.. Lots of glue for burning ! Sloth
Rules and regulations,, and not all of them are for our protection or safety,, just for their control over us . I'm getting about tired of this whole damned mess. I've been building for over 30 years ,, and I'm no expert,, by far ,, but like Sloth says, a 2x rough sawn timber will last longer than that piece of crap TGI joist ,, scrap wood glued together junk .
