Red oak log, sawed & stacked

[Robert Reece]

Some time ago I asked the creek about a tree that had died and the community convinced me to saw it up. Here is the thread about it: http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=124451

We did the sawing last weekend and I wanted to come back and say thanks and post some pictures. I'd also like to thank a fellow creeker Scott Smith for coming out and lending a hand. He runs a mill near me and his insight is much appreciated.

Here is a link to the full gallery. Don't get excited that I have a tarp over the wood. That is just for a few more days until I get back out to where I have the wood and build a proper roof over it.

http://jraso.smugmug.com/Woodworking

Attached are some of the highlights.

I sawed everything at 5/4, figuring I was going to at least make a dining room table. So I wanted to be able to choose the best boards for the top.
http://jraso.smugmug.com/Woodworking/RedOakSawing/11644315_ir4Wh#821052702_y2dG4
http://jraso.smugmug.com/Woodworking/RedOakSawing/11644315_ir4Wh#821069624_qYvAN
http://jraso.smugmug.com/Woodworking/RedOakSawing/11644315_ir4Wh#821072956_vZtwx

[brian watts]

WOW. that a good size log.. nice job

[glenn bradley]

Drool, drool, drool. Great haul.

[Tony Shea]

Yes that is impressive. Very nice size to that log and great lookin boards. It's amazing the people that you meet here that are willing to help you out in many different ways. Probably the most civilized forum I've ever been on.

[Scott T Smith]

Hey Rob - thanks for the kind words. It was great to meet you and to see Bob again. You sure ended up with some nice boards; I can't wait to see how the crotch figure comes out.

Scott

[Robert Reece]

Yeah, it was a fun day. I have never sawed a log up before and I can feel the addiction! I have also never worked with boards that big - they are 20" across. Yikes. Not sure how I am going to deal with them, but that is a couple of years off anyway.

[Faust M. Ruggiero]

Nice wood. Paint the ends of those boards or the checking will go very deep as the end grain gives up it's moisture. No need for a roof. Find boards of lesser quality use them for the top of the stack.
fmr

[Paul Murphy]

Nice haul! I bet you are sore from moving all those boards off the saw. I remember well how heavy a wet 20" x 5/4 red oak board is...

You'll love having wood all from the same log, the color matches, and you can bookmatch or slipmatch some beautiful panels. Looks like you have done a nice job stickering your wood.

[Scott T Smith]

Nice wood. Paint the ends of those boards or the checking will go very deep as the end grain gives up it's moisture. No need for a roof. Find boards of lesser quality use them for the top of the stack.
fmr


You can't see it from the photo's, but Rob had previously applied a good coating of Anchorseal to the ends of the logs.

[Danny Hamsley]

Nothing more satisfying than sawing lumber out of a log that otherwise would have been wasted except for then making a project out of said lumber! Way To Go!!

Keep an eye out for powder post beetles as the wood dries. They seem attracted to bark.

[Jaze Derr]

oh, wow. that's looks like a lot of work! And you have to wait until it dries before you can play with it? How long will that take?

I have the brainpower of a gnat. I'd forget about it after a year.

[Jay Jeffery]

Do you mind my asking how much it cost? Will you come out ahead relative to buying the wood commercially?

[Robert Reece]

To answer some of the questions. The wood takes about a year to dry per inch, so I am figuring I will give it until a year from this fall or about 18 months (since it is 5/4).

The cost was minimal. I paid $200 for the mill and I ended up with about 700 bd ft. I'll have another few hundred in the supplies to get it stacked for drying, but most of those I can reuse for later logs (which I hope to do). A rough estimate is that I have $1/bd ft in the wood. Red oak doesn't fetch a big price around here, usually in the $3.50 range. So I'll be out ahead as long as the powder post beetles don't eat it all!

[Dan O'Sullivan]

You're being too humble. The truth is and you could have said: you ain't goin' to find any 20" red oak at the lumber yard my friend. The real value of your stack is the bookmatched boards will be spectacular and air dried stock will be a joy to mill and work. You have a nice stack of quality oak.

I might add if you haven't air dried the oak much in the past- check it frequently and flip the boards. Don't let the wood get that tannic stain-it goes in pretty deep sometimes. A little more attention and you will have some special wood down the road.

Good luck
dan