Anyone make their own rift sawn Oak for a small project? Do's and don'ts?

[Don Morris]

I have a plan for a Wall Mounted Mission style clock from Klockit. Their Mission style Mantel clock kit comes in Oak which is appropriate for that style. I have access to some freshly cut Oak. I was thinking of trying to cut the Oak in a Rift Cut manner. I have a 14" bandsaw, 8" jointer, and 13" planer. I'm not averse to some hand sawing either. Plus I have all the other tools usually thought necessary to build such a project. Thoughts, do's and don'ts, or forget it. Thanks for any input.

Don M

[Kent A Bathurst]

You have a green oak log?

Go for it. A number of threads in the past covered sawing them on a shop BS. Then dry it.

Me - the cost of good-quality figured oak is pretty modest - either rift or quartered. I'd buy what I needed, build the project, and move on. But - you may be more interested in the journey - as opposed to the destination.

Tee it up.

[John TenEyck]

It's a lot easier to buy what lumber you might need for a project than to try to mill a green log with a little 14" BS, then figure out how to dry it, wait a year for it to dry only to lose 50% and not have enough for your project. Been there, done that.

John

[John C Bush]

I mill out small stock all the time, usually to capture special figure or natural edge. Mostly, tho, I just like making sawdust and I don't want to waste good wood. You will spend a lot more time miling than the time/value factor of buying dry S4S stock. I would mill out at least 50% thicker than your final dimensions, sticker @ close intervals, and secure the stock with weights or clamps to help control cupping etc. You will enjoy having an inventory of stock on hand when a project idea pops up. Get a good resaw blade and have a helper on hand. Have fun.

[Jim Andrew]

Do you have a chain saw? You can cut a fairly flat face on a piece and then make the next cut on your band saw. I have a neighbor who likes to do hand work, and he had a "cookie" cut on angle across a log, and he asked me to clean it up with my planer. Turned out well.

[Reinis Kanders]

You could try riving it with a froe or even axe and some wedges. Lot more fun then trying to bandsaw it. I just did that for a first time with some of my neighbors oak stumps, it came out well and was easy and fun. Green oak splits really easy and your clock will have a nice story to go with it:) Look up Follansbee's blog, he has a lot of info on this.

[Joe A Faulkner]

If you don't already have one, get a moisture meter. Check out some of the lumber in your shop to get a feel for the moisture levels of stock in your shop. Your milled lumber likely will dry out somewhere between 8-10%. Seal the ends of the boards with latex paint, wax, or something to limit the checking.

I recently completed my first projects using lumber I milled on the bandsaw, a series of small boxes using lumber salvaged from a downed maple branch in the backyard. It may not be everyone's cup of tea, but I enjoyed taking a project from tree to finish. I used relatively small logs, and used a scrap piece of 3/4 plywood to make a carriage/sled for the logs. Nothing quite as elaborate as: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WItDzkTk-2s but I wasn't working logs that size either.

[David Spurr]

I don't have any tips for you. I am in the middle of drying some lumber I sawed myself. It was really enjoyable and I am looking forward to useing lumber I made. Give it a shot, you'll probably enjoy it.

[Rod Sheridan]

Go for it, I do.

Here's a link to me making lumber on the bandsaw........Rod.

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?182034-Making-Lumber-on-a-Bandsaw&highlight=making+lumber+on+a+bandsaw

[Prashun Patel]

You should consider riving it. You may end up with prettier, more stable wood than even rift or quarter sawing it. For people like me without access to a bandsaw mill, riving smaller logs can be about as much work as chainsawing and sledding them over an upright bandsaw.

Especially for a smaller project like a wall clock, you can rive with simple tools like a deadblow hammer and a splitting wedges.