Cutting stock from a tree?

[Dennis Kelly]

Hello,
My neighbor just cut down a small maple from his backyard and he gave me the trunk. Should I let the wood dry out now and then mill it into usable wood or should I cut it up now and let it dry after?

Dennis

[Ted Christiansen]

Dennis,

You need to cut into boards now. If the log is small enough to handle, you can cut it into boards on your bandsaw.

What I do is screw a 1/2" thick x 8 " tall piece of plywood to each side of the log. The edges of the plywood will ride on the bandsaw table, thus stabilzing the log. Put a line down the center of the log using a chalk line. Now cut freehand following the line.

Remove the plywood and screw it to the freshly sawn face, with the plywood overhanging the log half by about 1/2". Set your fence to the desired width, and with the plywood on the saw table, slide the plywood edge along the fence. You now have a 90 deg corner. Remove the plywood. Set your fence and make a cut parallel to the second cut. You now have a three sided cant. Using a chalk line or straight edge, draw a line the width of board you want. Repeat until the two halves are sawed into boards. I usually cut the boards 1-1/8" thick.

Enjoy.

Ted

[Kyle Kraft]

Dennis,

Coat the ends of the log right away with Anchorseal or some old paint laying around the house, brush/roll on stuff, not spray paint. This will reduce/prevent end checking of the log. Proceed with sawing the log at your convenience but asap. Don't leave it lying on the ground for much more than 30 days if possible.

If you dont' coat the ends, and let the log dry out, it will likely develop lengthwise splits:( .

[Rob Will]

Ted is right, cut it into lumber now. If it is too big for your bandsaw you might need to find somebody with a portable sawmill.

Don't forget to seal the ends of your log before cutting. Often times, I come back and seal the last few inches of each board.

Also, be sure to get some uniform stacking sticks that are good and dry.

Rob