Jummywood trees...

Fred the Red Shirt wrote:

>> > the trunk all the way around with my Skil saw, then beating the hell
>> > out of it with a sledge hammer until it broke off.
>
> I suggest investing in an axe. A good axe will make short work of
> chopping down and de-limbing pine trees.

It would indeed, and I even know how to use one. I just don't own one, and,
well, I'm reluctant to buy any of the seriously crappy axes I've seen for
sale, even though I'm only going to use it for a short while.

I should try to scrounge up an old axe made at a time when people would
actually be expected to do more with the thing than hang it on a peg in the
shed to show their friends how woodsy they are, right before they grab the
extra bright deer hunting light.

> You can split one log down the middle to get an idea as to what the
> lumber will look like. Probably it will be pretty knotty. You CAN

Yeah, I never thought about the knotty factor. It's probably extremely
knotty. Isn't knotty pine a material of choice for floor boards? :)

> turn the wood or resaw it into lumber. I'd be inclined to just
> cut the trunks to length and use them for landscaping. Got
> any kids? Would they like a little log cabin or a fort?

They're a bit big for making a small cabin I think, but maybe if I split
them into quarters... How would I go about splitting an entire,
uninterrupted tree anyway? I've never split anything much beyond 2' long.

> A frame saw like this:
> http://www.physics.mun.ca/~sstamp/images/buck_saw.jpg

Thanks for all the links. Lots to ponder, though I suppose I do have to
admit after thinking about this for awhile, the idea of sawing them into
maybe 4' lengths, splitting them, and building some kind of outrageous fort
for the kids seems like the best use.

--
Michael McIntyre ---- Silvan <[email protected]>
Linux fanatic, and certified Geek; registered Linux user #243621
Confirmed post number: 17603 Approximate word count: 528090
http://www.geocities.com/Paris/Rue/5407/

Sobon and Schroeder.

> I read a book on timber framing (It's the well-known one with two
> authors--that helps, right?) that details pretty well the process of
> making posts and/or beams from felled trees by hand.

Ernie Jurick wrote:

>> > Hire a chainsaw for a day and sell trees as firewood.
>>
>> I couldn't give pine away as firewood around here.
>
> Not even if you used a nice oak stain?

Hey, that's a thought. I still have some Minwhacks red oak stain in the
cupboard somewhere.

--
Michael McIntyre ---- Silvan <[email protected]>
Linux fanatic, and certified Geek; registered Linux user #243621
Confirmed post number: 17610 Approximate word count: 528300
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"George" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> That would be a second wedge, or as they used when Abe was making fences,
> "glut."
>
> First goes into the end, so the split will follow the natural run of the
> grain instead of trying to beat it into submission.

Never knew it had an actual name! You're right, start in the end, put the
next in the side, retrieve the one from the end and move farther down the
side.

'Nother tip I learned under Unc's tutelage: A dull axe is MUCH better for
splitting than a sharp axe. Sharp cuts through the wood fibers, dull one
wedges them apart, which is what you're trying to do.
Nahmie

Norman D. Crow wrote:

> was left whole in 6-8' lengths to be cut on buzz saw. Larger stuff was
> still 8', but wedged to fence post size, then cut to stove length on the
> buzz saw.
> How do you think "Honest Abe" made all those split rail fences?

You think "Honest Abe" ever did a day of actual physical labor in his life?

Anyway, duh, duh, duh, you're right of course. Wedge it from the *side*.
Why didn't I think of that?

--
Michael McIntyre ---- Silvan <[email protected]>
Linux fanatic, and certified Geek; registered Linux user #243621
Confirmed post number: 17611 Approximate word count: 528330
http://www.geocities.com/Paris/Rue/5407/

That would be a second wedge, or as they used when Abe was making fences,
"glut."

First goes into the end, so the split will follow the natural run of the
grain instead of trying to beat it into submission.

"Silvan" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> Anyway, duh, duh, duh, you're right of course. Wedge it from the *side*.
> Why didn't I think of that?
>
> --
> Michael McIntyre ---- Silvan <[email protected]>
> Linux fanatic, and certified Geek; registered Linux user #243621
> Confirmed post number: 17611 Approximate word count: 528330
> http://www.geocities.com/Paris/Rue/5407/
>

Silvan <[email protected]> wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...
Snip>
> If it's worthwhile, how can a man without so much as a chainsaw make lumber
> out of a fallen tree? Maybe I could cut them up with my Skil saw? Flatten
> one side with a shop made adz and use that as a stable base for kerfing,
> then split off the kerfed bits or something?
>
> Any clever Wreck wisdom here?
>
> I guess as to the question of "worthwhile" I realize that I'd be looking at
> a lot of work for very little return here. This is more of a project I'd
> like to do just to see if I can do it without buying anything expensive,
> because I like silly little challenges like this.

I read a book on timber framing (It's the well-known one with two
authors--that helps, right?) that details pretty well the process of
making posts and/or beams from felled trees by hand. Depending on how
many you have, you may have enough timbers for, say, a small shed? I
think, however, that it may be prohibitive in terms of labor vs.
yield.

OTOH, this could be an invaluable experience (it would for me as I
intend to build myself a P&B home when I retire, <g>) for learning
about timber framing.

Remember, advice is worth what you pay for it.
-Phil Crow

"Norman Lever" <REMOVETHIS_nlever@ANDTHIS_webprophets.net.au> wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...
> Hire a chainsaw for a day and sell trees as firewood.
>

Resinous woods are often avoided for firewood as they tend to
gum up the chimney faster than hardwoods.

>
>
> "Silvan" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> > The pine trees the previous owners planted along the edge of my property
> are
> > starting to annoy me. I don't even have a chainsaw. I got
> the
> > first one down by limbing what was left of it with a bow saw, kerfing the
> > trunk all the way around with my Skil saw, then beating the hell out of it
> > with a sledge hammer until it broke off.

I suggest investing in an axe. A good axe will make short work of
chopping down and de-limbing pine trees.

> >
> > So what can I do with Jummywood trunks about 10" in diameter and about 8'
> > long?
> >
> > I guess the first question is whether or not there's enough usable lumber
>

You can split one log down the middle to get an idea as to what the
lumber will look like. Probably it will be pretty knotty. You CAN
turn the wood or resaw it into lumber. I'd be inclined to just
cut the trunks to length and use them for landscaping. Got
any kids? Would they like a little log cabin or a fort?


> >
> > I guess as to the question of "worthwhile" I realize that I'd be looking
> at
> > a lot of work for very little return here. This is more of a project I'd
> > like to do just to see if I can do it without buying anything expensive,
> > because I like silly little challenges like this.
> >

A frame saw like this:

http://www.webpichost.com/bjt/October/101999/Buck%20saw.jpg

will cut through green pine like butter.
JOAT can probably find plans for you on the web but you can see
enough in that picture to design your own. You can buy a metal framed
one like this:

http://www.physics.mun.ca/~sstamp/images/buck_saw.jpg

pretty cheap or just buy a replacement blade and make your own
wooden-framed saw. I did that with a 4' blade and find that the
wooden frame keeps the tension on the blade better than the metal
frame.

Here are plans to make a frame saw for resawing:

http://www.hyperkitten.com/woodworking/frame_saw.php3

And here is a small fancy version for cutting curved pieces:

http://www.toolshopbosham.co.uk/misctools.htm

People who make frame saws for fine woodworking typically use
band-saw blades rather than bucking blades.

--

FF

Phil Crow wrote:

> I read a book on timber framing (It's the well-known one with two
> authors--that helps, right?) that details pretty well the process of
> making posts and/or beams from felled trees by hand. Depending on how
> many you have, you may have enough timbers for, say, a small shed? I
> think, however, that it may be prohibitive in terms of labor vs.
> yield.

That's an interesting idea...

--
Michael McIntyre ---- Silvan <[email protected]>
Linux fanatic, and certified Geek; registered Linux user #243621
Confirmed post number: 17602 Approximate word count: 528060
http://www.geocities.com/Paris/Rue/5407/

"Silvan" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Fred the Red Shirt wrote:
>
>
> They're a bit big for making a small cabin I think, but maybe if I split
> them into quarters... How would I go about splitting an entire,
> uninterrupted tree anyway? I've never split anything much beyond 2' long.
>
Sledge hammer & @ least 2 good steel wedges. "Before" chainsaws made cutting
firewood so handy, lived on Uncles' dairy farm, helped fell & cut up mucho
wood for kitchen cookstove. Double-bitted axe, two man crosscut saw for
felling, axe for limbing & cutting small stuff. Up to about 6-8" was left
whole in 6-8' lengths to be cut on buzz saw. Larger stuff was still 8', but
wedged to fence post size, then cut to stove length on the buzz saw.
How do you think "Honest Abe" made all those split rail fences?
Nahmie