# Turning a log into lumber



## pwoller (Jan 11, 2011)

So I got into chainsaws and cutting firewood, then came the urge to mill some of the wood with the csm, now I have all of this wood coming out of the kiln. How do you take your rough sawn lumber and make it into useable lumber. I'm limited on tools and finding it difficult to get square flat lumber to use. I have a planer, tablesaw, circular saw and some other small tools. Do I need to buy a joiner to square up this wood? Anyone have a step by step on how the make their milled wood into lumber? Help please!


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## 820wards (Jan 11, 2011)

pwoller said:


> So I got into chainsaws and cutting firewood, then came the urge to mill some of the wood with the csm, now I have all of this wood coming out of the kiln. How do you take your rough sawn lumber and make it into useable lumber. I'm limited on tools and finding it difficult to get square flat lumber to use. I have a planer, tablesaw, circular saw and some other small tools. Do I need to buy a joiner to square up this wood? Anyone have a step by step on how the make their milled wood into lumber? Help please!


 

Pwoller,

A joiner is a must to get two square edges. Once you have squared two edges you can then use your table saw or band saw to finish squaring up the lumber. Now, what size should get depends on how wide your milled lumber is. I have a 6" joiner so I mill the wood so that I can cut 6" wide stock. If I want larger lumber I just edge my slabs. Have fun with your milled lumber.

jerry-


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## gbever (Jan 11, 2011)

*logs to lumber*

now that you have your rough lumber dried to stable ( hahaha) you will need to flatten and straiten it. straitening ,the easier of the two two can be done with a jointer (most common) or with a long fence on a table saw ( more difficult). there are some new guided circular saws that could be used (exe. festo ) but are very expensive. flattening is usualy done by first creating one flat side on a jointer and then running through a surface planer go careful and slow, measure a lot,and you will have some nice lumber....


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## pwoller (Jan 12, 2011)

820wards said:


> Pwoller,
> 
> A joiner is a must to get two square edges. Once you have squared two edges you can then use your table saw or band saw to finish squaring up the lumber. Now, what size should get depends on how wide your milled lumber is. I have a 6" joiner so I mill the wood so that I can cut 6" wide stock. If I want larger lumber I just edge my slabs. Have fun with your milled lumber.
> 
> jerry-



Help me understand. If I have a 6 inch jointer then I shouldn t worry about milling wood over 6 inches wide?


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## 820wards (Jan 12, 2011)

pwoller said:


> Help me understand. If I have a 6 inch jointer then I shouldn t worry about milling wood over 6 inches wide?



Pwoller,

Mill your slab what ever your mill will handle. You then need to rip them to size that your joiner will handle, and that seems to be 6" in with. I think you need to decide what you want to make and then dimension your lumber accordingly. 

There are other people on this list that have built router frames that allows them to use a router to surface wide slabs. You could build something like that if you want to flatten/smooth your lumber. 

jerry-


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## glennschumann (Jan 12, 2011)

Welcome to the world of milling, and now working from your "other" wood pile.

I do not have a join(t)er, but I still make flat boards, albiet shorter ones. One option is to find a 2x10 that is really flat, then attach your rough lumber to it... I've used hot glue, and screws. I then run the flat 2x10 against the fence of my band saw (12" depth of cut) to make one flat face. The planer can make your second face. Likewise, attach a long straight edge to the now flat board, and make a straight edge on your board with your table saw using the attached straight edge against the fence.

I've found that hot glue is actually pretty good at holding wood in place. Put it in the areas where it stays thicker (not right where the rough cut wood meets the 2x10) and it will be easier to cut off. I'd be willing to try running it through the planer this way too. If you use screws, just countersink them below what ever blade they will be passing by, but don't over tighten them, or you will warp the board, and it will re-warp when you detach it from the straight edge (if it remained straight). I usually screw my flatened board to the straight edge as I mentioned above for the table saw step.

Depending on the size of the boards, if you have bigger board than planer, you might consider a hand held power planer (Makita N1900b is one option). I find these to be really handy to work on large boards, and to take off the outer layer of wood that usually contains dirt and stuff that has been blown onto them while drying. This dirt is so hard on blades and stuff that I take it off with the planer before anything. The planer has carbide blades that are easily replaceable (or sharpenable if you have diamond stones).

If you need shorter pieces of wood, rough cut them out first, and use your most warped pieces if the grain works for your project... short boards take less work to true up.

Hope that helps.

P.S. The Makita is good for rough planing, you will have to use a hand planer or belt sander to make the board really smooth.


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## bobt (Jan 12, 2011)

Unless you are set on surfacing long wide boards it is much easier to cut the pieces you need for a project to approximate LxW (larger than you need) before surfacing them. Then start on the jointer and surface one edge and face before going to the planer.

If the lumber is fairly flat without twists, it can be surfaced both faces on the planer. If there is cup in the board, put it hump up for the first side.

If you have a large amount to surface, take it to a pro. The last time I had lumber surfaced it was $0.14 per board foot surfaced two sides. 

Bob


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## losttheplot (Jan 12, 2011)

pwoller said:


> I have a planer, tablesaw, circular saw and some other small tools. Do I need to buy a joiner to square up this wood? Anyone have a step by step on how the make their milled wood into lumber? Help please!




If you have more time than money, do a Google search on how to joint wood with a planer, you can build a sled and surface two sides parallel.


If you have more money than time buy a jointer.


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## huskyhank (Jan 12, 2011)

I generally don't edge my boards so when its time to process them further, I snap a chalk line and cut that with a circular saw. Use a guide if it helps but a little practice will get you going straight enough. Then use that cut edge against the fence of the table saw to get two parallel sides.

You have to flatten one face before you thickness the board. A jointer is the standard way to do this. You'll want one wide enough to do the widest lumber you want. A planer sled is a good workaround if a jointer is not available.

As mentioned above, roughing out your project parts is a good way to handle this. Its easier to do and you will loose less wood than trying to flatten and thickness a long board before you cut to length.

If you're thinking of big slabs then a router sled is one way, another is a hand scrub plane.


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## betterbuilt (Jan 12, 2011)

huskyhank said:


> I generally don't edge my boards so when its time to process them further, I snap a chalk line and cut that with a circular saw. Use a guide if it helps but a little practice will get you going straight enough. Then use that cut edge against the fence of the table saw to get two parallel sides.
> 
> You have to flatten one face before you thickness the board. A jointer is the standard way to do this. You'll want one wide enough to do the widest lumber you want. A planer sled is a good workaround if a jointer is not available.
> 
> ...


 
:agree2: This is basically how I do it.


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## Marine5068 (Jan 13, 2011)

Of course like said above, you'll need one good straight edge first. I assume you're milling with a CSM? 
Bobt has it right when starting with the woodworking to get boards.
If you want to mill boards from trees, then make them the usual stock sizes (just over actually) that you plan to use for your projects later. Or just cut them close to the thicknesses that you'll be using and make sure they are squared using the table saw and put them aside to dry. 
Most of the pieces will need some drying and curing time anyways. So cut them to size and put them aside as is for a while.
The type of work you're talking about is not really milling but rather wood working to make the pieces needed for a project. (I think that's what you're asking isn't it?)
That said, you need to start with a plan for each project. Not just in your head, but also draw something to follow and do take-offs from. It'll make it easier to plan and follow this way.
If you've ever had the opportunity to watch a master wood worker or cabinetmaker in action, he always rough cuts his stock to just over what is needed for the project. The pieces are cut just over the widths he needs on the table saw. Then it's to the joiner to get one flat edge and then to the planer to get proper thicknesses and then the finish table saw or cabinet saw to rip to more exact widths.
Now he does all his FANCY work after he has his stock pieces ready. By FANCY, I mean the cross cuts, angle cuts, joinery, routing, surface finishing etc.
Maybe a good book on cabinetry or such would be a good reference to have as well.
Lots of good books at home stores like Lowes or Home Depot.
Good Luck.
~Stan


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## hdcoop72 (Jan 13, 2011)

glennschumann said:


> Welcome to the world of milling, and now working from your "other" wood pile.
> 
> I do not have a join(t)er, but I still make flat boards, albiet shorter ones. One option is to find a 2x10 that is really flat, then attach your rough lumber to it... I've used hot glue, and screws. I then run the flat 2x10 against the fence of my band saw (12" depth of cut) to make one flat face. The planer can make your second face. Likewise, attach a long straight edge to the now flat board, and make a straight edge on your board with your table saw using the attached straight edge against the fence.
> 
> ...


 
Thank You for your experienced advice!! i too have learned.


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## Hillbilly Rick (Jan 14, 2011)

Pwoller,
It all depends on what you're doing with the wood.Outside projects air drying is fine.A year or so in a covered bldg.(pole barn) works depending on the climate.
I make furniture, after my logs are cut I'll either sticker stack them to air dry or put them in the kiln.For indoors I recommend 6% moisture content(mc)I cut boards close to size +2" in length, joint the concave edge until square, then face joint the best face, put face down square edge against fence of table saw and square the other edge then run through the planer. If you need more than one board of the same size run all boards through one step before going to the next. this will save hours of set up time and headaches. If you need boards wider than your jointer the router jig mentioned earlier works great but beware, the wider a single board the more likely it will warp, twist, crack or cup. I prefer to cut the board in half, flip one over and glue them up, UNLESS, it's a special grain pattern you don't want to lose.
Best of luck,
Rick


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## mrbentontoyou (Jan 15, 2011)

an edge jointing method with the table saw is to simply tack a straight piece of ply to the face of a board so it overhangs one edge slightly. rip the board with the ply against the fence, cutting off the opposite waney/live edge of your board.

you can also edge joint with a router table if you have or want to make one.
You need a large straight bit and separate infeed and outfeed fences which you can adjust independently. position infeed fence for 1/32" - 1/8" depth of cut and outfeed fence exactly in line with the bit. 

as mentioned above a jig to flatten the first face with your planer is easy enough to make (although it is a bit large and unwieldy).

if you do pick up a jointer, i would look for at least an 8" jointer because along with more capacity it will likely have more mass and longer beds, making working with large, long boards easier. keep in mind you can flatten boards up to about 50% wider than your jointer knives, for example 9" boards on a 6" jointer or 12" boards on an 8" machine:

use a flat 1/4" thick piece of masonite or mdf, cut to cover your infeed table plus an extra 2" long. glue/screw a stop block to the underside on the front end to locate the jig (like a long bench hook) so the other edge extends right to the end of the infeed table next to the cutter head. 

lower infeed table to 1/4" plus desiered depth of cut. begin jointing at full width capacity, which will result in a shallow rabbet the width of your knives. when the rabbet is consistent for the full length of your board, flip it over, fit a piece of 1/2" ply/mdf to the rabbet and run it through your planer with the board running rabbet side down on the ply/mdf spacer. when the planed face is flat, flip the board and plane the shoulder of the rabbeted face until flat. now both faces are parallel and you can move on to squaring the edges. 

I don't know how you are drying your wood or what type of kiln you have but to minimize the movement of your boards during drying:

-make sure the ends of the logs are sealed well asap. 

-keep the boards stickered at all times on a level footing. 

-keep your air dry stack absolutely level, evenly stickered, and ratchet strapped down tight. check the straps periodically to retighten as the wood shrinks slightly.

-let air dry until 20%- 22% MC before going into the kiln.

-use ratchet straps in the kiln too. if your kiln design allows, retighten as needed.

-make sure the air movement in the kiln is sufficient to allow even drying in all areas of the interior. if the fans don't move enough air or if there are pockets of low air movement, the wood will dry unevenly and cause stresses which will manifest themselves as warping, twisting, checking, cupping, etc.

-make sure the stickers (especially in the kiln) are at least 3/4" thick to allow air movement. 

-keep fingers crossed because there's just no telling.


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## TraditionalTool (Jan 15, 2011)

pwoller said:


> Help me understand. If I have a 6 inch jointer then I shouldn t worry about milling wood over 6 inches wide?


I wouldn't worry about that at all. Wood is wood, IMO, and if you really wanted to dimension lumber by hand you could do that as well. (i.e., hand planes, hand saws, etc...).

While it is true that you are best having a jointer to flatten an edge (i.e., a 6" jointer would be able to straight edge a 6" thick piece of wood), you can do it with a circular saw using a straight edge as well.

Too many people get caught up in getting all the equipment needed to dimension, when you can still build with rough lumber.

Start cutting some wood and sticker it so it will dry.

I highly encourage people to build with logs or timber, so if you can squirrel away cants of wood you could build yourself a nice timber frame structure. Main thing is getting trees that you can turn into cants/lumber.


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