# Tough Day Milling Elm



## Daninvan (Nov 2, 2010)

My buddy and I showed up at the milling site this AM, there was a couple of elm logs for us. One about 8' long the other about 10'. 

I arrived first and started peeling the bark on one of them. It was one of the most tenaciously attached barks I have ever tried to remove. 







My buddy arrived second and so had to debark the larger piece, which also had a promising looking crotch at one end. I was hoping that I could mill one and he could mill the other, so we would get a lot of milling done. Unfortunately, it was not to be. I got 3 slabs pulled off of the smaller log, but to use the 60" mill on the larger log took both of us to manhandle. 

Notice as well what a lovely day it was. Unusual for Vancouver in November.











We got three of the crotch slabs. It was one of those days where there just seemed to be an awful lot of time spent on setup. Debarking, sharpening, changing powerheads, trimming, etc. Six and half hours for two guys to get six slabs is hardly a good day's work. I am so disgusted about it that I may go back tomorrow and try to peel a few more slabs off to make it seem worthwhile. I am sure I can get another ten slabs out of what's left. I also hate to let it go now that so much time has been spent getting them all set up. The rest of the cuts will be pure gravy. 

Also, the larger log was spalted, it had a crazy pattern in it.


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## mtngun (Nov 2, 2010)

Wow, clear and sunny in Vancouver at this time of year. Same here. What happened to the La Nina moisture ?

Nice wood, thanks for the pics.


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## deeker (Nov 2, 2010)

mtngun said:


> Wow, clear and sunny in Vancouver at this time of year. Same here. What happened to the La Nina moisture ?
> 
> Nice wood, thanks for the pics.



I agree!


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## Woodsurfer (Nov 2, 2010)

Amazing place to mill and you got some great looking slabs. Looks like you had to walk the plank to cut that giant crotch. Arrrr!


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## BobL (Nov 2, 2010)

Despite the headaches, that still looks like it was still a great day out.

Nice weather, beautiful place, problems to sort out, great looking wood. Hey I see you also have serious shade to mill in as well!

Re: Debarking, I'm seriously thinking about a portable angle grinder with a tungsten carbide chopping type blade. One of the nicest blades I've seen is this one from Arbortech but there are similar ones out there. On that website there is a vid including a couple of seconds showing how they just mince their way thru dirty bark. 

With an angle grinder I would just do a line along where the the chain is going to cut.


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## Daninvan (Nov 2, 2010)

That's a good idea! Just debarking the part where you need to cut would save a lot of time/effort. Perhaps you could set up some type of height-adjustable carriage that runs on the guide board and has an arm that hangs over the edge where the grinder is secured. All you would need to do would be to turn the grinder on and push the carriage along. Eyeballing it consistently by hand would be too tough I think.

Or you could be more extreme and affix it to your mill - I guess you'd need one on each side of the mill actually - so it debarks as you cut!

For me, there's no power available there so I'll have to stay low tech. Most logs I find I can debark in a reasonable amount of time. For others I think there are debarking tools called spuds that might do it for me!


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## 820wards (Nov 2, 2010)

*Salty Logs?*

Daninvan,

Question...

Have you or anyone else found any problems with logs you have milled that have been waterlogged in salt water?

I have a friend who has a piece of wood he recovered off of Bikini Island. He has tried to using the wood for various projects and found that any steel type of fasteners begin to rust very quickly.

Since your logs are pretty far North, I'm sure the salt content in the water is much less than the waters around Bikini Island. My friend also told me that you cannot eat any coconuts that come off the island because they are radioactive.

jerry-


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## Daninvan (Nov 3, 2010)

No, I haven't experienced problems with salt in wood. But to be honest most of the trees that I mill there (despite it being on the beach) have never touched the ocean, they are street and park trees that the city dumps there. 

That being said there are miles and miles of log booms all over the BC coast, the logs are in salt water, but not for a long time I don't think. The wood is used all over the world without complaint. 

Maybe it's a function of how long a piece of wood has been in the water, and the species too perhaps?

I probably would not have picked up a piece of wood off Bikini myself, of course that is where atomic testing was done in the 50's so the coconuts (and probably the wood too) there will be radioactive for a while I imagine. 

I do sometimes wonder about urban trees, if they collect toxins from the air/ground/water in cities and if any special precautions should be taken with them. I do use a respirator when I mill, not sure what else might be required.


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## 820wards (Nov 3, 2010)

Daninvan said:


> No, I haven't experienced problems with salt in wood. But to be honest most of the trees that I mill there (despite it being on the beach) have never touched the ocean, they are street and park trees that the city dumps there.
> 
> That being said there are miles and miles of log booms all over the BC coast, the logs are in salt water, but not for a long time I don't think. The wood is used all over the world without complaint.
> 
> ...




I'll try to find out exactly what type of wood he has. He worked on Bikini for years as a scientist. I do remember him telling me the trees actually grow in the water so I can see they would absorb salt from the sea over time.

I to were a respirator when milling. That fine wood dust is not good on the lungs, and respirators are cheap insurance.

Thanks
jerry-


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## BobL (Nov 3, 2010)

Great pics Dan.



Daninvan said:


> That's a good idea! Just debarking the part where you need to cut would save a lot of time/effort. Perhaps you could set up some type of height-adjustable carriage that runs on the guide board and has an arm that hangs over the edge where the grinder is secured. All you would need to do would be to turn the grinder on and push the carriage along. Eyeballing it consistently by hand would be too tough I think.



It would be easy enough to make a simple height adjustable fence for a cordless angle grinder that you run down the side of each log . Good battery powered ones are not cheap but two batteries would easily cover a days milling

An alternative I just thought about is making one that attaches to a 50 cc CS and uses the arbortech head. Could be a fun project!!!!!

Too many projects and so little time . . . . . .


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## Hillbilly3995 (Nov 3, 2010)

*Debarking*

Anyone tried a shock collar? yuk yuk yuk:greenchainsaw:



(ok, now someone should push me down the stairs)


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## betterbuilt (Nov 3, 2010)

Nice log. Looks like its worth another trip. 

They make a debarker. https://www.baileysonline.com/itemdetail.asp?item=49600&catID=9763

I've used it and it works pretty good when the blades are sharp.


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## BobL (Nov 3, 2010)

betterbuilt said:


> Nice log. Looks like its worth another trip.
> 
> They make a debarker. https://www.baileysonline.com/itemdetail.asp?item=49600&catID=9763
> 
> I've used it and it works pretty good when the blades are sharp.



Sure but the cut is overly wide (and as a result slow) compared to what is needed for removing just enough bark for the chain not to have to cut through dirty bark. What we need is a cut that is about 1/2" wide and cuts through up to ~4" deep bark in a single pass. 4" is a hard ask but 2" or 3" cut should be possible

I'm now thinking;
a 6" dado type blade on the end of a CS bar :jawdrop:
or
a single 6" carbide tipped blade running at a slight angle to create a 1/2" wide cut.
or
dual carbide tipped skip chains (offset so no 2 cutters are touching) running on a 9" bar.
or 
single carbide tipped chain with CS bar on angle running on 9" bar.





Anyone else got any ideas.


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## betterbuilt (Nov 3, 2010)

How about a cut saw? It might be a bear to handle.


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## Daninvan (Nov 3, 2010)

I am not sure that cutting/grinding is the right way to go. I know when doing it by hand, it's a lot easier to try and peel it off. Some like cedar will peel off in long pieces, but even tough ones, if you get the axe into the cambium you can often pry a little piece off. 

Peeling/prying also will leave the edge of the slab less mangled than if you grind it, which is useful if you want to use the slab whole rather than cutting it up.

I'm thinking some kind of thin (like 1/2" as Bob suggests) bladed tool, more like a hoe, that you push along and peel the bark off. It might require a couple versions depending on the thickness of the bark. 

Dan


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## gemniii (Nov 3, 2010)

Elm is wonderful, we had a humongous old elm tree which, when I was a teen, my father gave me the privilege to split for firewood, by hand.


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## BobL (Nov 3, 2010)

Daninvan said:


> I am not sure that cutting/grinding is the right way to go. I know when doing it by hand, it's a lot easier to try and peel it off. Some like cedar will peel off in long pieces, but even tough ones, if you get the axe into the cambium you can often pry a little piece off.


The problem with this for me is the bark is rarely straight and getting it to come off in straight strips is near impossible and I end up having to remove all the bark see below.



> I'm thinking some kind of thin (like 1/2" as Bob suggests) bladed tool, more like a hoe, that you push along and peel the bark off. It might require a couple versions depending on the thickness of the bark.


I ground a sharp edge on the end of a 2ft long 1/2" piece of hardened steel which I tried to use in conjunct with a wooden mallet to try and peel off strips of bark but in the end I used it more as a lever to strip of all the bark. This takes too long.



> Peeling/prying also will leave the edge of the slab less mangled than if you grind it, which is useful if you want to use the slab whole rather than cutting it up.


Yep - I understand that. I have an idea that incorporates a dynamic depth adjuster that would allow the operator the ability to change the cut depth as they walk along the log but bark depth is generally pretty irregular so even that wouldn't be a guarantee you wouldn't hit the sapwood. OTOH there is probably no need to remove 100% of the bark. Even if 50% of the bark was remove that would probably represent 90% of the grit and sand


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## 820wards (Nov 3, 2010)

gemniii said:


> Elm is wonderful, we had a humongous old elm tree which, when I was a teen, my father gave me the privilege to split for firewood, by hand.




Had you done something wrong that he gave you such a fun chore?

jerry-


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## BobL (Nov 3, 2010)

820wards said:


> Had you done something wrong that he gave you such a fun chore?
> 
> jerry-



When I was in grade 4 elementary my dad gave me £5 to pay the monthly butchers bill - in those days we bought meat from a butcher who gave us credit as long as we paid every month. That much money was also a substantial fraction of Dad's weekly take home pay and muggins here lost it! My penalty was I had to split up 5 tons of firewood using a standard axe (not even block splitter). The wood was not your namby pamby straight grain stuff but gnarly Aussie hardwood. It took me a month of working after school and on weekends. In the end my dad helped me chop up the really tough stuff. Boy could I chop hard wood after that - and can still do so today


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## gemniii (Nov 4, 2010)

BobL said:


> When I was in grade 4 elementary my dad gave me £5 to pay the monthly butchers bill - in those days we bought meat from a butcher who gave us credit as long as we paid every month. That much money was also a substantial fraction of Dad's weekly take home pay and muggins here lost it! My penalty was I had to split up 5 tons of firewood using a standard axe (not even block splitter). The wood was not your namby pamby straight grain stuff but gnarly Aussie hardwood. It took me a month of working after school and on weekends. In the end my dad helped me chop up the really tough stuff. Boy could I chop hard wood after that - and can still do so today



Did your Dad go to school or something near Poughkeepsie,New York and grow up with my Dad? They sure did think alike (most of my friends dad didn't do things like that).

And was that a short ton or a long ton?

And I think my privilege was granted because I bet my father I could split a cord by hand quicker than he could. So it was a lesson in learning to define things. He split birch and maple.


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## BobL (Nov 4, 2010)

gemniii said:


> Did your Dad go to school or something near Poughkeepsie,New York and grow up with my Dad? They sure did think alike (most of my friends dad didn't do thing like that.


My grandfather died when my dad was 13 so Dad had to leave school and go work in a mill to support his mom & 8 bothers and sisters. 

And was that a short ton or a long ton?[/QUOTE]
Our ton is 2200 lbs - so whatever that is.



> And I think my privilege was granted because I bet my father I could split a cord by hand quicker than he could. So it was a lesson in learning to define things. He split birch and maple.



I never got a chance to have that bet. When I was 13 my dad was in a logging accident and although he survived he was a physical wreck for the rest of his life.


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## 820wards (Nov 4, 2010)

BobL said:


> When I was in grade 4 elementary my dad gave me £5 to pay the monthly butchers bill - in those days we bought meat from a butcher who gave us credit as long as we paid every month. That much money was also a substantial fraction of Dad's weekly take home pay and muggins here lost it! My penalty was I had to split up 5 tons of firewood using a standard axe (not even block splitter). The wood was not your namby pamby straight grain stuff but gnarly Aussie hardwood. It took me a month of working after school and on weekends. In the end my dad helped me chop up the really tough stuff. Boy could I chop hard wood after that - and can still do so today




Bob,

I'll bet you could have arm wrestled anyone at your school and beat them hands down after splitting that much wood. 

I have split some eucalyptus here where I live with a maul and sledge hammer and it was no easy chore. As hard as the woods are where you live it must have felt like you were never going to get done. What your Dad taught you by repaying him with labor has made you a good person today. If a parent tried doing that here in the states, the kid would probably report the parent(s) for child abuse. 

jerry-


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## BobL (Nov 4, 2010)

820wards said:


> Bob,
> 
> I'll bet you could have arm wrestled anyone at your school and beat them hands down after splitting that much wood.


I wish - I was kinda small as a kid and academically one of the better kids in my class, plus my mouth got me into a bit of trouble. I learned to dodge punches and keep out of the way of bullies.



> I have split some eucalyptus here where I live with a maul and sledge hammer and it was no easy chore. As hard as the woods are where you live it must have felt like you were never going to get done. What your Dad taught you by repaying him with labor has made you a good person today. If a parent tried doing that here in the states, the kid would probably report the parent(s) for child abuse.



Dad was actually a softie and mom was the tough guy. She could just look at you from 50 yards away and you knew you were in trouble.


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## 820wards (Nov 4, 2010)

BobL said:


> Dad was actually a softie and mom was the tough guy. She could just look at you from 50 yards away and you knew you were in trouble.




Between the two of your parents I think you turned out to be a pretty nice guy, but then we haven't talked with the Mrs. yet.... Just kidding. Anyone who is willing to help so many people with this milling hobby we all have, has to be all right in my book.

jerry-


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## davidbrac (Nov 4, 2010)

Logosol also have a debarker
http://www.logosol.co.uk/sawmills/accessories/log-wizard.html


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## Daninvan (Nov 12, 2010)

*More Pics!*

Well my original plan to go back the next day and finish off what I had left behind kinda morphed into "go back someday". Which turned out to be today, only a week and half later. I thought I'd tackle one of the two remaining elm pieces.

I figured it would be easy. The log was already partly slabbed last time so it was flat, trimmed to width, and debarked. Two hours max in and out for 5 or 6 slabs I figured. Plus it was yet another beautiful dry sunny day, temp was maybe 10 degrees C, perfect!

Ha! You get overconfident and BOOM! Once again it was a day of endless small things going wrong. 

My main saw died on me after less than half a cut. It took forever to transfer the mill over to my number 3 saw. (number 2 was in pieces at home) I had to spend way more time sharpening than I expected, since I failed to resharpen after my last outing. Apparently the trimming the log to max 31" and debarking job I did last time was not up to snuff, I spent a lot of time on both. Again. The mill got loose at one point and messed up a cut. Then I noticed the last few boards were curved. 

I called it a day after five slabs and about 3 1/2 hours. I figure around 100 bf.







Dan, planing on setting aside a day or two for chainsaw maintenance, soon.


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## gemniii (Nov 12, 2010)

Purty wood!


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## BobL (Nov 12, 2010)

Looks like some real nice looking wood Dan.

What happened to the saw?


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## Daninvan (Nov 12, 2010)

BobL said:


> Looks like some real nice looking wood Dan.
> 
> What happened to the saw?



I'm happy with the wood, even though the pieces are short, maybe 3 1/2 feet long. The grain is actually quite straight and clear, so it should be good stuff once its dried out. I am getting a bit sick of elm though, I have enough elm stacked up to (pick your favourite metaphor).

The saw, once it warmed up, kept quitting on me. It would just kind of go from full throttle screaming to burbling to a stop in a matter of a second or two, sometimes it would recover and carry on, sometimes not. It's been getting worse the past couple of times I used it. (NOT running out of gas!)

I had changed the muffler recently, to one that had pretty much zero back pressure, so that may have affected things. 

Since I don't have any interest in tuning/maintaining the motors myself, it's off to the shop tomorrow. I meant to do it today, but, umm, I fell asleep on the couch after coming home from milling!


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## BobL (Nov 12, 2010)

Daninvan said:


> I'm happy with the wood, even though the pieces are short, maybe 3 1/2 feet long. The grain is actually quite straight and clear, so it should be good stuff once its dried out. I am getting a bit sick of elm though, I have enough elm stacked up to (pick your favourite metaphor).


I'd like to be milling anything.



> The saw, once it warmed up, kept quitting on me. It would just kind of go from full throttle screaming to burbling to a stop in a matter of a second or two, sometimes it would recover and carry on, sometimes not. It's been getting worse the past couple of times I used it. (NOT running out of gas!)


 Sounds like a blocked carby?



> I had changed the muffler recently, to one that had pretty much zero back pressure, so that may have affected things.


Did you retune after the replacement?



> Since I don't have any interest in tuning/maintaining the motors myself, it's off to the shop tomorrow. I meant to do it today, but, umm, I fell asleep on the couch after coming home from milling!


 No beer involved??


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## Daninvan (Nov 19, 2010)

OK some more info on this. I took the saw to a local shop for a tune up, told them about the dying problem mid-cut. 

The mechanic there called me and said "did you try loosening the gas cap when it happened". I had not done so, but after I spoke to him the lightbulb went on. I had purchased a new gas cap for the saw recently and the correlation between new gas cap and the saw dying was pretty clear. I guess I can go back to my old gas cap, but I am not sure why the new gas cap would not vent properly and (presumably) allow a vacuum to build up inside the tank.

I like the new gas cap since it has a little plastic bit on the inside that prevents the cap from falling on the ground when I am filling the saw up . . .


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## BobL (Nov 20, 2010)

Daninvan said:


> OK some more info on this. I took the saw to a local shop for a tune up, told them about the dying problem mid-cut.
> 
> The mechanic there called me and said "did you try loosening the gas cap when it happened". I had not done so, but after I spoke to him the lightbulb went on. I had purchased a new gas cap for the saw recently and the correlation between new gas cap and the saw dying was pretty clear. I guess I can go back to my old gas cap, but I am not sure why the new gas cap would not vent properly and (presumably) allow a vacuum to build up inside the tank.
> 
> I like the new gas cap since it has a little plastic bit on the inside that prevents the cap from falling on the ground when I am filling the saw up . . .



Glad you found the problem. I always listen for the sound of hissing when I open the gas can in case the tank vent valve is getting dirty or stuck. This happened to a friend of mine when his 660 seized because his tank vent valve was partially blocked and the saw was running too lean. Usually a saw just wont run if it can't get the fuel but if there is just enough to keep it running it can do nasty things.


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## huskyhank (Nov 20, 2010)

I assume you are using one of the 2100s from your signature. The saw probably needs a new tank vent. Or at least the old one cleaned out. The shop may have to improvise as the old parts may not be around any more. You can use your new cap and the saw will run great. While they have it ask them to rebuild the carb.


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## Daninvan (Nov 20, 2010)

Hank, thanks for the heads up. I'll check into that.

Dan


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## Daninvan (Dec 10, 2010)

*Finished!!*

Well I got down to the beach today to finish off that last piece of elm. I had started it with my buddy back at the beginning of November, but we were not able to complete it. The plan was to get back to it "soon".

So I arrived today and it was all set up and ready to go. I trimmed a bit off and started at it. The first cut went without any drama. 






Then, problems. I had a friend running the saw for the first time, she got about two feet and then had a terrible time with it. I took over and realized that we had encountered something embedded in the log. A clue was the big patch of bark inclusion right where the saw had stopped. So we pried out a bunch of junk, including some rocks!






Then, we had to change mills since the chain had been badly damaged by meeting the rock(s). We restarted the cut at the bottom to save any rocks to the end of the cut, and pushed uphill to complete the cut. Luckily, no more rocks.






In the end we finished off the elm, got five slabs, and I have two new helpers!


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## mtngun (Dec 10, 2010)

Great pics, Danivan


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## mrbentontoyou (Dec 10, 2010)

*success!*

congrats on finally finishing up.

question- maybe i missed this earlier in the thread but what is your claim to the logs on the beach? can you just take whatever washes up? if that's the case you are luuuucky...

here in nyc the city parks department is so uptight about fallen trees on city property you can actually get arrested and fined for taking/milling trees that blow down.


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## Daninvan (Dec 11, 2010)

We can't take what washes up either, the city has a designated area where they put stuff they don't want / can't sell to mills and let's people go at it. There's a benefit to them also, they don't have pay to get them hauled to the dump!

You are not supposed to mill in the parks here either, I have may have done it (!) but you can get in trouble if they catch you.


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## BobL (Dec 11, 2010)

Nice pics, but it looks cold?

I forget, do you always mill with a dust mask?


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## MR4WD (Dec 11, 2010)

I'm pretty jealous! English Bay/Burrard Inlet? How do you get access down there? There must be tons of gates! I do a lot of work on the coast, maybe I'll give you a heads up one day and bring the mill down. I currently have no interest in anything but softwoods, but I'd like to learn from another miller.

Thanks,
Chad.


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## BobL (Dec 11, 2010)

MR4WD said:


> I'm pretty jealous! English Bay/Burrard Inlet? How do you get access down there? There must be tons of gates! I do a lot of work on the coast, maybe I'll give you a heads up one day and bring the mill down. I currently have no interest in anything but softwoods, but I'd like to learn from another miller.
> 
> Thanks,
> Chad.



I've been there - not a single gate or fence - pull of main road and park in the car park , walk 10 yards and you're there.


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## rarefish383 (Dec 11, 2010)

What a place to be able to mill! When I was a kid my Dad had a contract with Wash DC to remove street trees infected with Dutch Elm, and we removed many residential trees as well. All of the lap wood that was easy fire place size went on our wood pile. The brush and big wood went on a burn pile. Part of the contract with DC stipulated that all equipment that came in contact with the wood had to be "washed down" with alcohal. So, it was my job to take a gallon jug and a rag and wash all of the chainsaws, pole and pruning saws every day before we left the job site, Joe.


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## Daninvan (Dec 11, 2010)

BobL said:


> Nice pics, but it looks cold?
> 
> I forget, do you always mill with a dust mask?



Not that cold. It was probably about 7 degrees C. We really lucked out with the rain though, I was up at about 6 AM and it was raining like the end of the world. Surprisingly by 10 AM or so it was quite decent. 






I use a combined particle/organic vapours mask, my friends were using some kind of dust mask. Digging into that kind of subject a bit, I'm not happy with my eye protection. I wear either plastic safety glasses, or a mesh shield (before I stepped on it and broke it). I find both of them allow stuff to come up underneath and I still wind up with crap in my eye, especially my left eye as it is closest to the mill. I'm considering switching to goggles but am pretty sure that fogging up will be a problem with them.

Chad, as for access, as Bobl says, access is simple and completely unrestricted. Let me know when you come to town and we can get together and mill something up. 

What happened to elm (and Chestnut) in eastern Canada and the US was terrible. Doubly bad that so much of it was just wasted by burning, as in the end whatever measures were taken to prevent the spread of the blight were not successful. We do have some of each of them here in Vancouver, I guess we are too far from their native range for the disease to have reached here. 

Dan


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## pwoller (Dec 11, 2010)

How big a mill do you run on those 2100's? How long of a bar?


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## TSRuff (Dec 11, 2010)

I use mesh goggles and have found them to be quite good at keeping the sawdust out and also do not fog. My only caution is that in the sunlight you can end up with some interesting tan lines. Since you are in Vancouver that should be less of an issue 

I get mine from Bailey's: http://www.baileysonline.com/itemdetail.asp?item=35750&utm_source=base&utm_medium=cse


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## jimdad07 (Dec 11, 2010)

Great thread Danivan. I have major wood envy. All the elms up here in Northern New York are lost to the Dutch elm disease as soon as the bark starts to get a little rough it seems. I have a bunch in the eight to ten inch range on my property that have died off in the last two years, the good ones I will mill and the others will be firewood.


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## BobL (Dec 11, 2010)

I love that Photo Dan, . . . orange sawdust and blue sky, ocean & city in the background. . .

Re: Dust mask

The only time I've felt the need to wear a organic vapor mask while milling was using a 3120 running 25:1 mix on windless days - the exhaust fumes made me feel quite ill. As soon as we switched to 40:1 this problem seemed to reduce quite a bit but one of course does not know and there could have been some effect going on that my senses could not detect. The other thing I noticed was that the 3120 warmed my legs a bit more than I liked. To some extent all saws with with forward facing mufflers where the exhaust bounces off the log will have these problems. I haven't experienced this that badly with the 440 or the 660, probably because I haven't milled for long periods with either saw. I do notice the air is generally clearer around me when when I switch from the 440/660 to the 076/880 on the same day.

In the case of dust, maybe it's our timber but dust does not seem to be a problem to me that I know about. My standard cumulative detector is the "size and color of boogers test". These are always smaller after a day of milling than I seem to get after an hour of wood turning, even though I have a dust collector running while I'm turning. Of course, once again stuff could be happening I'm not seeing.

I guess all this is a good argument for a winch


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## Daninvan (Dec 12, 2010)

Thanjks for all the kind comments. 

I think I'm fortunate to have easy access to this type of wood for free. I'm sure it'll come to an end someday, with city budgets being tight and all, but I understand the city has been allowing it since the 70's.

Mesh goggles! Brilliant! Thank you for pointing that out to me, I will order up a pair ASAP.

On the 2100 I normally use a 36" bar, my mill will permit me to mill about 31" wide. I also have a 60" bar, the 2100 seems up to the task, but the operator finds it to be waaaay more work, so a helper is essential with the bigger bar!

I wear the vapour mask it it seems like cheap insurance, but I do find sometimes still feeling a bit woozy at the end of the day. It depends a lot on which way the wind is blowing.

I got a chip that wouldn't come out in my eye last year. I had to go to the eye doctor to get it taken out. Ironically the piece came out while I was sitting in her waiting room, but I still got a tongue lashing from her!

Dan


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## Kaps (May 14, 2012)

Could you get away with only doing one side - that is, the one that the chain 'pulls' through? Seems like it wouldn't be all that critical to get the other as the cut goes from clean wood out....


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