Adventures in Edging

[mtngun]

A couple of folks asked about edging, so this is how I go about it. It's not the only way or the best way, but it's something that can be done using only a good skil saw and a chalk line.

As it happens, today my goal is to make 2x4's and 2x6's for roof purlins. The purlins will be laid flat, not standing up, so if they warp a little, it's not a big deal. Their main function is to be solid enough to support the snow load and to hold the roofing screws.

First up, a slab from the outer jacket. Some of the sapwood is punky.....

But the heartwood is solid, so we'll use it and install it with the heartwood facing the roofing screws.

This is compression wood, with the rings tighter on one side than another. Compression wood is almost guaranteed to warp. If you were sawing on a bandmill rather than a CSM, perhaps you would rotate the log such that the slabs would have equal rings on both sides ? But CSMing logs where they lay, you can't be too picky.

My first cut is through the center of the growth rings, because I just *KNOW* it is going to warp when cut through the center. And sure enough, it does.

If I had enough extra width to play with, I would go back later and reedge the warped center cut. In this case, there is no surplus width, so I'll have to live with the banana shape.

One side yielded a 2x4, the other a 2x6. As you can see, the center cut is bowed, and the outer cut has some wane. There is also some punky wood on this side. Not the ultimate in quality.

Continued in next post....

 

[mtngun]

The heartwood side of the boards. They will be laid with this side facing up so the roofing screws will have solid wood to grab.

More later.

 

[stipes]

Damn nice job by goin with a chalk line...

I usally have to clamp up a straight edge or a 2x4 for a guide...Lookin good...

 

[mtngun]

A pithy problem. The pith will eventually crack and the board will tend to cup at the pith. Sometimes you can get away with centering the heart on a big board like a 2x12, but that won't work on 2x4's and 2x6's. The pith has got to go.

That's what I meant when I cautioned phred45 that one 2x12 does not necessarily yield two 2x6's.

Ripped down the center of the pith, and as usual, it bows like a banana.

I prefer to cut an inch off the pith side, but the board on the left does not have an inch to spare. Instead, I had to snap a chalk line right on the edge, and recut on the chalk line to clean up the bow.

The board on the right does have some extra width to play with, so an inch gets cut off the pith side.

Net result -- a 15" slab yields two reasonably straight 2x6's. Not perfectly straight, but that's about as good as I can do freehanding on a chalkline.

 

[schmuck.k]

good job long cuts freehanding on a chalk line is difficult

 

[mtngun]

Another crappy slab from the outer jacket. Crack on near end is from tree hitting ground. Some punky sapwood......

.....but good heartwood.

Can only get one 2x6 out of this slab. Edges are measured from center of growth rings.

A not-so-great, yet serviceable 2x6 (except for cracked area which may get cut off later). Edges will later be bucked into stovewood.

 

[Stihlman441]

Thanks for all the info,we can all learn from things like this and great pics,keep um coming.

 

[mtngun]

Here's another challenging slab. 17" - 18" wide, but there's punky sapwood, a pithy center, big knots, and a big crack.

The proposed layout. The center 2x4 will be pithy, and may crack and cup, but ...... it's just a roof purlin, so we'll let it slide.

End result. 3 small poor quality boards. This is why I would rather mill quality small logs than crappy big logs, but oh well, an ecologger can't be too picky.

 

[discounthunter]

sweet work.thanks for posting this. alot of people are under the miss conception that all wood is good,but you have shown it takes work to get useable wood from slabs.

 

[BobL]

Thanks for all the info,we can all learn from things like this and great pics,keep um coming.

+1

 

[jimdad07]

Nice Sawyer work. I can see how you can get much better quality over using a mini-mill as an edger. Looks like it is very time consuming.

 

[hdcoop72]

I' m always impressed by just not the amount of work you get done but also the time and effort you put forth relaying info and data!

As a newbe just getting in to milling (a used 066 and granberg ) I've been soaking up a lot of good info from this forum.

I was curious as to edging... how many rip cuts can you make with your Makita before letting it rest? It's gotta be hard on it even with a sharp blade.

 

[Circle B MN]

Great post.! Very informative...

 

[mtngun]

how many rip cuts can you make with your Makita before letting it rest? It's gotta be hard on it even with a sharp blade.

I flog the Makita, and sometimes it gets too hot to touch. The switch was fried and replaced just last month.

I should mention that all my 2x boards are a full 2", sometimes 2 1/8". That extra thickness makes the edging saw work harder compared to cutting a storebought 2x that is only 1 5/8".

Like ripping with chainsaws, a sharp blade makes all the difference. A dull blade makes the saw work harder and get hot.

A carbide blade looses its sharpness after a full day of ripping. I've got one of those cheap Horror Fright circular saw sharpeners -- it actually does a decent job, even though it is rinky dinky and the instructions are non existent.

**** Depot sells a house brand 18T ripping blade for $10 or so. They seem to rip just as well as the expensive name brands. But on the other hand, some off-brand import blades that I bought on the 'bay were useless.

It seems more difficult to make a good 2x4 than a good 2x10. The little boards warp easier than big boards.

Here's another problem child. A big slab from a butt log, and like most DF butt logs, it has pitch cracks, a dark seam with pitch oozing out -- and this is a dry log, not green. The gooey pitch acts as a glue, but eventually it dries and then the crack separates easily. You either have to cut out the pitch crack, or else sometimes you can get away with putting it in the middle of a big board, where there will be little stress.

The plan.

But after ripping the boards, we find yet another pitch crack through the middle of one 2x4. I'll still probably be able to use the 2x4 as a purlin, but it wouldn't be strong enough for a rafter or joist.

 

[DRB]

Nice Sawyer work. I can see how you can get much better quality over using a mini-mill as an edger. Looks like it is very time consuming.

This is the part most people don't always understand. Making an end product from a log is very time consuming.

mtngun Nice work of using as much of the log as you can.

 

[phred45]

Very impressive, Mtngun. Thank you for all this info. I better find some kind of guide to cut the long side cuts, no way will I get them as clean and straight as yours.

 

[1harlowr]

Thanks for taking the time to post

 

[Timberframed]

Very impressive, Mtngun. Thank you for all this info. I better find some kind of guide to cut the long side cuts, no way will I get them as clean and straight as yours.

You can always use a long straight board as a guide screwed or clamped but you might be surprised how easy it is to follow a line.

 

[DaltonPaull]

Looks like your doing a nice well thought out job with the edging.

One thing that I learned ripping down walnut slabs with the worm saw is that it pays off to drive a small wedge after I get 18" inches or so into the cut. That way the saw never gets pinched and I can cut much faster without pinching or burning. Sometimes with hardwood it pinches so tight that it stalls the saw. Perhaps your fir is more forgiving though.

 

[BIG JAKE]

I don't like worm saws-too heavy. I have 3 circular saws I use for edging-an old black and decker, a makita and a milwaukee. The makita seems the weakest of the three for power. For blades, I use quality thin kerf blades on everything even my table saws. Frees up power and cut much faster, with less waste. Right now I'm using firestorm 24 tooth rip/cross cut blades and they are working well for softwoods. I'm milling doug fir and pine-when the blades pitch up I'll swap every so often. Use whatever works to remove pitch off blades and keep em clean as this reduces friction.