Milling for a TimberFrame - advice for a rookie

[MJR]

As a owner of a LL24 there are many very good small band mills out there. Your biggest problem seems to be moving the logs. A LL24 is not made to be moved often (to the logs). I remember back when someone posted here a wonderful home he built with a CSM. A ripsaw would seem better than a LL24. My 2 cent. The best of luck.

 

[irishcountry]

Just stumbled onto noracreek.com says one of the guys used a chainsaw mill to mill all the beams for a timberframe structure would seem like alot of work though. I would like to make some beams too but it seems the granberg mini-mill would be easier to use instead of trying to get a boxed heart beams with a regular alaskan type mill I would like to see some pics of that (using a reg. alaskan type to make box heartwood beams) or hear some pointers that may make it easy if anyone has any please post em'. The website above might not have tons of how to but might give some inspiration it also show a little cordwood construction. Wouldn't mind a little timberframe cordwood sauna (woodfired) especially if this winter is like the last!! Thanks irishcountry

 

[woodshop]

As a owner of a LL24 there are many very good small band mills out there. Your biggest problem seems to be moving the logs. A LL24 is not made to be moved often (to the logs). I remember back when someone posted here a wonderful home he built with a CSM. A ripsaw would seem better than a LL24. My 2 cent. The best of luck.

If you're only talking portability, taking the mill right to the log, the Ripsaw is hard to beat. Keep in mind though, that it was never designed for production work. Compared to an LL24, it's much slower, takes a lot more calories to mill that lumber and only has a 14" wide capacity. On a very good day you might get 500 bd ft of lumber milled with the Ripsaw. You can do that on most larger stationary bandmills much quicker than that and a lot easier on your back. It's really one of those apples and oranges. That said... if you have the TIME and stamina, you can walk into the woods with just a csm, a Ripsaw and some block and tackle to move/lift timbers, and turn a stand of trees into a full blown couple story cabin. I'm only 55, I might just do that some day.

 

[irishcountry]

thats the spirit! I would love to do the same mill all my own timbers and build SOMETHING! I have a very meager pile in my garage after the summer and I love timberframe stuff I have even thought about building my daughter a small playhouse just to get some practice in with some timberframe joints but I better wait til I have some beams to work with that why i would like to see if someone has a good way to make beams with a reg. style mill I will probrobly get a mini-mill someday just for making beams, well if you do start a cabin keep us informed!!

 

[BushWhack]

thx guys. My biggest problem is definitely moving the timbers around without machinery, marking the land etc. , no doubt.

As i mentioned, I have access to about 10-12 good sized trees that currently stand around a roughly 1 acre clearing where our cottage is. So, I could cut them and I think (?) I might be able to get enough logs to supply at least the posts and beams for the main level of a roughly 20x24 ft cabin. Could then go to the local lumber mill and get the rest so as to stick build around this frame.

A question for you millers ...probly a stupid one ... but I guess it would be a real pain to have the sawyer move his mill to each tree where I felled it into the clearing, eh? Assuming a bandmill (no CSM) so as to get this job done quick. Just how portable is a portable band mill? Guess I should 'cut and roll' to a central spot ??

Which brings up another question, am I that much further ahead $$ wise (and energy) doing this then just buying the posts/beams from the mill as well? Or could I get a lot of 'sticks' out of these 10-12 trees in addtion to posts/beams so as to make it worthwhile??

I'll take a few pics of the property and some trees when I go up there next weekend. Maybe get some opinions on these trees as to whether they would be good candidates for beams/posts to begin with and what my best 'approach' might be ...

Oh, and in case i didn't mention b4, if any of you (and your mills) are travelling through the Laurentians area, stuck for a place ... I'll set ya up

Steve

 

[woodshop]

...Which brings up another question, am I that much further ahead $$ wise (and energy) doing this then just buying the posts/beams from the mill as well? Or could I get a lot of 'sticks' out of these 10-12 trees in addtion to posts/beams so as to make it worthwhile??

There is really no way of answering this unless we lived up near your area and thus knew local prices for lumber etc. Milled timber prices vary all over the place depending on supply and demand in your particular area. Even in my area here in Eastern PA, driving couple hours out into the western more rural areas of PA you can get lumber for half what you would pay in the Philadelphia suburbs. So whether if pays to do it yourself from your own timbers or buy it depends on lots of things, not the least of which is how much your time is worth.

 

[MJR]

When I built my little hunting camp last summer I used my Suburban to drag the logs to the milling/building site. You may be under thinking moving the logs. Yes, they can be heavy but they can be moved many ways. Start a thread on moving logs or search here and you will be surprised. Keep in mind the cost of gas driving two hours each way. My farm is 1.5 hours from my house and my free logs got expensive fast. Skidding logs in air conditioning truck was a great experience for me, watching the kids helping with the build, the sounds of the coyotes hunting while watching the camp fire, and the smells of the wife's venison stew cooking on a cold Nov. day, are something I will take to the grave. All I can say is this project is something you and your family can do if you want to. The best of luck.

 

[BushWhack]

mjr, great pt about gas, hadn't thought too much bout that. As for costs for lumber, in the city here for eg. I priced out some spruce which is what I'd be using to mill my own with. Prices are

2x12 (16') = $17.
2x10 (16') = $14
2x8 (16') = $10.60
2x6 (12') = $5.50
2x4 (10') = $3.

For PT:

6x6 (16') = $44.50
4x4 (16') = $21

Dont know how it compares at all, but it doesn't seem too bad.

Hmmm, maybe I could get around the coummutes by building my TF in the city, in the backyard kinda thing, and then rent a Uhaul and transport all the pieces up to the site?? Doable ?? Would above prices make viable ??

 

[MJR]

Sure, the more work you can do at your house will save money. You will be surprised what you can get done a couple hours after work each night. Move equipment for a couple of weekends and you will know what I mean. If you have the room at your house get pricing on a load of logs. There is a expensive way, a little less expensive way, and no cheap way to do a project like this. Good luck. Also, off topic - keep the wife happy with the little ones. They are a lot of work at that age and if you are gone every weekend you will not be having any more....

 

[Backwoods]

I use a half ton 4x4 truck and a chain to move logs up to 24”x 20’. A two-wheel drive will move smaller logs as well.
Even if you move the mill to each tree, you will still need to skid all but one log to the mill. It is best to find good milling sites where you can group the logs together. I charge a $25 fee for each time I move the mill.
10-12 trees 18” dbh 60’-80’ tall will yield a few thousand board feet.

If your trees are nice and straight with small knots, it would be well worth the milling cost. If your trees are kinda ugly looking then you may be better off buying the lumber. The better the tree the better the lumber.

 

[infomet]

I find hiring a Woodmizer or similar mill to be a great deal. You don't have time or experience with milling. Talk to some millers who come out and get pricing. I have done at least 30,000BF, some at $35/hr and some at about $0.20/BF. Cutting big timber, you will roar through the BF, so the hourly is likely a better deal. BTW, you may as well do your 1X boards for siding, etc.

One thing to keep in mind is that OSB is cheaper than making 1X these days, and saves a lot of time!

Vertical board and batten is nice, but I have done all lap siding. My sawyer has a little feeder that lies on the bed of the mill and drives the boards past the blade, tilted at an angle to make the bevel. It's time consuming to hang, but very fast to make. I cut 1 1/8" thick, then slice to get two boards. Then I dip it in a long tank made of 2X10s containing stain. Takes a lot of stain, but treats both sides of the wood.

See if you can borrow a tractor with a little boom on the three point hitch. That will skid 16' logs. Of course an arch is great, if you don't have to buy it. Some sawyers have them.

BTW, I built my house this way, with a framer and helper.