Thursday, January 20, 2011

Dithering?

There seems to be a listlessness that has settled over the atelier, a feeling that the gods of woodworking have settled against me for some, hopefully temporary, reason. I've started on a simple knick-knack shelf out of arbutus, but I just can't get pumped up over any projects right now.

As I struggle through this woodworking ennui, I have turned my attention to my chainsaws and to slabbing. 3" thick spalted maple slabs, old growth red cedar, and catalpa have all been milled.  Maple shown below.



I even went back and had another go at what I called before the 'death elm' since it nearly killed me to mill last time. This time though, a better set up of the log combined with a very carefully sharpened chain made all the difference! It actually buoyed my spirits somewhat. Note the steeper angle that the log is set at, this makes a big difference in the amount of pushing I need to do. This way gravity does most of the work!


I wasn't planning on cutting any more of this elm but I got a request to do it, so I went down one snowy morning and got one slab taken off in about 1/2 hour. One of those rare times that everything went nearly perfectly, even with the 60" bar. A lady wants this slab for a garden bench.


7 comments:

  1. Sorry to hear of the project stumps :/.
    Good to get out and get some luck with sawing I bet though! I like the "gravity feed" set-up :).

    The time is getting closer for me to reappear in your area, looking forward to it!

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  2. How do you lift the log in place for your gravity method (which by the way is genius? I noticed some heavy machinery tracks!

    -tyler

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  3. Nick,

    Looking forward to you being in town again. Hope we can do some milling or at least some wood pile rooting around!

    Tyler, I cannot take credit for the idea of sloping the log, but it sure works well. There is a loader there which 'helps' in setting the logs up, and also makes telltale tracks in the sand!

    Dan

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  4. Again, great looking wood! I feel your pain, look like I have the same curse happening over here... Maybe it's the time of the year...
    Good luck.
    cheers
    David

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  5. Dan, have you ever seen Will Malloff's book on chaimsaw milling? It's out of print, but can be found used. It makes for good reading. I spoke with him on the phone once, nice guy. I think he's up in BC as well, I know he was living there when he wrote the book.

    Dennis

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  6. Dennis,

    I have a copy of Maloff's book that I found in a local library a few years ago. It is a great resource and I found it very helpful. I have never met him but would love to do so. I think you are right, he does live up the coast in BC somewhere now.

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  7. "One of the rare times when everything went nearly perfectly".

    Nothing applies to chainsaw milling like 'Murphy's Law'. Perhaps if one is gifted or something....

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