slabbing 5' wide log

[weisyboy]

made a start on this job today. cut most of the first log.

the log is 5' wide, 8' high, and 10' long.

had the mill chocked up on stands to get high enough.

got some very nice slabs outa it, and still have 3 more to go.






















vid to come when you tube wakes up

[terrifictimbersllc]

Very nice, this is what I'm looking forward to once my WPF comes. Log is camphor?  How hard is it and what chain composition did you use?

[fishpharmer]

Weisyboy,  the stands for the mill are a great idea.  Something like that would work great for a huge pecan log I have been offered.  Great pictures.  Looking forward to the video.  8) 8)

[weisyboy]

Camphor-Laurel is fairly soft.

we use what is at hand, they have a bobcat and forklift there and had these big steel frames and some 8x2s.

we have used blocks of wood in the past but its a struggle keeping the mill on them, these were really good.

apparently youtube is "read only" at the moment.

[weisyboy]

the bloke i am cutting these for has a WPF and gets me to slab all his big logs cos its easier for me.

slabbing is one of the hardest things to get right, its all in the chain and getting the bar lined up just right.

[weisyboy]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tJW6TG7mKAM

finaly

[Magicman]

Do you have a potential market for those slabs?

[Captain]

Yep, you also need slabberdrive...

Captain

[WDH]

I see some table tops in someone's future  :D.

[terrifictimbersllc]

Yep, you also need slabberdrive...

Captain

Captain you have "A Slabbering Love Affair" with this..... :D :D :D

[metalspinner]

weisey,
What do you think the surface feet per minute is on your chain?  At the 30 second mark in the clip, the chain speed seems slower than expected.  It may be an illusion, but my curiosity is peeked.

[weisyboy]

gday

speed varies geatly, the slabs widened out to 1.5m at about where the cutting slows slightly.

there is a big diferance in speed between 4'6" and 5', once you get over about a 3'6" cut every inch slows you drematicly, as the chain gets full of dust and shavings and has to pull it all threw.

the slabber will cut a 2' slab 3 times as fast as a 4' slab.

a 3' slab in bluegum witch is a fair bit harder than camphor takes us about 56 seconds.

the extra speed is because it can clear the sawdust easily.

in the camphor we avearaged about 13/13.5 square feet per minute.

[sgschwend]

Thanks a lot for the video and picture they are very instructive for us newbies. 

I always work in overcast conditions so it surprises me to see that blue sky and you-all wearing hats.

[weisyboy]

thats the first blue sky we have had in months, its been bucketing down.

were wearing hats because it was 34 deg c in the shade. couldn't touch any of the metal on the mill without it burning.

going back down tommorow to finish up.

[sigidi]

About time you did some work Carl and stopped moaning about the rain ;D ;) our road was flooded yesterday, but The Mutt got through it...

Say g'day to Rude for me, how's that Peterson of his goin? is he getting much cut?

[weisyboy]

about time i did some work? iv dont nothin but work all year.  >:(

not all of us get to sit inside and watch hot birds exersize ;D :D

rudes mill, well, its done 300 hours in about 2 or 3 years.

the gearbox is buggered and not covered by warranty, he has had all sorts of trouble with his blades, dont ask my why (its casued by the blades heating cos he dont have a riving knife fitted)

other than that its going fine.

[ljmathias]

Nice work, Weisy- sure appreciate you taking the time to post and let us see how things are done down there- it's double hard since you all are upside down and have to hang on with one hand while you work- that plus the heat.

I've only cut a few logs that even come close to the size of the one in your pics- not really worth the effort for just lumber, but my oh my, the specialty pieces that you get are well worth it.  My problem is I get greedy- all that sweat and work, I just have to keep it for myself, which means my piles of stuff that I'll make neat things out of someday real soon keeps growing faster than the neat things coming out of the barn...

Keep at it and drink lots... of water that is. Oh, and Merry Christmas to all (only 11 days till and I still don't have a present for the wife so I figure I'd better remind everyone and get my wishes in before I forget...).

Lj

[woodsteach]

Wow! what a log!

That is also a nice pile of slabs.

Paul

[weisyboy]

did another half day today.

then the sprocket on the slabber stripped out, ordered a new one, should be here tomorrow.

here is another vid for you

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sbbx_pwxD9I

[fishpharmer]

From that angle one can really see how much sawdust your moving.  Great video. 

[terrifictimbersllc]

Agree very nice video.  Does the slabber sprocket strip because the chain gets loose?  I thought the sprockets were much harder than the chain anyway.  On my chainsaw mill with Stihl 090AV engines, the sprocket will ruin the chain much more quickly than the chain will ruin the sprockets.  What's going on with yours?

[sgschwend]

WB, that was a fun video!!

I liked it so much I watch it twice!!!

You even made sure your outfit matched your Avatar. ;)

[ErikC]

 Those are nice slabs. You seem to have that slabber clicking right along in the second video.

[weisyboy]

the sprockets get worn just like the sprocket on your chainsaw they need to be replaced from time to time, that one would have done 100s of hours, and cut over 1000 slabs.

at the start of the cut you can see the swing handle jumping around, that is the chain starting to skip on the sprocket, one it starts it just gets worse.

i ordered a 14 tooth sprocket instead of the 12 tooth that is standard, this will up the chain speed and hopefully increase cutting speed.

[Hilltop366]

Great vid Weisy!

It looks like you have to push quite a bit on it when your in the cut, my csm was like that too. It didn't take me long to stick a hand winch on it (I used one that would be used on a boat trailer), the handle does not disenguage for the return it would be nice if it did, my arm will get a bit tired from cranking but nothing compared too pushing.

Hopefully the chain speed won't be too high, for the rest of the drive with the new sprocket, I guess you won't know unless you try.

[weisyboy]

dont have to push at all, just lean could do it all day, i wouldnt put a winch on but if i did it would have to haev prings on the line to keep even pressure.

the sprocket will only cahnge chain speed nothing else.

[sgschwend]

Is there a storage location for threads that contain good reference how-to picture or videos?  If so I would put this one there.

[weisyboy]

i am happy to report that the 14 tooth sprocket almost doubled our cutting speed.

i didnt take my camera so no pics or vids, but the slabs were down to well under 2 mins each.

here is my advice on the best slabbing outfit.

.404" harvester chain (it has heaver side plates than standard chain)

in soft-medium woods - full comp "no skip" chain sharpened at 25 deg WITH A FILE.
id say all american woods, pine, camphor, jacaranda, oaks, mango, bluegum, flooded gum, blackbut etc)

in hard woods - 3 skip (3 off 2 on) chain sharpened at 25 deg WITH A FILE.
(ironbark, spotted gum, box, talowwood, gidgee etc)

depth Gauges taken down with a carlton file-O-plate, using the softwood setting, plus 1 file stroke.

if you want a dead smoth finish like below, reduce the cutter angle to 15 deg, this will slow cutting thow.


that is a 7/32 file.

if you are having to push sompthing isnt right, stop and fix it.

[terrifictimbersllc]

Weisy maybe this is a dumb question but is the 14 tooth sprocket the same outside diameter as the previous one you were using?   Seems like it would be larger and might lift the chain out of the groove, any problem with it coming off the bar?

[weisyboy]

yes the 14 toother is larger.

lifting the chain outa the bar? i dont understand.

the bar is a lot wider than sprocket diameter.