iDRY Vacuum Kilns

Sponsors:

financial bennefit of milling your own / sheathing Q

Started by BigJim2185, June 18, 2014, 03:07:30 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

BigJim2185

With a potential mill purchase looming, I want to make sure the expense is justified.  My frame plans are not completed yet, and the planner doesn't want to give me any numbers for milling the timbers before the plans are finalized.  While I don't blame him, I am also a teacher with a summer vacation getting underway, and I don't want the time to go to waste.  I'm going to try to price materials (flooring, sheathing, siding, 2x lumber) the best I can without completed plans, and see if this will justify the purchase before the frame is factored in.  If the numbers work, the plan is to get underway producing and storing these materials this summer, then harvest, mill, and cut the frame over the winter/spring for a summer 2015 raising.   

Those of you who milled your own frame timbers and building materials, did you calculate significant savings over purchasing materials?  I'm leaning toward either a Thomas 8020 or a Norwood HD36, and I have a building that will do the trick with minimum modification, so probably somewhere around $11K to get set up.  Over a lifetime of barns and family homes, I think I'll get my money's worth, but for the current project I just want to be able to explain the purchase to my wife in a way that doesn't involve jumping up and down yelling "I WANT IT."

Final question: I'm getting mixed messages about sheathing.  Should cedar or pine T&G wall sheathing in a wrap and strap application be 2x6 if there are nailing purlins, or would 1x6 be acceptable?  Should roof sheathing be 2x6?   
-Thomas 8020 w/10' extension
-New Holland TC45D w/ fel and farmi jl501

LittleJohn

My old man completed his stick build house and garage last fall; the entire exterior of structure is cover in shiplap http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shiplap , that varies in width from 4"-12", with a 45° bias for strength; also used for subfloor on second level (both structures slab on grade).  He simply attached shiplap as you would plywood; then moisture barrier, then siding.

He did not use on roof, as too much square footage and not enough boards; but I feel that 1" would be more than enought for a roof -> grandpa old garage had a layer of shiplap, tar paper and then shingle -> simple as that.  Would verify, withis building codes, is you have any for what snow load would be

Southside

Actually looking at the same question as we plan to build as well and I have more than enough standing timber.  I am pretty sure I can sell ties to a local treating facility to add value to my logs but the big question is the savings vs buying finished lumber. 
Franklin buncher and skidder
JD Processor
Woodmizer LT Super 70 and LT35 sawmill, KD250 kiln, BMS 250 sharpener and setter
Riehl Edger
Woodmaster 725 and 4000 planner and moulder
Enough cows to ensure there is no spare time.
White Oak Meadows

Jim_Rogers

BigJim2185:

It's really tough to give you an answer on many of your questions. There are so many variables.

On the roofing question it's hard to answer without know your location, and it's snow load. The frame designer should be able to tell you these things and whether or not if you can use 1by or 2by.

If you could fill out your signature or bio with some more info then we'll know where you are and that helps.
Welcome to the forum.

Jim Rogers
Whatever you do, have fun doing it!
Woodmizer 1994 LT30HDG24 with 6' Bed Extension

jdonovan

Quote from: BigJim2185 on June 18, 2014, 03:07:30 PM
Those of you who milled your own frame timbers and building materials, did you calculate significant savings over purchasing materials?  I'm leaning toward either a Thomas 8020 or a Norwood HD36, and I have a building that will do the trick with minimum modification, so probably somewhere around $11K to get set up.  Over a lifetime of barns and family homes, I think I'll get my money's worth, but for the current project I just want to be able to explain the purchase to my wife in a way that doesn't involve jumping up and down yelling "I WANT IT."

It depends on your labor costs. If its you, and your labor is 'fun' in doing the project, then yes there are some savings to potentially capture.

If you a making the material to supply a contractor to put up, then less so. There is quite a bit more handling in 1x6x8 vs 4x8 sheet goods. Also there will be about 2x as many fasteners on the 1x6 vs the sheet goods. Pay a carpenter and a helper for a few extra days and the savings in material can disappear into a labor bill.

If you have to 'pay' yourself and pay someone to hang it you're probably at a loss.

I looked at the viability of doing the same thing with a stick-frame home, and found I couldn't beat the local big-box lumber yard. I live in a high labor rate area and when we factored in the extra days of carpenter time to use boards vs sheets it was a loss. They did suggest that I could get a better return on my time by making the trim and moulding which is very expensive to get at the local store, but can be made for more reasonable costs.


shinnlinger

As a guy who milled his own house, I will say this: You will save $,  No doubt about it.   The significant other side to the story is it is a ridiculous amount of work, and it will still cost a lot of money.

People gush over my place all the time, and it is true, it is an inspiring space, BUT I broke ground in 2006 and it still needs an entire second floor and some other significant bits to be done.   

My story is I was about to reuse a questionable old barn frame from my  property when a massive wind storm took out a 100 YO stand of the most beautiful pine  on my neighbors property that she was thrilled to give me.  Next thing you know, I bought a used mill, which kicked my butt at first.   I milled my TF, which took time, and then cut my frame, which took time and then erected my frame, and then ran out of $ so now every stick of wood you see in My place from the siding to the flooring to the trim to the frame I HAD to mill first.   It is very mother earth news, but like I said, far from done.   

It has strained my relationship with my wife and family for sure, but also brought us together.  Would I do it again? Yes, but smaller (I Felt i had to use the concrete I had already poured to use the barn frame.)

Someone once told me it will either take 2x as long and cost 4x as much or take 4x as long and cost 2x as much as you think.   I am on the latter plan.   
Shinnlinger
Woodshop teacher, pasture raised chicken farmer
34 horse kubota L-2850, Turner Band Mill, '84 F-600,
living in self-built/milled timberframe home

thecfarm

I have the Thomas 6020. That 8020 will cut some big ones,but those big ones have to be turned too.  :o  I think a 32 inch board.Takes more than a hand come along to do it too. Got a tractor with a loader? I have turned some 2 foot hemlock on mine,with the tractor. They are heavy,even that size. I looked at the 8020 real hard,I'm glad I went with the regular size one now. Get the no flex track on that mill and it won't move a bit.  ;D I also got the extension to cut 20 foot logs I never have,but I have more room to put a log on and I can get the head out of the way. Some models have the moveable bunks and some don't. I have the movable bunks. I can cut a piece of wood a foot long with no jig. Just move a bunk and I am sawing.
Model 6020-20hp Manual Thomas bandsaw,TC40A 4wd 40 hp New Holland tractor, 450 Norse Winch, Heatmor 400 OWB,YCC 1978-79

shinnlinger

Cfarm brings up an excellent point.    If you don't have a way to move logs, slabs, boards, beams, etc, your going to need to get one.   Tractor with FEL seems to be the prevailing wisdom but there are others methods.   

I will add that you need to have cheap to free easy access to QUALITY logs of sufficient size.   Shop around a bit too.   Some mills sell bundles of boards very reasonably and seeing your in central ME I bet there are some mills near you.  1x should be sufficient if you have a reasonable pitch and purlin spacing. 

Dave
Shinnlinger
Woodshop teacher, pasture raised chicken farmer
34 horse kubota L-2850, Turner Band Mill, '84 F-600,
living in self-built/milled timberframe home

BigJim2185

Thanks for the input, guys.  I do have a tractor with FEL and free access to logs.  The thought of it taking 4x as long as planned is intimidating.  Our current house is / can be made to be comfortable enough for a 5 or 6 year build...but if it takes 20 years I'll be dealing with some relationship strain too. 

Dave, what's your square footage?  We started with a large floor plan, but we have shrunk it down to around 1750 sqft as I became more and more intimidated by the build process.  Our frame is still on the large side at 40 x 38, but the last aisle is 1 story under a shed roof, 2/3 of it being porch. The upstairs is 2 beds and a bath with the rest open to below.   

Could a couple guys (me and my father or brother) mill sheathing, floors, and siding for a place that size in a summer/fall?  My hope was to mill and store materials this summer and fall - sheathing, floors, 2bys for windows/doors, and beveled siding.  I was planning to harvest pines for the frame early winter, and mill and cut them over next spring and early summer.  I would hope to raise, sheath, and roof the frame next summer/fall.  Then 3+/- years to get it ready to move in.  Am I way underestimating the amount of work ahead of me if it's just me and another guy or two most of the time?   

Jim
-Thomas 8020 w/10' extension
-New Holland TC45D w/ fel and farmi jl501

jdonovan

Quote from: BigJim2185 on June 19, 2014, 08:41:54 AM
Could a couple guys (me and my father or brother) mill sheathing, floors, and siding for a place that size in a summer/fall? 

How often are you REALLY going to mill, and for how many hours?

I know my experience with a 'remote' location that is only 30 min from where I live has been, best case 50% of my free time, and reality has been much much closer to 25%.

The norwood HD36 with all the hydraulic options claims about 400 bd/ft / hour.  I Assume you are looking a full hydraulic?  If not you need to be with all the lumber you are trying to make. The 400 ft/hr assumes full production, on reasonable size/straight logs, with no time for maintenance, breakdowns, or other production stopping events.

For estimates lets say you work: 1 Weekend a month, for 8-10 hours/ day at 75% of Norwoods rate. That gets you to about 2500-3000 bd-ft a month. Raw production. You will have some losses due to defects in drying, and not every board cut, gets 100% used in the final structure.  Start with that math, look at the volume needed and make some estimates of what is reasonable. Remember floors generally count 2x. Subfloor + finished floor.

QuoteAm I way underestimating the amount of work ahead of me if it's just me and another guy or two most of the time?   

yes. You know its going to be a lot of work, you just have no idea just how much until you are in the middle of doing it.  =)

BigJim2185

I'm looking at a manual mill.  I teach high school, so I have about a ten week block every summer during which I can work on the house full time. The planned new home site is about 200 yards from my current home, and the building that will house the mill is 35 yards from that, so travel time won't be an issue...but no doubt something else will come up to slow me down.  I like the idea of doing the math at ~75% of advertised production rates.  I had been wondering how close I could expect to come to those. 

   
-Thomas 8020 w/10' extension
-New Holland TC45D w/ fel and farmi jl501

bigshow

Quote from: shinnlinger on June 18, 2014, 09:18:39 PM

It has strained my relationship with my wife and family for sure, but also brought us together.  Would I do it again? Yes, but smaller (I Felt i had to use the concrete I had already poured to use the barn frame.)



Never truer words.  There should be support groups, therapists, and 1/2 way houses (timber/stick hybrid of course LOL) specifically for timberframe DIY'ers.
I never try anything, I just do it.

jdonovan

Quote from: BigJim2185 on June 19, 2014, 12:02:36 PM
I like the idea of doing the math at ~75% of advertised production rates.  I had been wondering how close I could expect to come to those. 

If I'm sawing.. and not doing any of the support tasks. Offbearing, getting logs to the mill, stickering/stacking, etc... I can hit WM's advertised rates, and sometimes exceed them.


QuoteI'm looking at a manual mill.

WM estimates 33% more production on a LT40 w/ hydraulics vs with out. I'd guess that translates across band mills fairly evenly regardless of brand.

QuoteI teach high school, so I have about a ten week block every summer during which I can work on the house full time. The planned new home site is about 200 yards from my current home, and the building that will house the mill is 35 yards from that, so travel time won't be an issue

10 weeks full time should make for a lot of lumber.


shinnlinger

Jim,

I think my house is in the 2500 range.  I have two daughters 10 and 11 and being an active parent, spouse, teacher, union president, coach, farmer, community member, etc, I simply didn't find as much time as I had hoped to work on my house.

I am also NOT very organized and easily distracted (ADD) and prone to procrastination so that plays into my delay as well on top of simply not having enough money when needed.

The help evaporates quickly.  Expecting someone to show up week after week and work all day for nothing is asking a bit much.  I was also busy helping folks that helped me so that cut into production as well.

One thing I had going for me was a big excavtor that I was able to pluck my storm downed trees out of the pile, cut the tops and root ball off  and place them on a trailer behind my tractor.  It went fairly easily, but actuallty getting the trees to the mill is another thing to consider.

Dave
Shinnlinger
Woodshop teacher, pasture raised chicken farmer
34 horse kubota L-2850, Turner Band Mill, '84 F-600,
living in self-built/milled timberframe home

ely

we are 4 years into our house and not yet moved into it, we do have one son living in his room and a couple more almost ready, it is a 28 x 40 with a 16x 40 upstairs, just last week added a 8x 40 porch on the front.
labor of love/hate at times and a definite strain on relationship... but very gratifying at the same time. had my mill since 04 and no regrets at all, have not bought one iota of lumber product of any kind. built it all, even doors and trim.

GAB

I do not disagree with anything anyone prior has written.
Suggestions: If you are going to be building with 6" walls which are actually 5-1/2" studs, cut 6" wide and after they dry recut them to 5-1/2" wide to match with box store windows and doors.  This gives you an opportunity to remove some of the drying defects and helps in getting a squarerand straighter building.  Also, rather than edging the 1" lumber as it is sawed just stack and sticker then edge it after it has dried.  It will be lighter and you will have a better idea of what you will be needing as you build.  As an FYI a carpenter told me the number of studs needed to build a house is close to the linear footage (in feet) of walls.  Gerald
W-M LT40HDD34, SLR, JD 420, JD 950w/loader and Woods backhoe, V3507 Fransguard winch, Cordwood Saw, 18' flat bed trailer, and other toys.

maineframer

Big Jim,

I definitely think you will save a lot of money buy milling your own timber and lumber. I think that the Thomas mills have it all over the Norwood mills.
We have a Woodmizer LT 15 with a diesel engine. They make a fine machine----I don't think that you would be disappointed with either the Thomas or a Woodmizer.

David

shinnlinger

And I don't want to be "Dave the downer" I just want folks to know that buying a mill doesn't mean piles of boards and timbers magically appear. 

The upside is a beautiful, inspiring home you and your family will be proud of and significantly less debt.

As I mentioned earlier, a significant factor for me is I prioritized other things in my life over finishing the house.  I am ok with those decisions, but had I focused on the house more it may well have been done  by now.  If you are more organized, efficient and focused than I am (Not hard to be) and have more cash available, you may indeed get it done much faster than I have.
Shinnlinger
Woodshop teacher, pasture raised chicken farmer
34 horse kubota L-2850, Turner Band Mill, '84 F-600,
living in self-built/milled timberframe home

BigJim2185

Thanks for the input, guys.  It's redirected me to spend more time this summer making sure my current house is plenty comfortable to hold us over for a long building process.  The place has some issues that make it easy to justify building new instead of remodeling (easy to say after two years of remodeling), but it should hold us over with some TLC and not much financial investment.  I will definitely dedicate more energy than I had planned to making sure my wife is set up comfortably here, and hopefully that and the fact that I will be building within shouting distance will alleviate some of the potential relationship strain.

GAB thanks for the tip on storing boards and then edging them when dry. 

Maineframer I will give the LT15 a closer look.

Dave,  I have a 10 month old, a teaching job, a coaching job, and a strong dose of unmedicated ADD.  Your input is a good dose of reality...though it doesn't seem to be having the discouraging effect it probably should  :D 



   
-Thomas 8020 w/10' extension
-New Holland TC45D w/ fel and farmi jl501

shinnlinger

Jim,

Perhaps another similarity is I built my house behind another house out front.   The plan was to live in that until my current house was done.  Well the plan changed.  We moved in and I dozed the front unit. 

Once you move in, work stops.  You hear it over and over, but I am saying it again. 

Dave
Shinnlinger
Woodshop teacher, pasture raised chicken farmer
34 horse kubota L-2850, Turner Band Mill, '84 F-600,
living in self-built/milled timberframe home

thecfarm

It takes time to cut the trees,clean up the mess too. I was building the wife a Garden Shed.But I was using all green lumber. Cut the tree,saw the logs,use the lumber all in the same day. I did just leave the tops a few times. They are still there too. Much quicker to have all the lumber delivered,just pay the man. Don't let the "talkers" tell you how much faster thay can do it either.  ::)  They are the ones that paid the man.  ::)  Tell them to grab a hammer and help. They will find a reason to leave or never show up to help.
Model 6020-20hp Manual Thomas bandsaw,TC40A 4wd 40 hp New Holland tractor, 450 Norse Winch, Heatmor 400 OWB,YCC 1978-79

bigshow

Quote from: shinnlinger on June 20, 2014, 07:12:19 AM

Once you move in, work stops.  You hear it over and over, but I am saying it again. 

Dave

+1
I never try anything, I just do it.

witterbound

I agree, once we moved in worked stopped.  I also think you need to consider your threshold for "building fatigue."  It takes a lot of time and repetitive stuff to build a house.  Sounds like a lot of us have a streak of ADD in us.  I bought my timbers and lumber.  Timbers amounted to about 5 percent of the cost of my house.  I can't imagine milling all of the lumber, stacking them properly to dry, keeping them out of the weather, dealing with blue stain, dealing with twists, etc. for all of the lumber I bought.  I'm a do it yourselfer who designed his frame, cut about a third of it, paid someone to put it up, and dry the house in...then I did everything else.  I was ready to get back to my regular inside desk job after two years.  We're all different ... Good luck on your journey...

shinnlinger

I had a cut list for my timber frame and cut that first.  I sorta had it in my head when bucking in the woods but many logs have to be bucked at certain spots so that really dictated how it went. I would try to pull logs from the piles in a way that made sense, and cut my biggest sticks first, but the real decision was made when I rolled it on the mill.  This one could make a rafter, post, purlin, joist, etc and crossed it off the list and stacked them in separate spots.  When in doubt, make boards, but you will make a ton of boards cutting out your timbers trying to box the heart.  I just stickered and stacked, stickered and stacked and focused on the frame. 

After a month or SO of that I had my timbers done and went to work cutting my frame, after a month or SO of that, my wife was getting annoyed and told me to sell the mill and just buy the *DanG timbers and went to visit her mom (planned visit she wasn't THAT annoyed).  I snuck a buddies crane in and we put up the frame and sent her pics.  She came back but school started and the frame sat out in the weather all winter and turned gray(which I really like).  The next "building season" I milled some boards for sheathing but then got a very good buy on zip wall and the boards were put on hold as everything got sheathed and covered.

Then another winter and no $ so what to do?  Well, all the 10" and 4"  boards I had milled when making the frame became my B&B siding and every other dimension became my random width flooring.  I literally had to steal 4 boards from a neighbor to finish my floor.  I almost had enough to cover everything even though I had not sawn many sticks for the purpose of only making boards.

Timbers can be expensive to buy but you will make a lot of boards just cutting them that you can use latter.  You can also buy boards pretty cheap from places if you poke around.  There is a planer mill not far from me that sells seconds for 25 cents a BF if you buy it by the bundle.   I can't make my own for that cheap and this stuff is kiln dried and ship lapped.

Dave
Shinnlinger
Woodshop teacher, pasture raised chicken farmer
34 horse kubota L-2850, Turner Band Mill, '84 F-600,
living in self-built/milled timberframe home

pri0ritize

I'm just on the finishing edge of what you're considering doing (except not a timber frame, regular stick build). I was unable to use any of my own milled boards for the structural portions as I don't have a grading stamp. I was able to make my own siding, trim boards, stair treads and materials for doors and deck and balcony flooring from trees that were on my property. I bought a brand new LT40 hydraulic at the start of the process and I've only put 70 or so hours on the mill. I've made approximately 12000 square feet of siding using the mill. I believe that the purchase cost of the siding would have been higher than the purchase cost of the mill. Granted I also had two large shapers, a straight line rip, two large sanders and other support equipment to help me make the siding but I don't think I would have done it any other way. I've got a timber frame cabin and sawmill shed project coming as soon as I finish the shop and house (next month or two) but I'd definitely go with the sawmill instead of buying materials, as long as you know what you can and can't use ahead of time. You also can't be afraid of the work.  It is a LOT of extra effort.
2012 LT40HD
Random Stihl Chainsaws and more woodworking equipment than I care to inventory!

Thehardway

I can only speak for myself and my experience.  Milling your own timbers can be fun and rewarding but it is work.  It will take a toll on the body and has dangers as does all power equipment.  (my finger is smashed and swollen from last nights milling activity. Accidentally caught my little finger under a 5"X14"X10' Red Oak beam when sliding it off the saw into the truck, thought I was going to puke. Wood always wins over flesh and fingernail, toenail, etc.)

Producing quality T&G lumber for sheathing will require more than logs, a mill and a FEL.  They will need to be dried, edged and planed to fairly close tolerance and then the T&G milling done which will require a lot of labor or some pricey equipment as well.  All possible but time and $ will add up. You will need lots of space to stack and store.

When building a house, the lumber that goes into a stick build is one of the cheapest commodities you will buy.  11k will buy a pretty big stack of lumber all dried, planed delivered and stacked neatly on your building site.  It won't be the same lumber you could cut especially if timberframing, and when the stack is gone you will have to spend more $ but it is fairly cheap as far as building components go.

Things like electrical, plumbing, septic, well, roofing materials, windows, doors, flooring (if other than wood) appliances, heating and cooling systems, foundations, driveway gravel, insulation, fixtures...  will far outweigh lumber costs. The list goes on and on.

I began my house project in 2005.  I moved in in 2012 and received the "CO" in 2013. A lot of that time was spent on site work.   There is still a lot of trim work  and grading to do but the house is fully functional and I am now working on a shop/garage.

I milled Oak cherry and pine timbers for the roof trusses, rafter pairs and purlins and bearing beams/posts.  I purchased dimensional lumber for second floor as my inspector required a grade stamp for it.  I used sheet goods for upstairs subfloor.  Roof was SIP.  Walls are all ICF.  All in all I milled very little but what I did took a lot of time as it was by myself.  My building site was 1.5hrs from home.  I was spending a lot of time and money on travel.

It did take a toll on my family but we now agree it was worth it although we would do it differently a second time around.

ADD might be an asset to you as far as energy and motivation goes but it may cause you issues when it comes to finishing details as that part seems to take forever.

My house footprint is 25X33.  If I had to do it over again I would have either built a garage first or made the house slightly bigger.  I spent way too much time moving materials out of the way, stacking and re-stacking just to have working room. A lot of time was spent getting tools out and putting them away.

I used a small Hudson Oscar 18".  All manual.  I now have a Norwood LM2000.    I have a day job that usually consumes about 10 hours a day with travel.  No free summers here.

If you have time and determination and support from friends and family it can be a good venture.  Don't have any illusions of it getting done quick.  Murphy's law is still in effect.

PS.  If you are going cut a lot of dimensional lumber, you might want to look hard at a swing blade mill rather than band mill.
Norwood LM2000 24HP w/28' bed, Hudson Oscar 18" 32' bed, Woodmaster 718 planer,  Kubota L185D, Stihl 029, Husqvarna 550XP

BigJim2185

Thanks for the input guys.  Still waiting on frame plans and working to make our current living situation comfortable.  At this point I am leaning hard in the direction of buying a mill, and will be starting to go check out the ones on the short list this week and next. 

Sounds like probably a good idea to talk to the building inspector before buying the mill to make sure I will be able to use it the way I am planning.

It sounds like I should also take a hard look at what will be involved in making T&G for floors and sheathing.  Assuming I go the high labor, low cost route - can it be done with the mill, a bench planer, a table saw and a router table?

thehardway - sorry about your finger.  At least it was a pinky and not one of the important ones :D
-Thomas 8020 w/10' extension
-New Holland TC45D w/ fel and farmi jl501

jueston

i think you should buy 1 rough sawn board, put it through a bench top planer, table saw, and router table twice just to get a grasp on the amount of labor your talking about....

just some quick numbers, a 30' by 40' 2 story house has something like 2800 sqft of wall sheathing and 2400 sqft of floor sheathing.

if you using 1X6's that are 8 feet long your looking at 1300 boards(assuming 0 waste)

after you figure out how long it takes you to make each board, multiply it out.

i think it could be really emotionally rewarding to do it all yourself, but from a time/money perspective you might run the numbers an realize your better off working at mcdonalds and then buying plywood.....


Brian_Weekley

I agree with Jueston.  I was planning to T&G all the siding for my small barn (20 x 20 feet).  I quickly realized the time involved was simply not feasible in my case.  I'm still planning to T&G my flooring (which is not on the critical path).  However, you will likely need more than a router to do it.  You can check out this post:  https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php/topic,62910.msg931340.html#msg931340
Still time consuming!

I'm still not sold on doing your own milling either.  It takes time to do it right.  The time it took just to cut the frame was plenty--using wood others milled for me!
e aho laula

Thehardway

Trying to make your own T&G sheathing with logs, a bandmill, bench planer, tablesaw and router table, will be a test of your patience.   First, you will need to cut the wood stack, sticker and dry it down.  This will take the better part of a year provided you have good weather, no mechanical failures, a good supply of sharp blades, clean logs and a shed or tin to stack it all under.  Once dry, you will need to cull all of the twisted and bowed peices.  They can be used elsewhere but you will hate yourself if you try to make T&G from them.

Next you will need to surface plane and accurately square the edges by running them through the planer multiple times and then getting the edges straight on the table saw.

You will make yourself a considerable amount of chips, shavings and swdust in this process.  If you don't have a commercial sawdust/chip collection system, you will spend almost as much time cleaning as you will planing and edging.  It builds up quick.  A standard 12" bench planer froma local big box is not likely going to make the grade for this size job.  You will need something more industrial duty rated.  Something like a Woodmaster can be used and if you buy the router setup for it, you can use it to do the T&G as well but this is a fairly significant investment. however it can also be used to make moulding for hardwood finish trim which can be a money saver.

Trying to do the T&G using a router table setup will be a trial of your skill and your patience when considering the volume of material you will need to do.  You may go through multiple routers and a fair number of not so cheap bits in this process.

Jueston has some good advise.  tryi to make a peice of T&G with what you have from a rough cut.  Time yourself and then multiply that out.  Make allowance for plenty of screwups and culls.

Can it be done?  Yes, by all means.  Is it reasonable?  Only you can answer that question.

I will say that milling, planing and shaping does beat McDonalds work although milling is dirtier and harder labor.  It is much less stressful. 

Gotta run, will post more later.
Norwood LM2000 24HP w/28' bed, Hudson Oscar 18" 32' bed, Woodmaster 718 planer,  Kubota L185D, Stihl 029, Husqvarna 550XP

BigJim2185

Went and checked out a Thomas mill yesterday.  I am definitely planning on going that route. 

As far as the T&G, I can see where current equip. would be too time consuming.  I do have a lot of nice maple and ash that will be coming down to improve views from the home site, and I'd like to use it if I have the mill.  Plus, with ceilings and a lot of walls planned as T&G, it may make sense to make an investment and get set up to produce it comfortably.   The woodmaster looks awesome, but would I be looking at buying the 718 planer/molder AND the 3 side molding system to get the job done?  It looks like it comes equipped for 3/4 to 1" T&G, so could I do 2x planks with this if that is what I use for roof sheathing?

If I have a planer that can handle the work, would a 5hp+ shaper and power feed be a good way to go?  It looks like shapers can be had used for under $2,000, and in that power range it seems like they would handle 2x sheathing planks...anything I should be wary of?   
-Thomas 8020 w/10' extension
-New Holland TC45D w/ fel and farmi jl501

stumax

My wife and i took a logging course and got to see a sawyer in action.  There is an art to being a sawyer, and a learning curve.  Since we don't have the expendable free time we decided it is easier, quicker and overall cheaper to higher a sawyer.  There is a reason why they exist and the thought of me cutting up several logs just to learn how to use the tool before I got to make boards/beams/posts for a barn was the deciding factor.  I would call around in your area to find out how much a sawyer is going for to cut what you need cut before buying a mill.  Even after all that you still want to buy the mill the information is at least useful down the road or for when you want a beam that the mill you buy might not be able to cut.

thecfarm

BigJim2185,I have a Thomas. A very fine mill. I have the 20hp Honda. Mine is about 10 years old. I like the newer one much better. I also have the moveable bunks. Some of the news one have them,some don't. I can cut a piece of wood 2 feet long,with no jig. Just move the bunks and saw.
Model 6020-20hp Manual Thomas bandsaw,TC40A 4wd 40 hp New Holland tractor, 450 Norse Winch, Heatmor 400 OWB,YCC 1978-79

Thehardway

Quote from: BigJim2185 on July 09, 2014, 09:49:39 AM
Went and checked out a Thomas mill yesterday.  I am definitely planning on going that route. 

As far as the T&G, I can see where current equip. would be too time consuming.  I do have a lot of nice maple and ash that will be coming down to improve views from the home site, and I'd like to use it if I have the mill.  Plus, with ceilings and a lot of walls planned as T&G, it may make sense to make an investment and get set up to produce it comfortably.   The woodmaster looks awesome, but would I be looking at buying the 718 planer/molder AND the 3 side molding system to get the job done?  It looks like it comes equipped for 3/4 to 1" T&G, so could I do 2x planks with this if that is what I use for roof sheathing?

If I have a planer that can handle the work, would a 5hp+ shaper and power feed be a good way to go?  It looks like shapers can be had used for under $2,000, and in that power range it seems like they would handle 2x sheathing planks...anything I should be wary of?

Jim,
Have you determined that your sheathing needs to be 2" T&G?  If not perhaps we are jumping ahead. 3/4" is likely sufficient for the walls and you may be able to go with less than 2" as well for the roof depending on rafter/purlin spacing.  If I had to do it over again and I was cutting all my own lumber, I would opt for more rafters closer spaced.  Using this arrangement you may not even need to do T&G, you could likely do everything with shiplap.  With a small bevel edge the shiplap will look just like T&G as long as you make sure your ends fall on rafters or purlins.  This may lead to slightly more waste but it has its advantages during install and also if you need to do repairs or make changes later.  You can cut shiplap easliy on a tablesaw or with a basic router or with the WM 718 and a molding blade.  You wouldn't need the more expensive double router setup.

Yet another option would be to use a v groove rather than T&G.  A v-groove will interlock almost like T&G so you can use butt joints mid-span but it can be cut with a table saw set at a 45 degree or greater angle.  This is a much quicker process and once again uses cheaper blades and equipment while achieving similar results.

Since  interior wall/ceiling sheathing is not your exterior finish and need not be water/weather tight, any of the above options will work and give you the T&G look without all the labor and waste.

A shaper would do T&G as long as you have a reasonable means to keep everything in alignment but it is a pretty big investment.  If you buy a used commercial model make sure it is able to be run on single phase power in a voltage you have available.  Lots of the commercial stuff is 3 phase and motors or convertors are pricey.

The last option you might consider would be cutting the T&G on a table saw using a jig and stacked blades or a dado blade.  The only down side to this would be it will leave a square edge which you would likely want to bevel a bit for ease of install.
Norwood LM2000 24HP w/28' bed, Hudson Oscar 18" 32' bed, Woodmaster 718 planer,  Kubota L185D, Stihl 029, Husqvarna 550XP

BigJim2185

thehardway - thanks a lot for the input.  Good options that I had not considered.
-Thomas 8020 w/10' extension
-New Holland TC45D w/ fel and farmi jl501

Thank You Sponsors!