sawing shaggy bark hickory

[whittle1]

So I'm totally new to sawmilling even though I worked as a millwright for years in a sawmill. I just bought a
LT 40 mill and stripped it down to refurbish and paint just about ready to saw my first logs. Pine logs I cleared to put a road in, I have a pretty good idea on how to go about that. Now to the point of the subject my Dad has several shaggy bark hickory's on his place I would like to cut for flooring and cabinets. I have ordered 4 degree blades from woodmizer for this. Would appreciate any info on how to saw these up.
Do I have the right blades selected? Should I quarter saw or plain saw? These are probably going to be pretty dry some are dead and standing, one and its hard to believe has been down for at least 8 years. I cut the end off and it still seems to be hard. What do you guys think?

[dgdrls]

Welcome to the FF Whittle1.

I would saw them flat no need to quarter them.
Search the board a bit on techniques to limit the
stress and movement in the Hickory as you saw it.

Some folks will tell u Hickory& Pecan are the  in tree form. :D

Happy New Year
Dan

[WV Sawmiller]

Whittle,

   Welcome to FF and Happy New year. I suggest you update your profile so we can see more about where you live and equipment you have.

   I cut some hickory several months ago that had been down a year. Largest log was about 30" at big end. I started with 7 degree blades but quickly had to change to 4 degree. That worked fine.

   Whether your hickory has been down a while or fresh cut I don't think you will regret your decision to use 4 degree blades. Good luck and keep us posted.

[1ruralmailman]

  just expect extra movement,and distorsion.it makes nice lumber,and cabinets,but after youmill some and see the waste involved its not hard to see why it costs more.good luck,have fun.

[Magicman]

Welcome to the Forestry Forum, whittle1.   

[YellowHammer]

Hickory will really gum and burn WM 4° bands, so watch out for it by mixing a liberal amount of soap or solvent in your lube tank, not just water.  4° Bands will cut hickory fine, but keep them clean and the band tension way up during the cuts. 
Hickory and pecan are the 

[21incher]

Welcome to the Forestry Forum whittle1.

[Chuck White]

Welcome to the Forestry Forum, whittle1!

[terrifictimbersllc]

4 degree, and make sure there's no buildup on the blade.  I use Cascade in water, about 1 oz/gal,  as do others and Lubemizer fast pulse or full on in wide cuts.  Nothing to it when sawmill conditions are right.  Usually saw it through and through full width as most customers like the boards with heartwood and don't want pure white lumber.

[dgdrls]

Should add, if you have a debarker on the mill that will help
otherwise it may be worth debarking the logs prior to sawing them,
your blades/bands with thank-you with better
and longer performance,

Dan

[esteadle]

Bugs like hickory, and it will rot soon if in ground contact, so in general it should be sawn sooner rather than later. 8 year trees... well, dont' expect fabulous results. Just basic boards, which might be very wormy. I wouldn't try to get fancy on your first time out. Just plane saw some basic 4/4 or 5/4. Try to keep the center of the log out of the boards (saw around the outside). The best area of lumber for a log is the section from 1/3 out to 2/3 out from the center, so try to maximize that, and you'll be OK.

Don't just stack them up as they come off the mill. Stick the boards (using 1x1" stickers that you can cut from the flitches as you trim the boards - turn them up on end to trim them, and use 4/4 or 5/4 increments to saw rectangular sticks) as they come off the mill. The fewer times you touch the lumber the better off you are. You will be soon bitten by the sawmill bug - Make sure your family is ready ;-)

[esteadle]

Oh, as for blades, I'd choose a 10 degree blade next time -- better for hardwoods. And slow the feed rate a bit for Hickory since it's a very hard hard-wood. Keep the blades sharp, and try to only saw until you can't keep the feed rate steady (you may start to get 'wavy' boards, which is about 2 boards too late to change the blade for a sharp one ;-).

As you saw, listen to the saw as it moves through the wood. You can tell how dry some wood is when the saw has a higher pitched sound. When the wood is good and green, it has a duller, less high pitched sound. Learn the sounds of your sawmill, and the different woods you saw, in addition to all the other things you can see when you saw. You'll get more in tune with it and will be able to get better with it.

[WDH]

Powderpost beetles love hickory.  You should treat the fresh cut lumber with a borate like Timbor.  You do not want to bring powderpost beetles in your house with your untreated hickory lumber. 

[rasman57]

X2 on the debarker.....
Shagbark here when dry will make sparks from the bark being hit by the chainsaw....it cuts just fine but that shaggy bark does not like letting the steel in.  Gotta be some of the most wicked hard there is.

[woodmills1]

And after all that, wait till you find out how hard it is to cut, joint, and plane.  Can I add that the piece you just squared up will bend while you are inside having lunch.

[whittle1]

Ok sounds like I have a lot to learn, Thanks for all the good info. I will search for methods on sawing to
minimize movement. I also read on another post about a book on sawing I definitely plan on buying. Again thanks for your responses to my question.

[Magicman]

I would prefer to learn with something other than Hickory.   :P

[whittle1]

After the responses I definitely will do that. I have a lot of pine down when I put a road in and cleared for my shop and house also have about 10 large white oaks I took down to make a pond. I pushed a lot of large gum trees into burn piles, Was that a mistake I see on here where some are cutting gums.

[Magicman]

White Oak would be ~equal to the Hickory sawing.  Sweetgum saws easy, dries difficult, and makes good barn siding.

[woodmills1]

Start with the pine.