Sycamore Log
A couple years ago, we had a sycamore die, and had it cut down by a local tree service. I had the bole, about 20 feet long, left laying so that I could mill it up. It sat for a couple of years, and I decided it was time to mill it. I expect it will be fairly spalted.
This particular log is about 8 feet long and 14 inches in diameter. I usually cut them 100 inches so that I can get full 8 foot boards out of them after they are dried.
The first cut removes a slab, and sets the orientation for the remainder of the cuts.
First Cut
After this cut, the next 3 cuts remove the remainder of the slabs, leaving a cant. This cant is approximately 9 by 10 inches.
Cant
Next I cut the cant in half, hopefully right through the pith. This leaves me with 2 cants from which I’ll cut the boards.
I usually cut either 4/4 or 8/4 boards. I’m cutting these into 4/4 boards. We should get about 16 to 18 5 inch 4/4 boards. Approximately 50 – 60 board feet of lumber.
Finished Milling
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