Completed Stool

Well it's been exactly 4 months and 2 days since I last posted- but I haven't stopped woodworking. I wanted to finish up the stool project and I just rushed ahead with it, instead of documenting it thoroughly. So here it is:
This year as a Christmas gift, I made a small cheese board, from the wood that I rescued from the city dump. It has walnut runners dadoed into the bottom.

68 days...

...is the number of days in which a single new post has not appeared on this blog. That's slightly embarrassing. I am inspired to write this new post because it was requested by one of my readers as a place to go when they have real work to do (and want to avoid doing it). Because one reader is the significant majority of the people who know about or read this blog, I feel it is my democratic duty to write a new post.

I have continued to work on the stool project, I am learning that making every joint a through mortise and tenon is not speedy, but will be worth it. I tapered the legs on the bandsaw, cleaned them up, and cut the upper joinery (which I don't really seem to have a picture of). The lower stretchers I clamp in place and trace the front scribe line using the legs. Completed sub assembly:

I also was distracted by some boards I cut a while ago that had been peacefully sitting in the corner until now. I decided to make a clock; the main wood I believe is maple with some kind of stain in the middle (if anyone knows what this is I would love to hear from you, if this helps, it smells reminiscent of defecation), the dots are walnut pegs, the hands are wenge. To mill this horribly cupped piece of wood I first flattened the concave side, and then took it to the bandsaw, referencing off the flat side. I am pleased with how it came out.

And if there happens to be a particularly astute reader he/she may be wondering on the mission lamp stand that I had blogged about previously. Well here's the situation; I called a local electrical store and had them order the appropriate part. They said they would call when it came in, which was going to be about two weeks. Now I don't know if they just forgot to call me, or if that lonely lamp harp is really sitting somewhere in a box, presumably being shipped via Andean llama, and has not arrived. In this situation most people would just call the company and inquire on the part's status. In classic woodshopbug fashion however, I have forgotten which electrical company I ordered it from, and am too lazy to call around to make any inquiries.

Later this week I am BUYING A NEW TOOL, so stay tuned.

Homemade Log Milling Tutorial

Due to popular demand I have videoed my process of how I go about turning a small log into lumber.  In this sequence I am using a 6" diameter sycamore log, which is smaller than I usually do, but honestly it was the best log that was at the dump.  First I drive two screws into the side of the log to hold the log to the sled.  Note that I am using a scrap piece of wood as a spacer to lift the log up above the clamps that are holding the jig to the bandsaw table. 

When I build a new and improved version I will build the auxiliary fence wide enough so the clamps will not interfere.  This jig is made from old particleboard drawer, and the frame of a old screen door.  The sled (which also doubles as a resaw fence) slides along a track. The base can be adjusted for drift and the log's size.

The blade I am using is Highland Woodworking's Woodturner's 3/8" Bandsaw Blade (105" length).  The jig is aligned with the blade to cut where I want it to and is squared to the fence bar which has been adjusted for drift. 

I have a video of the first cut, I apoligize about the quality, I was having problems uploading the non-condensed version.  It's not the most scintillating, so I understand if you skip to the end. 

After a flat face has been established I reference the newly cut face off a fence, in this case my regular bandsaw fence because this log isn't wide enough to need a tall resaw fence.  Note how in the beginning the log bucks a little.  This is caused by the log not resting securely on the table.  I should have flipped it around to cut from the other side, which would've been more stable.

With the lumber cut I paint the ends with latex paint and sticker them for drying.  Also I was sure to clean most of the sawdust out of my saw because the wet sawdust will cause rust on unprotected parts.  Even from this small of a log quite a bit of sawdust was made.

Home-milled Wood

In case anyone's curious I have posted pictures of some wood I have cut so far on my bandsaw.  I'm hoping to go get some more logs later today.

Wood 

 I also have a picture with the new guide post installed.

Man vs. Log

Edit: later I built a better log sled here

With the riser block installed and the bandsaw's height capacity increased to 12", I did what I probably shouldn't: actually use the full capacity. I wanted to take a log and turn it into usable lumber. So I went down to the local log dump and took (stole?) a maple log that was about 3' long and 11" diameter. After I took it home I realized that it was way too heavy to maneuver onto my bandsaw. So I had to cut it in half. The only problem is that since it was too heavy for the bandsaw, I was going to saw it by hand. Did I mention that it is 11" and maple? To add to that, the only saw that was coarse enough is a 12" long saw we use to cut down our Christmas tree with. So after getting shirtless and flexing my muscles for the neighbors, I began to cut. It took a really long time. Eventually I got to a point where all was cut except for a 4" diameter core section. So I bashed it with a rock and broke the core section. Before I started milling I painted the ends with latex paint to reduce moisture loss through the end grain.

To begin milling lumber, there must be one flat face. This can be achieved by a number of ways. I chose to make a jig that rides in the miter slot and is screwed into the log. Once the log is split in half, a high resaw fence can be used to make the slabbing cuts. Make sure your fence is correctly adjusted for drift. My resaw fence is part of my log sled. The blade I used is Highland Woodworking's Woodtrner's Bandsaw Blade, which is specially designed for cutting green lumber.

After the lumber is cut I weigh it and write the date and weight on the end. Every couple of months I will weigh them again. When the weight stops dropping I will move them inside where I will continue to weigh them. One they stop losing weight inside they can be used for some projects. Right now they are stacked and stickered under my porch with a cinder block on top to try to resist warping. This was not a total victory over the log however. Even though the log was reduced to slabs, it got in some good hits. While slabbing the second half one of the bearings in the middle pulley (the bottom one in this photo) seized up. After ordering some replacements from McMaster, the saw was up and running again. Here are some of the boards I cut: