Milling a HUGE log on our HM126 sawmill

We are milling our first big pine log. At 24 inches in diameter, it was hard to completely fit on our Woodland Mills HM126 portable sawmill unless perfectly centered, so we had to cut off bark from edges to make it work. We milled the pine into 2x4s that we will use to frame our solar kiln.
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Milling a log TOO BIG for our sawmill! (Woodland Mills HM126) • Milling a log TOO BIG ...
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ABOUT US:
We are Matt and Diana and we believe in living life the #adventurousway. We are on a quest to explore ALL the National Parks while enjoying that RV life, but we are adding in an additional adventure of #buildingahouse to be our home base on the 40 acres of raw land we recently purchased in Vermont.
Filming dates: November, 2021

[@elizabethlarose3632]

It is so satisfying watching you mill the wood. Your stacking looks terrific.👏👏

[@AdventurousWay]

Thanks Elizabeth! It's a little OCD but it was so much fun to see it gradually climbing higher!

[@expatconn7242]

I am envious!

[@21thTek]

you guys are a great TEAM, congratulations !!

[@AdventurousWay]

Thank you so much 😀

[@azxp]

It is crazy, I have been watching you guys since you lived in Cali. I bet you never thought you would ever be here right? It is fun watching you guys grow together. I love all of the progress. I could smell the wood as you were milling it. I am sure it wasn't anywhere near what you guys were smelling, but nice nonetheless.

[@AdventurousWay]

I know right, a bit of a change! Building a house is something that's been on my bucket list for well over a decade! But even so, this isn't necessarily how I expected it to happen, and it's really exciting now being on this journey! The wood did smell absolutely amazing, although I think when we start milling again we should probably be wearing dust masks as the sawdust isn't something we want to be inhaling too much of.

[@sasquatch885]

While watching this I was thinking these two are as OCD as I am! Great video. I don’t have any land or need for a sawmill, but I still want one!👍🏻

[@AdventurousWay]

Haha, gotta love some OCD lumber stacking!

[@j.r.576]

Not ocd at all, a stack like that will yeald the best lumber.

[@TomNomNomDotCom]

Congrats! That's about £240 / $330 worth of 2x4s if bought at my local saw mill! I really appreciate the neat stacking

[@AdventurousWay]

The $$$ add up pretty quickly! Although we have to keep reminding ourselves that milling it is just the first step - it then needs to be stacked, dried, planed and surfaced if we really want to compare it to what we'd buy in a big box store. Obviously if you're comparing it to rough sawn lumber at a local saw mill then it's job done! In our case, we're going to let this dry over winter and then build the solar kiln with it - no drying, planing, etc first. The sawmill cost somewhere around $6k and we think it should pay for itself relatively quickly (if you ignore our labor!).

[@littlegriffoffgridalberta6837]

Great job ! That was a nice piece of tree you were cutting up, I have learned a lot watching over the past few months so hoping it goes well when I get my mill together :)

[@AdventurousWay]

It was a beautiful log! Have you bought the same mill or something different? There's something so exciting about milling your own lumber.

[@DustinTWilliams]

Great work. I recently got the same one. Quick note, the logs are easier to flip if the point of the log stops are on the outside instead of the inside where the log tends to catch the point.

[@AdventurousWay]

Interesting idea. I had assumed that the log stops were meant to be "pointy side toward the log" so it'd make contact at the highest possible point, but I guess we can try it the other way around!

[@robertward553]

Good job, guys. I liked it.

[@brucewatson8451]

Good video guys. Have always liked your no nonsense way of looking at things. My 126 is just about ready to go. EB.

[@AdventurousWay]

Thanks for watching!

[@1620GarageAndFarm]

I’m picking up a woodland 122 or 126 soon for out small farm. Great video thanks for sharing :) … I will also post some video

[@johntillotson4254]

Nice couple 💑

[@AdventurousWay]

Thank you!

[@thizizliz]

Welcome to the Adventurous Way Workout Plan! So much hard work but you will pay for the equipment in no time at the current price of lumber, besides getting higher quality and managing the forest on your land in a responsible way 😀. I love how careful you are about safety as well.

[@AdventurousWay]

Haha, it is absolutely a workout! Exactly like you say, not only will the sawmill pay for itself pretty quickly with all this lumber, but we are in complete control of the quality (for better or worse!) and know exactly where the wood came from. As for safety, yes, we're trying to be as careful as possible (although I'm sure there's always more we can do).

[@crprovost]

That was cool. Great job!

[@AdventurousWay]

Thanks Claude, appreciate it!

[@kathyheither7365]

Fun to watch your journey.

[@AdventurousWay]

Thank you Kathy! We have a long road ahead of us!

[@joycemoses2411]

Great work!!!

[@AdventurousWay]

Thanks Joyce!

[@herb7877]

Very nicely done !

[@AdventurousWay]

Thanks Herb!

[@bay9876]

Slabbing a tree is indeed just like a box of chocolates and truly, you never know what you are going to get.

[@AdventurousWay]

Yes, it's so true! I love the surprise each time!

[@joanmcerlean7158]

Very cool. Congrats.

[@AdventurousWay]

Thanks Joan!

[@teresaricher5393]

You mentioned about waste from ends cracking. If you paint the ends of logs with any latex paint (use whatever leftover or cheap stuff) before milling, it will slow the drying time of the ends compared to further up the board and minimuze cracking.

[@jamesbailey7785]

You all are awesome:))))))))))

[@AdventurousWay]

Aww, thanks! :)))

[@tddc530]

Inspiring pair!

[@AdventurousWay]

Very kind, thank you!

[@TheOldManAndTheSaw]

Great video.

[@AdventurousWay]

Thank you!

[@kennkid9912]

Kubotas do not have the lifting power of say a Kioti. yes, you do have to carry close and low. Your ballast box might be too light. Yes, that is alot of weight. for a saw setup on a temp. underpinning.My advice is make your log stops out of wood,like Oak? If you saw into them and you will, you wont damage your blade. I did this, when you get low on the log.Get a peavey and turn from the fat end .Nice woodlot. I used to skim a flat for ist cut .then drop down say one inch. Boards like that with a barky edge are useful for metal roof buildings or reroofing with metal over asphalt. You need strapping for that and strapping is very expensive these days. .32 per linear foot for a 1x3 which is really 2.5 inches.Is not much to screw a roof to.Yyou can easily miss it. We used discolored vmatch before. The mills had piles of this they wanted to get rid of. I dont like green wood for strapping.or studs that are sheetrocked.

[@sierraguy72]

Hi.....I just joined your channel.....looking good....I bought my MH126 a year ago with no regrets at all.....built a kiln, saw shed, and a Cargo Barn all from logs taken from my property here in N Ca. Last log on the mill was a big one, 24" Wide X 28" Tall X 13'6" Long, and that was after taking down 3 sides with my chainsaw mill.....it was definitely a struggle but it yielded a lot of 6X6's. Thinking of a Timber Frame Cabin.....Keep up the nice videos....It's beautiful up Vermont way......

[@AdventurousWay]

Thanks Jack, and welcome to the channel. Sounds like we have a lot in common! Glad to hear you're still enjoying your HM126 sawmill - we're really happy with ours and are planning to order a wood chipper from them very soon! That sounds like an absolute monster log - how did you get that up onto the sawmill in the first place?!

[@sierraguy72]

Yes, we do have a lot in common. I have a winch setup on my truck and with use of a couple snatch blocks, I was able to maneuver it into place and roll it after it was on the bunks. PG& E came though my property and cut 108 trees last year, with another 50 coming down this next year. Mostly Fir, some Oak and little Pine. That is why I bought my mill, and besides all my projects that I want to do.... Glad I found your channel and Good Luck on everything you do. Jack

[@AdventurousWay]

Wow, that’ll keep you busy on the mill! Do you mind if I ask what winch you have? We’re strongly considering one on a hitch mount so we can move it between our truck, tractor and equipment trailer.

[@sierraguy72]

@@AdventurousWay Not remembering the brand, I went and looked on the winch...there is no brand....I bought mine through Harbor Freight...12000 lbs. Steel wire. I also got the receiver hitch setup....What you also really need is the heavy quick connect wire that runs all the way back to your battery. That will give you the electrical power you need. My only complaints about it is, it is really slow. But it does a very good job. I use mine when the logs are not in a position I can drag them with my truck. Happy to share.... Jack

[@AdventurousWay]

Awesome, thank you! We already have a heavy gauge wire (2AWG I think) running from our truck battery to an Anderson SB175 connector on the back of the truck that we use for a DC-to-DC charger on our RV when towing: www.adventurousway.com/blog/rv-electrical-upgrade-part-3-dc-charger-truck-12v-socket Thanks for sharing!

[@JosEPh-zy3yr]

Just subbed. Saving up to get a HM122.

[@AdventurousWay]

Welcome to our channel!

[@lawrenceblue8207]

I would cut all four sides first when taking off the bark first, by flipping each side over each time.

[@ianivask]

How much is the fuel consumption in one hour ?

[@lectro88]

Very nice stacking,. if you will turn the log and de-bark all 4 sides you won't have that non-sense of hitting with the saw and having to hand trim. its all got to be cut any way so you are saving nothing except effort by plowing through and pushing the limits of the saws capacity. sending you the best.

[@AdventurousWay]

We had to learn that the hard way first 🤣

[@lectro88]

@@AdventurousWay You will continue to learn many methods and probably ADAPT your own along the way. I just orderd 130max and 2 extsentions.

[@philj78]

great work for a log the max size the mill will take. turn the log stops around so the angle part is towards the log and it will torn easier.

[@AdventurousWay]

Thanks! Interesting idea about turning the log stops around. I'd always assumed they should be oriented with the taller edge towards the log, but thinking about it now, I don't see why that would make any sense. Your suggestion makes much more sense, and the Woodland Mills website shows it the same way - thanks for pointing that out!

[@josephcraft2845]

They make magnetic strips that have marks on it easy to cut 4,5,6, and 8 quarter boards that allow for the curf of the blade. I have one on my Wood Mizer and it works great. After your cut you move it to the mark you want to use for your thickness and it seems to be very accurate

[@AdventurousWay]

Ah ha, that's what we need! I was planning to make my own but will see if I can find one pre-made. Thanks for the heads up!

[@j.r.576]

I just purchased the hm122 and those scales came with it. One with true inch and quartets, the other with inch with kerf and 2 inch with kerf.

[@eduardonicolas9677]

Hi, i am from the Philippines, i just want to ask if how can i buy that woodland sawmill? Do they have a dealership or store here in our country where i can purchase it? Thanks

[@AdventurousWay]

I'm honestly not sure. I'd recommend contact Woodland Mills directly and asking about your options.

[@ApinexCom]

Great video. Have you ever used a green line laser module as an alignment tool ?

[@AdventurousWay]

We have not, but I have been tempted a few times!

[@ApinexCom]

@@AdventurousWay It`s pretty useful. Many sawmill users that have a woodland mill or wood mizer have them hooked up. Its the Apinex AGLL2 20mw.

[@AdventurousWay]

Thanks! I started working on a plan to power one with a Dewalt battery. Thought that'd be a pretty cool way of doing it!

[@ApinexCom]

@@AdventurousWay , We also use it daily with a Apinex 3V battery pack.

[@kennkid9912]

You need a rear ballast weight on your tractor .you should put better support under your mill. I think when you put weight on, it will shift. It does seem to track well. Pine isnt great for framing.you can saw off the big butt on one side if its too wide.

[@AdventurousWay]

We have a ballast box filled with bags of gravel and sand on the back of the tractor - it's the black box you can just about make out in the video. It really helps a lot with stability when lifting the heavy logs. We're only going to use the pine for framing the solar kiln - any other framing we'll use spruce.

[@TheFiremanJoe]

Make sure you separate the heart/pith wood. The heart/pith wood will be prone cracking and checking, don’t use that for structural boards.

[@AdventurousWay]

Good point!

[@TheOldManAndTheSaw]

Instead of using your story stick I believe your mill came with a magnetic mount quarter scale. If your mill has one, they're very easy to use. If it didn't, you can get one at Woodland Mills. I've done some videos on using the quarter scale that you might find useful. Links are below. Link to quarter scale video kzbin.info/www/bejne/n37KdIFjesmeibs Link to fixing a quarter scale problem kzbin.info/www/bejne/bpizqZedp5akoMU Good Luck, Dave

[@AdventurousWay]

It did, but the magnetic scale only works for 1" and 2" thickness when accounting for blade kerf. We were able to use that for the 2" thick cuts, but for the 4" thick cuts we had to measure manually to account for blade kerf. Unless I'm missing something?

[@TheOldManAndTheSaw]

@@AdventurousWay No, you didn't miss anything. I've seen some sawyers add magic marker lines to their quarter scale for thicker cuts; like 4". If you could use 3 1/2" wide lumber you could use alternate 6/4 marks. Anyway, I enjoy your videos. Good luck.

[@AdventurousWay]

Ah-ha, that makes sense. Will watch your videos later - looking forward to learning more! We were thinking of making a story stick out of a piece of aluminum bar (we used an off-cut which is obviously going to shrink but was fine for a few days) with notches cut in it so it's really quick to use, or maybe even a digital meter....

[@TheOldManAndTheSaw]

@@AdventurousWay Check out Reap What You Seaux. He uses a marked up quarter scale. Works great.

[@craigrethorn1234]

you need to seal the log ends. tatwill cut down spliting

[@AdventurousWay]

Yes! A week or two after this video we sealed the ends of all the remaining logs and the ends of the boards we cut with Anchorseal 2. Fingers crossed we don't get too much splitting!

[@suemoore1965]

❤️🤍💙

[@jmdminiaturehorse63]

2 x 4's are 1.5 x 3.5....just saying.

[@AdventurousWay]

Not when they're green and rough sawn. The process of drying, planing and surfacing reduces them down to the actual dimensions - i.e. 1.5 x 3.5. For these particular boards, we're going to be drying them, but not processing them down, so they'll be somewhere between nominal and actual.