Chainsaw Milling in Whangarei
There are many opportunities for chainsaw milling in Whangarei and Northland. We have some exquisite native timbers and building with your own dried lumber is a fantastically satisfying experience.
Kiwi homes are adorned with fine examples of structure and furniture produced by the home handyman. I’ve seen everything from macrocarpa fences and floor boards to ornate Tasmanian Blackwood chairs. It’s all possible, and all starts with felling and milling.
We offer a range of related tree care services of which portable chainsaw milling is on. We can advise on various storing, drying and seasoning techniques as well. Maybe you just want us to fell and limb the logs and maybe add a wainscot cut if you intent getting it under a band saw. Our services are available anywhere in Northland. If however you want to give it a go yourself then read on for some more useful information.
Be wary of any timber standing or not that may have metal in it. Any metal object hidden in timber will reduce your chainsaw chain to filings in no time at all. Also don’t under estimate what you are might find in tree trunks. It’s amazing what can turn up, bullets are common, as are fence staple and wire. I’ve also come across horseshoes, pipes, waratars and mechanical parts of cars and push bikes. Such obstructions will fracture and break the cutting teeth on a chain. They can also dull the teeth almost beyond recovery in a matter of seconds. I say beyond recovery because it rounds the top of the tooth and draws the sharpening edge so low that you need to remove most of the tooth before you can rebuild a good cutting edge at the correct height on the tooth.
Another thing to watch out for is bar oil. Most chainsaws deliver inadequate amounts of oil to the bar and chain for the length of bar and chain you will likely be using. This causes overheating and the rapid demise of both. Adjust the oil delivery settings on the chainsaw and decant oil into a shampoo bottle and use it generously all over the outer reaches of the bar. You will use a lot, but destroying a 4 or 5 foot bar and chain makes the whole exercise rather expensive.
Be realistic about the timber you intend to mill. Does it have rot and fungal infections all over it, does it borer, is it cracked and fractured anywhere or has it been hollowed out by insect and environment. You need to ask yourself if the timber is really worth it. That old stump rotting in the garden for the five last may have been a good beer table but may well be too far gone to every mill into anything you will want in your living room as an eye catching coffee table.
There are a few option to drying timber. Some mills will cut and dry timber for you or you can do it yourself. You can also take any combination of this. If you opt for the much cheaper DIY method, you need to ensure a few things. Firstly, keep the timber dry. Secondly keep it out of the sun and Thirdly take care with your stacking methods. Keep it all evenly spaced and flat, no twists and dips etc.
Finally, there is pertinent bits of legislation regarding milling native timber outside a (SFM) or Sustainable Forest Management Plan / Permit. This legislation is so far applicable regardless of reason for harvesting the timber. It makes no distinction between felling / pruning for safety reasons and the age old profit motive. In short you need to register your mill and satisfy a few conditions upon application to Ministry of Primary Industries.
