I would be interested to hear if anyone has any bright ideas for milling a tree into boards. In the field adjacent to my parents house there is a dead oak tree from which I have gradually removed all the minor branches for firewood over this winter.
What is left is the whole, largely cylindrical bole around 11' long and 30" in diameter weighing an estimated ton and a half. I could chainsaw it up and use it for firewood, but it seems a waste of near criminal proportions to abuse 250 years worth of naturally seasoned (it's been standing, dead for around 20 years) prime English oak in that fashion. It is beautiful timber, if you like that sort of thing.
BUT, I can't imagine any commercial mill would be interested. Extracting it from the field would be possible with a Hiab or similar
- access is reasonable if I mended the gate, 'though it's pretty boggy right now. It's just possible I might get it onto a tractor trailer, but by the time I get it to a mill I imagine the costs will be around the same as buying the timber, but I may be wrong.
I have seen photos (somewhere in the past) of a horizontal bandsaw sort of device that can be fitted to a felled tree and crudely mill it in situ. Anyone know of such a device? Could it be hired? Any of the old tractor fraternity have anything likely and fancy a day out playing with their toys to do a real job? I'm in mid-Kent BTW.
TIA
Richard