Took a dumptruck load of oak to an amish sawmill the other day...

[Scott Huff]

I got the logs from clearing my lot to build my house. The guy said I've got around 1500 bd ft. It's mostly red oak, but there's a few white oak logs in there, too. I planned on having 4 of the best logs quartersawn and the rest plainsawn. He talked me into plainsawing all of the logs down to the center portion and getting the quartersawn wood in the center because the width of the boards will be more consistent and he only charges the plainsaw fee when doing it this way. I guess there are a lot of small slivers when you quartersaw and only a few wide pieces. I'm second-guessing myself now. Do you really get a lot of waste and only a few "nice" boards from each quarter? He charges .20/bd ft to plainsaw and $120 per hour to quartersaw. I wanted to maximize the quartersawn w/minimum outlay of cash. I've got a little time to make up my mind, he probably won't get to my logs for another week or so.

[Dave O'Nan]

Yes, real quarter sawing will waste a lot of wood. You may get 3-4 boards sawn, and then you need to move the log to a better angle. With flat sawn, you will get some quarter sawn, some rift sawn (almost as good, stability wise) and a lot of flat sawn wood, which ain't too bad. The cost of quarter sawing your logs is probably too great for what you'll get out of them. I would go with what the sawyer suggested. My .03 Dave

[Ian Abraham]

As you have found there is several ways to saw a log.

True quarter sawing (getting ALL Q-sawn boards) is both difficult and wastefull. So most sawyers use an approximate method that returns mostly Q-sawn boards, but it's still a lot more work. Logs have to be broken down into quarters and reloaded on to the mill and turned many times to maximise the yield. Hence most sawyers charge a higher rate (or an hourly rate).
It seems what your sawyer has suggested is that the logs are all sawn 'thru & thru'. This is an accepted sawing pattern, it's probably the fastest (read cheapest) method. Approx 1/3 of the wood will be flat sawn, 1/3 will be rift sawn and 1/3 will be q-sawn. Some boards will contain a section of each grain that can be seperated by ripping the full width boards as nessecary.
I guess it's your call what you do, but the q-sawn boards that you do get from his suggested method should be the best ones possible from the log, so do you have a use for the other boards?

Cheers

Ian

[Matt Meiser]

In one of the books I read, the author (I think Lonnie Bird) recommended having logs plain sawn as you will end up with the widest boards, but can cut them down if needed to get boards with the grain you need.

[Scott Huff]

Thanks for the replies and helping me make my decision. I will just keep things the way they are.

so do you have a use for the other boards?

Yes, once they're properly air dried, I plan to make 2 bedroom suites for my girls and an entertainment center for my wife. I want to make all new office furniture out of the quartersawn pieces in a shaker/craftsman style. Haven't quite decided yet. If there's any left over, I'm sure I'll think of something!