Anybody cut thier own trees for pot calls?

[Paulmyr]

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Curious if any body does this. I'm looking at the possiblity of starting to turn some pot calls and possibly some duck calls. Mostly plan on hacking around until I can retire and get serious but that's at least a decade out.

 Any how, we have a good stand of ash on our property along with birch, some cedar, maple, and pin oak. My yard at home has some black walnut around the perimeter. There is also a white oak that was hit by lighting about 20yrs ago that has some smaller burls on it. One looks like it has some good nodules on /in it. My question for anyone who may cut thier own trees is what size trees are you looking for and do you normally want the heartwood or does it matter. 

How do you cut the tree up after it's on the ground? Are you looking for intersections of branches to the trunk? I'm looking to get a stock pile of wood drying for when I can get serious after retirement. I would think I could cherry pick the best and the rest will fuel the fire place.

Thanks for any info you can give.

[mastevt]

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1st off, find yourself a local saw mill.  Once you have a tree down, take sections of 6 to 8 ft to him and have him slab it live edge.  I have mine slabbed around 2 1/4 in. Which gives me ample enough for final milling to dimensions I use.  The larger the diameter the better.  After it's slabbed, your gonna need a place to stack and dry it.  Don't forget to seal the ends with anchor seal.  I stack using spacers and set a fan a few ft away.  I do this in my garage and basement which is air conditioned.  Which helps because of lower humidity.   It will take months to dry.  If you want it dry sooner, ask your saw mill if he's got a kiln.   Get a quality moisture meter to monitor its progress.  Personally, I find it's better to just rummage around his stock and get material that is useful to me, rather than take up space in my garage.  But it's all up to you.  But I'm guilty of it too.  It's a sickness.  I'm still working up some Ash from over a year ago.

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[Paulmyr]

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Thanks for the reply Mastevt. I thought about what you've recommended as there used to be a small mill near the cabin. I'm not sure the old guy is still working. I'm not in a hurry to get wood dried. Probably gonna be a  few years before I can get serious. Just looking to get a stockpile of different woods going. All the better if I can get from our property. If I were took cut out specific sections of the tree and cut them up with a band saw and or table saw what should I be looking for or is it cut open and see what the grain looks like.

When you sent your wood to get slabbed are there certain things you look for when deciding what to send. Also are there things you look for other than burls before you cut them down?

I think a small woodshop is in my future. All my other space is taken at the moment.

Thanks again for your time.

[mastevt]

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Look into the different cuts of wood, and you'll begin to understand more on the Grain.  Like quarter sawn.  Certain species of wood look better quarter sawn than straight cut, especially oak and Cherry in my opinion.  Crotch wood also tends to produce more figure.  Myself, I'm into more of the Spaulted stuff.   Primarily because I like to stabilize the wood.  That's a whole nother subject to get into.  Fun and addictive as much as making calls.  If you slab and can retain a bit of sap wood in your final blank, that's a plus.  Contrast makes great character.   The pics below show the figure I talked about and the Spaulting I like. 

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[Paulmyr]

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Very nice. Are you getting those colors by adding dye during the stabilizing process? Like the blue pot. Did you fill the spaulting with and epoxy then stabilize with dyed cactus juice or something? Looks like possibly the red Stryker too?

[mastevt]

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The color is achieved by adding dye to the stabilizing fluid.  I've got 9 gallons in different colors, plus clear.  The spaulted pot was done in clear. 

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[Paulmyr]

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Look into the different cuts of wood, and you'll begin to understand more on the Grain.  Like quarter sawn.  Certain species of wood look better quarter sawn than straight cut, especially oak and Cherry in my opinion.  Crotch wood also tends to produce more figure.  Myself, I'm into more of the Spaulted stuff.   Primarily because I like to stabilize the wood.  That's a whole nother subject to get into.  Fun and addictive as much as making calls.  If you slab and can retain a bit of sap wood in your final blank, that's a plus.  Contrast makes great character.   The pics below show the figure I talked about and the Spaulting I like. 

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How things have changed in a matter of days. I've been sitting on a chunk of money for a new garage watching it lose its value over the last 1 1/2 years waiting for lumber prices to come down. I've decided to take the money and buy a portable sawmill and cut my own lumber for the garage, future woodshop,  and other projects that are in the works. I've got it narrowed down to 2 mills at this point. A Woodlands HM126  or Frontier OS27. Both are comparable but leaning towards the Frontier because of it's electric start option. Should be pulling the trigger sometime this week after a little more research so I guess I'll be learning a lot more about woodgrain and how to cut it in the near future.

[RH1]

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Cut a sweet(red) gum down in the yard that made some jam up pots!
Stabilized also. I don't see how I'd ever build enough calls to justify going into milling. My gum was processed with an alaskan mill and my bandsaw....never again

[mastevt]

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That Sweet Gum looks awesome!

[Paulmyr]

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It sure does.

The mill will be for lumber, lap siding, and tongue and groove for a myriad of project in the works. Brother is in the process of finalizing the start of a house build as well. The lumber won't be ready in time for the house if he sticks to the plan but should have plenty for his detached garage. I think he might be planning on some hardwood flooring now.

 Should be plenty of wood processing going on in the next few years  to allow for cherry picking wood and have a good stash for when I can get serious about making calls when I retire in at the least 10 years.

I guess the 1st project will be a storage shed for the fresh cut lumber to dry in.

[RH1]

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Well now you're talkn!

[mastevt]

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They're not Turkey Calls, but some Owl Hooters for locating turkeys.  Made from an Ash tree I cut down in my front yard 1 1/2 years ago.

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[RH1]

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Very nice!

[milertyme03]

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Does anyone do this for box calls?  Ive got a tone of old growth cedar and some ash on a piece i have.  Would.ljme to have wood ready in a few years.  What size thickness should I mill for future call making?

[ferocious calls]

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Have been cutting trees and milling them for 12 years. I like to cut 9 qts or 2.25"rough. Have a few thousand bf on hand for box calls. Same plan as OP. Have enough forever. I get alot of yard trees that logger friends don't want to mess with.
If you have the means to cut and haul, find a logger and tell them what you are after.