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Posted By: GatorS House Columns - 11/28/2020 05:26 AM
This isn't machine related but I thought yall would find it interesting....

This summer I was trying out my weed burner for the first time as a weed burner and not just as a flame thrower. I went along my covered parking area and quickly whipped the fire over a weed that was at the base of one of the columns. The columns are wood 1x10s wrapped in aluminum. I only had the fire on the base of the column for a second, and then it was really about 8" out in front of the column not even that close.

Anyway I went on around the house burning weeds, when I came back around the corner the whole column was smoking. I went running grabbing the water hose and yelling at my wife, I ripped the aluminum off the column and tore off the wood. What I found was interesting and explained how I managed to catch it on fire so easily.

This photo shows lots of dead bird skeletons and skulls. The columns apparently had a hole in the top and the baby birds were falling into the column and dying. I had been constantly fighting the bird nests on the columns. There were a couple adult birds in there too. I ripped the other columns aluminum and wood off also, one was empty, one had birds like the first one, and the last one had two live birds in the top of the column, and two bats, the bottom had 3" of bat poop...wasn't expecting that.

[Linked Image from live.staticflickr.com]

My wife said that she wanted the columns wrapped in cedar instead of the aluminum. I am not a wood worker by any means but I am also cheap so I am going to try to wrap them. I was able to get a good deal on some cedar 1x8s. I have 50 of them, there are 16 posts around the house, only four on the garage though.

Tonight I planed 50 1x8x10' boards and she also wants an eave entrance built over the house main door. I have some 4x4s for this I planed these also.

I got a Dewalt 435 planer on marketplace for the price of a 434, it was new in the box but had a hole in the box, I think it was a lowes reject due to the hole in the box. I had never used a planer before. Here are the before and after pics of the pile of wood.

[Linked Image from live.staticflickr.com]

[Linked Image from live.staticflickr.com]

[Linked Image from live.staticflickr.com]

[Linked Image from live.staticflickr.com]

It was definitely a good workout for the first use of the planer.

[Linked Image from live.staticflickr.com]

Posted By: sonny Re: House Columns - 11/30/2020 01:14 AM
Where on earth did you get that beautiful cedar???? --- and ya,--you did a excellent job on them. --- I have an old foly-belsaw 984 planer that I bought new in 1971, -- still use it a lot.
Birds are a real problem for sure! -- got them draggin chit up into my shed door tracks.
Posted By: GatorS Re: House Columns - 11/30/2020 04:39 AM
I got them off facebook marketplace, I got 50 1x8x10' boards for $450, that works out to $.90 a board foot, or $9 each. Couldn't find any close to that price. I also got 8 4x4x8' beams for 15 each. best I could find, all were rough sawed.

I only planed one side that will go on the outside. Took about 5 hours for all the boards over two days
Posted By: JIM Re: House Columns - 11/30/2020 03:35 PM
Holy crap what a deal.... that's some beautiful cedar. You could have bagged those cedar chips & sold them.. good for hamster cages. I have a Rigid R4330 that I purchased a Long time ago. It got some bad reviews but like any machine the operator needs to smarter than it.. I don't have any of the problems they complain about. It's NOT a commercial quality machine but it is a pretty high end residential unit. just have to support the work properly to avoid the snipe they all complain about. the folding tables are a bit flimsy but I use roller supports when feeding any thing of length and have no issues.
Posted By: GatorS Re: House Columns - 12/01/2020 02:12 PM
I bagged the chips up got three 33 gallon garbage bags full. My daughter has chickens so we will use them for bedding
Posted By: GatorS Re: House Columns - 01/04/2021 04:18 AM
I installed the columns several weeks ago, ended up having to plane the other side. Here is the final result. I have 8 more to do but no immediate plans to jump on those anytime soon.

[Linked Image from live.staticflickr.com]
Posted By: sonny Re: House Columns - 01/05/2021 02:10 AM
Beautiful job!
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