Hew a log square. Then make it round.

[rjdankert]

Part 1
"An oak tree intended for the axle shaft of a water wheel is felled, transported with a special trunk cart ("devil's cart"), and transferred to the four-wheeled long wagon. During transport down the steep mill path, the wagon must be braked with a brake shoe and chain."

Part 2
"In the millyard, the two "mill doctors" hew the raw oak trunk into an octagonal beam. The craftsmen then shape this beam on the pivot bearing into a precisely dimensioned cylindrical shaft for the waterwheel. Finally, iron pins are inserted into both ends and clamped with glowing rings."

Bob

 

[Old Axeman]

44 years ago in Boulder Colorado I was building a very large log picnic shelter for Boulder County Parks and Open Space Dept. I needed two 40 ' round logs, with very little taper for the top plates. There were no straight 40 footers that would work growing anywhere near the build so we could easily skid to the construction site. So, I felled two 40' trees that we could skid, but they were very large on the butt end. We set the logs up near the build and I laid out to hew them square. I instructed my crew to hew square and then draw knife round. My foreman said "let me get this straight, you want us to take these large round logs and make them square and then make them round again ? " They quite often did not see the big picture, but they were good workers and excellent axemen.