The Shrinking 2x4
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Link to video
He's off a bit off on site planing. When using rough cut, you first sticker and air-dry or you end-rick and air-dry. Alternatively, you can kiln dry, usually solar-type stuff for the small user.
After it's dried enough for framing, all you're mostly worried about is the 4" side , because everything is on 16" centers. Who cares if it's 2" or 2 3/8" ? It nails the same.
Right now, we have a problem with affordable housing. On the rural route, it's becoming increasingly difficult to find loggers who will harvest small stands of timber. For instance, I've got five or six acres of decent pine that nobody will touch. I'm by no means alone in this problem.
IMO, we need to address a couple of things:
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Building codes that call for grade stamped lumber, restricting self-builders and contractors to store bought structural lumber. We need to look at our stamping system, our moisture content and what we allow. Lumber graders should be able to work with small mill owners to assure decent lumber is going in a house, without some of the red tape we have today.
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Small tract usage. If we fix the first problem, maybe we fix this one. We used to have what we called "one-horse" loggers. It was usually one man or two, with a small log truck that had a knuckle-boom loader behind the cab. He'd cut the trees, then use a small skidder like a Log-Hog to skid his logs to the truck, then load with the loader. A single man would get at least one load per day. A two-man crew would get at least two. Nowadays, it's all bigger tracts and bigger machinery.
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Another thing...If you're wondering what a good pine will cut out...A good tree that'll cut out an 8' (you jump the stump on a pine or you cut a 8' as your first cut, as more warpage is closer to the stump. Usually.) Then a couple of twenties and a twelve (or thereabouts) for around 1000 board feet. A really good tree (I've got a few) will cut out 1500.
