Rendezvous
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Under very wet skies, members of the Massachusetts Portable Sawmill Association donated their time and skills this weekend to mill some 8,000 board feet for the new 36 x 56-ft. Gould Farm barn. Watching these professionals work their magic on the rough hemlock logs is a treat, and their good humor never wavered in the soaking Berkshires rain. We visited the site this Saturday morning, and took the following photos of the sawmilling on site. Volunteers were also filming the milling for a film by the Visionaries, a nonprofit television production organization. The Association is a newly formed group led by Jim and Karla Clarke of Igloo Charlie's Woodsmen, Ashfield, Mass. They promote the good work of portable sawmill owners by way of community service projects. Jim and his colleagues emphasize ecological practices and promote the sustainable use of woodlands. Visit their Web site at www.newoodexchange.com/. 
 A total of 5 portable sawmills (4 Wood-Mizers and a Timber Harvester) are milling the logs donated to Gould Farm. They are producing all the timber needed for the barn: the queen posts, braces, barn siding, rafters, decking for both floors, and so forth. While the mills cut, project manager Daniel Cryns of Gould Farm checked off the timbers cut on his list. 
Jim Clarke and volunteer Chris Callahan of Windsor Locks, Conn., assisting. Chris's mother is a member of Gould Farm's Board of Directors. 
Chip Smith of Chip Smith Wood Products, Russell, Mass., dressed appropriately for the weather. 
Tyler Higginbotham of Old Mountain Sawmill in Pittsfield, Mass.   Left: Ted Koopman, Sales Rep for Timber Harvester in New England. Right: Jim Rogers of Jim Rogers Sawmill, Georgetown, Mass., and Jeff Carnivale of Simonds Industries, Fitchburg, Mass., whose company donated the Simonds saw blades for the portable sawmills.  Jim Rogers, who traveled across the state from his home on the East Coast, operates the new Wood-Mizer owned by timber framer Dave Bowman, Worthington, Mass.  Bob Reimels of Middleborough, Mass., helps Jim Rogers with moving logs into position.  Bob uses a peavey to load the carriage, while Chip Smith (in yellow) and Dave Bowman look on. | ||