Sawmilling Process | Kiln Dried Lumber Process | Custom Millwork Process | Material Safety Data Sheets

Process Overview
The legacy of sawmilling at Bailey Wood Products dates back to 1928 when founder Howard Bailey began logging and sawmilling to pay the mortgage on his newly purchased farm. The operation has remained on a portion of that piece of property today. Much has changed since those early days. The equipment has become much more modern. The one thing that has remained constant is the care that goes into producing well manufactured lumber at Bailey Wood Products. The Bailey name has been known for decades as a source for great hardwood lumber and friendly service.

The process begins with timber that is harvested primarily from private woodlots. Our suppliers are SFI ( Sustainable Forestry Initiative) Trained Loggers. Our other non-native species are purchased from wholesale importers. We also purchase selected logs from other mills and other veneer and log buyers to be custom sawn on our mill for special needs. We also carry a few species of lumber that are FSC certified.

Our logs are purchased based on the net volume of board feet they will yield when sawn and their respective grade. The grade is determined by the amount of clear defect free sides each log has. After grading they are sorted based upon species and length in our log yard for storage prior to milling.

Prior to milling each log is debarked on our log debarking machine. This is done to remove all of the dirt and debris that got imbedded in the bark as a result of harvesting. This step is key to maintaining a sharp blade on the sawmill. We also generate a raw bark by-product that is sold for landscape mulch. After debarking each log is checked for any imbedded metal with a metal detector. This is a safe guard against blade damage and extends cutting life of each blade.

Upon completion of debarking and metal detection, each log is ready for processing on our 36” double cut bandsaw. The sawyer processes the log to yield the clearest lumber and highest grade with each saw pass through the log. When certain dimensions are required the computerized setworks aids the sawyer. We also produce flitch cut slabs that are stacked in a boule (their original orientation in the log) for book matching or other special needs. We also quarter saw certain species for the stable lumber it produces and to bring out the beautiful figuring and grain. The bandsaw mill is capable of sawing logs 4’ to 24’ in length. This allows us to produce shorts from crotch sections and other figured short logs all the way up to long timbers.

After being sawn to the desired dimension, thickness, or specially sawn for grade and figure the resulting lumber is edged and trimmed. We also produce live edge lumber where the natural edge of the piece is retained for table tops or other specialty applications.

Once the lumber has been sawn it is stacked onto fluted drying sticks to prevent sticker stain in the drying process. Depending on the species and time of year most lumber is air dried prior to going into one of our five Koetter Dry kilns for final drying. During warmer weather conditions, white woods such as Maple, Ash, Poplar and Birch are dried shortly after stickering to maintain that bright white color.

The lumber is then dried in one of our five dry kilns to an equilibrium moisture content of 6% to 8%. The drying process is done at a rate that each species will give up the bound water freely. This rate of drying varies from specie to specie and also lengthens with increased thickness of the lumber. Prior to removing the lumber from the kiln chamber it is conditioned. This process equalizes the moisture gradient between the core of the piece and the outside shell. This process produces lumber that is stress free and nice to machine and works well. This is a must for fine woodworking projects.

Upon completion of drying, the lumber is removed from the kiln and is sorted for grade and width. At this time we mark the net board footage on the face of each piece. This is done for inventory control and also to let each customer know the net measurement of each piece they are purchasing. Items not stored in the retail bin are tallied and bundled for storage in our warehouse.

We offer further processing of our kiln dried hardwoods in our mill shop. Our newly installed helical cutter head in our 24” planer does a superb job of surfacing the most figured hardwoods. We can also straight edge your material on one or two edges, and also rip to specific widths if desired on our laser guided rip saw. We also recently installed a vertical band resaw for cutting material thinner than one inch. This has a capability of resawing up to 12” in width. Our 36” Wide Belt Sander can also be used to produce a finely sanded finish on your selected material. We also have a glue rack that allows us to make glued panels and parts for a variety of applications up to 16’ and adjusted for 24’ under special situations.

Molding capabilities are a new feature at Bailey Wood Products. We have a 5 head Weinig molder capable of producing a wide variety of moldings as well as flooring, paneling, log siding and wainscoting in any hardwood. Please view our catalog of profiles. If you do not see one that fits your needs we have a tool room on site that can custom grind a cutter to make any profile you might need.

Bailey Wood Products is committed to utilizing our resources wisely and efficiently. We just completed the installation of a wood waste burner to create hot water to heat our buildings and dry kilns. This helps reduce our demand on fossil fuels. We also take our bark and sell that to a processor to make landscape mulch. All of our mill chips and sawdust is used for animal bedding or sold for the manufacture of wood pellets for heat.

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