Cutting wood years ago

JOB · Mar 24, 2013

These pictures were taken about 12 miles north of Milaca Minnesota on my fathers friend's property, Ole.
Here is a saw my father used back in the forty's. He called this his power saw. He fell trees with it and cut them into fire wood also. If they had chainsaws back then he did not have one. This is the only saw he had. I am thinking the pictures were taken back in 44 or 45. The small child in the one picture is my older sister, she appears to be two or three in the picture. She is four years older than myself. The first picture is my dads friend Ole running the saw.

The second picture is my father running the saw. Why Ole is pushing something into the saw I do not know. Unless he is helping feed the blade into the wood.

My sister Judy and Ole and my father on the saw

The blade is turned horizonally to cut off the stumps.

My father has the machine proped up stationary so he can cut fire wood. My mother is usually throwing blocks but I would bet she is taking the pictures.

JMOR · Mar 24, 2013

Neat pictures of the past. Always enjoy them.

LenND · Mar 24, 2013

Great pictures! I think they are using a pole to keep the saw from pulling the log back. I imagine it has a good torque to it. In the second picture I hope it never kicked back cause it is aimed right Ole's you know what. Could smart for awhile, lol

JOB · Mar 24, 2013

Now that I look at it again, The pole is under the piece being cut. The pole might be to keep the saw from pinching.

sflem849 · Mar 24, 2013

(quoted from post at 18:12:01 03/24/13) Now that I look at it again, The pole is under the piece being cut. The pole might be to keep the saw from pinching.

That was my guess. It must be a key detail since it is taking place in both pictures.

gtractorfan · Mar 24, 2013

Couldn't help noticing that saw uses what appears to be 4 "V" belts from the relatively small engine to the blade. I think Lyle's sawmill showed 4 "V" belts from his big engine to the sawmill. Kind of wondered if those were the weak part of his drive. Of course a lot depends on the amount of tension.

Brian G. NY · Mar 24, 2013

Wow, in the days before the chain saw became common, this was probably the "cat's meow".
Those are great pictures!
I've seen similar saws on Gravelys and David Bradleys but nothing this old!
Definitely raising the log to prevent "pinching".

JD Seller · Mar 24, 2013

I LIKE these type of pictures. Things being used in times gone by. Thank you for sharing them with us.

I would like to see OSHA see one of these in use. LMAO

Just looking at it makes me cringe.

charlie n · Mar 24, 2013

The one in the picture is a little different but I think it's the same machine.

http://www.kutkwick.com/about.htm

Russ from MN · Mar 24, 2013

And the size of the sheaves.

S2710 · Mar 25, 2013

The Amish around here use something like that to cut ice on the pond to fill ther ice house. If it is still setting by the pond today I will take a picture and post it.

Bob

JRSutton · Mar 25, 2013

That's great! the kind of machine when they knew a guard would have just been a senseless joke.

I would assume there's some kind of lever to engage it - but if that ever failed, starting it could be pretty exciting. Imagine trying to catch one that took off!

JOB · Mar 25, 2013

I would guess there was a belt tightener of some sort on the blade. The wheels were not engine driven as far as I can remember.

JOB · Mar 25, 2013

I saw one in MN. that looked sort of like a concrete saw, only with a cord wood blade on it.
After the winter carnival people shafted the man who cut and delivered the ice for one of Minnesota's ice castles. A company in Minnesota built a new version of the ice cutting saw.

Goose · Mar 25, 2013

Wish I had a picture of it, when I was a kid my father had a Model T Ford engine on metal runners running a buzz saw blade.

In the winter when the river was frozen, he and all the neighbors would saw ice into blocks on the river and pack the blocks in straw in a community "ice house" that went down about six feet below grade level. Everyone who helped put up the ice was free to partake of it. The ice usually lasted till towards the end of summer.

aarolar · Mar 25, 2013

My great grandfather used to run one of those saws called them monkey saws back then or so my grandfather tells me. Said my great grandfather was only about 5'5" but could throw that saw around like it was a toy.

JRSutton · Mar 25, 2013

no, I meant take off when the blade starts spinning in that up right position.

And I WAS just joking.

Like I said, it'd have to be broken, AND more than likely the blade would just dig into the ground - but I just had a funny image of trying to catch that thing, if and if all the conditions were right (which is usually how MY luck works) and it was zipping around a field at 100mph.

gtractorfan · Mar 25, 2013

Imagine if Steve Smith on the Red Green show got a hold of one of these. He and his buddies would be chasing it all over the place. Which just reminded me of the time he was trying to start a mower pulling the recoil rope and another guy walked up behind and got an elbow right where it hurts most!

jeffcat · Mar 25, 2013

You may want to consider. All you guys saying how it will run down the road may be all wet. Look at the ICE saw post above and then look at how Ole is cutting. The teeth cut from behind, the saw is trying to push away from the log. This is why Ole is cutting OVER the log so the saw will pull itself in from behind. There is no saw dust on the ground behind, it is to the front. Also all of the Briggs engines I have, and four of them are rope start, the engine turns clockwise from where you are standing. The saw in the picture is turning clockwise. Jeffcat

Anonymous-0 · Mar 25, 2013

I always like to look at old pictures. Thank you for posting them.

Anonymous-0 · Mar 25, 2013

I think that is a Clinton motor. My grandad had one of those saws with a Clinton-the decal on it was an arrowhead. Looked similar to the decal on this saw. I still have it but motor has been replaced with a Briggs. It also has a mower head you can put on in place of the blade-like a big push lawnmower. There is a lever on the handlebar that lowers the motor to tighten the belt to engage the blade. Later on he bought a 8 hp. Mono chainsaw--what a brute to run!

Adirondack case guy · Mar 26, 2013

Here is another brand like it.
Loren, the Acg.

mozark · Mar 27, 2013

Thanks for the pix, I enjoy cutting wood and appreciate the rough ways people had to cut wood back a few years. Pretty sure the engine on the saw is a Briggs ZZ, I have one on a generator that looks just like it. It still runs good when you can get it started, about 7 hp if I remember correctly. First saw I remember my dad having was a rim saw, that was a dangerous looking machine too, then he bought a Lombard 650.

JOB · Mar 28, 2013

Yes, I would bet the engine was a briggs, I would
say 10 HP or so. My father sold this machine
somewhere back in 54 or so. Got $100.00 for it.

I have a saw that I built back in 68, them rebuilt a
few back and posted it on here and got scolded
pretty good. I put some improvements on it. I will
post it again when I get it back together again.

Cutting wood years ago

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