Sawmill in Whittier, NC

WNC Wood offers sawmill services in Western North Carolina (WNC), including Whittier, NC, Cherokee, Sylva, Waynesville, Jackson County, Haywood County, and Swain County, NC.

We are not a mobile sawmill service at this time – you will need to bring your logs or have us bring your logs to our location in Whittier, NC.

Our hours of operation are by appointment only – send a message through the website or, if you are a repeat customer, call or send a text message to let us know when you will be here.

Custom Sawmilling in Whittier, NC

Whether you have trees that were knocked down in a storm, you are clearing your property and don’t want the trees to go to waste, or just need some custom-sized hardwood lumber, we can turn your logs into lumber.

Below, I’ll cover some of the basics, including pricing, fees, and log specifications.

Prices for Custom Sawmilling in Jackson County, NC

In most cases, we will charge 1$ a board foot to saw lumber when you provide the logs, with a minimum fee of $50, although prices are subject to change and may be significantly less or more depending on the size of the job, the type wood, and other factors.

Labor to deliver logs, unload logs, trim logs, or tasks other than loading, unloading, and working the sawmill, will be billed at $100/ hour.

There is a nail damage fee that includes the actual cost of any repairs to the sawmill equipment with a minimum fee of $50. “Nail damage” means any damage that is caused by any foreign material that is embedded in the log.

All costs must be paid before the customer receives the lumber. Fees must be paid, and lumber must be picked up within 30 days after notification that the job is ready, or lumber will be sold to pay the fees.

Logs or lumber are left on WNC Wood’s property at the customer’s risk, and we are not responsible for loss, theft, or damage to a customer’s property from insects, weather, or other causes.

Specifications for Custom Sawmilling Logs

Before delivering a log or logs to the mill, ensure that they are:

• No less than three feet in length,
• No more than 12 feet in length,
• No less than ten inches in diameter, measured on the smaller end,
• No more than 28 inches in diameter, measured on the larger end,
• Free of nails, metal, or other embedded material,
• Trimmed and free of branches – you should be able to roll the log without difficulty, and
• Reasonably straight so the saw head can pass over its length.

Hardwood Lumber

Currently, the only hardwood lumber available is freshly cut wood that has not been kiln-dried. Sorry!

Once our kiln has been purchased and installed, we will update the website to reflect the hardwood lumbers that are available and pricing.

How do You Determine Board Foot (BF)?

What is a “board foot?”

It’s the most common way to determine the amount of wood in lumber or logs. For dimensional lumber, a board foot equals the volume of a board that is one foot long, one foot wide, and one inch thick.

If the board is two inches thick, one foot long, and one foot wide, that’s two board feet. If the board is three inches thick, one foot long, and one foot wide, that’s three board feet. And so on…

How do you find the board foot in a log?

The Doyle Scale is one method used to determine the volume of lumber contained in a log based on the log’s length and the log’s diameter at the smaller end. The formula is:

BF=(d−4)2(L16)

To make it easy, there are board foot calculators online or you can download a printable Doyle chart.

There are other methods for calculating a log’s board feet including the International Method and the Scribner Rule.

We Buy Hardwood Logs in Whittier, NC

Although we are not a large operation, we will buy cherry, black walnut, white oak, red oak, maple, and other hardwood logs as needed if they are delivered to the sawmill and meet the following requirements:

• No less than three feet in length,
• No more than 12 feet in length,
• No less than 14 inches in diameter, measured on the smaller end,
• No more than 28 inches in diameter, measured on the larger end,
• Free of nails, metal, or other embedded material,
• Trimmed and free of branches – you should be able to roll the log without difficulty, and
• Reasonably straight so the saw head can pass over its length.

Although most sawmills will only purchase logs that are over eight feet in length or prime grade, WNC Wood will accept some smaller log sizes (no less than three feet in length) to use in smaller projects.

Pricing may range from .20 to $1.00 per board foot, depending on the type of hardwood, the quality of the log, the length of the log, the diameter of the log, the amount of heartwood, and other factors.

When we buy logs, we will only need smaller loads of ten logs or less. In some cases, we may come to you to collect logs. Send us a message through the website if you have any questions.

Cull Pile – Sawdust – Free Stuff

Anyone is welcome to come have a look though our “cull pile” and take any cut-offs or throw-aways that they can use. Send a message so we know when you are coming.

We also generate a large amount of sawdust and are happy to give it away instead of burning it at the end of the day.