Sawing a beam

[jamaica]

I have two beams that are 8cm thick & 22cm wide.
Length 3 meters

I would need to saw it to be 7*17
Which tool should I use to make it 7cm thick?
The circular saw doesn't go that deep, even if you flip the beam. Need something that can saw straight and can handle at least half of 17cm.

I can never get straight with a jigsaw.
Circular saw can't handle the depth.
I don't have anything else at home but what should I look for?

 

[Tompafix]

I have two beams that are 8cm thick & 22cm wide.
Length 3 meters

I need to saw it so it becomes 7*17
Which tool do I use to make it 7cm thick?
The circular saw doesn't go that deep even if you turn the beam. Need something that can saw straight and manage at least half of 17cm.

I never get it straight with a jigsaw.
Circular saw can't handle the depth
I don't have anything else at home but what should I look for

Rent a table saw or take them to a carpentry shop and pay them to do it.

 

[cpalm]

Since I am doing timber repairs on the house, I often split timber. However, in shorter pieces than 3 meters.

If you stick to DIY methods:

The carpenter helping us used the chainsaw. It's really tricky to split a log with a chainsaw freehand - especially if you're not used to it. But it can be done. The finish is about 1 out of 10, but it might be good enough for certain purposes.

The next step is some sort of ripping jig for the chainsaw. There are everything from simple supports to complete small sawmills. Home-made, store-bought, or something in between. For example:
https://www.clasohlson.com/se/Timmerjigg-Logosol/p/30-8980

If you need a better finish and happen to have access to a planer, it's not a bad way to do the rough sizing.
You can also plane by hand, but it's quite a sweaty challenge with those dimensions.

Personally, I am a bit more comfortable with the circular saw and usually use either the table saw or a hand-held circular saw and saw at max depth from both sides. Then I take the center part left behind with a handsaw or a Japanese saw with ripping teeth and hand-plan afterward if needed. But it's much easier since most of the surface is already flat.

Worth noting with this method is that it's important to ensure the timber is fairly straight, flat, and square. As with all ripping, but the coarser the dimensions, the more the errors manifest themselves.

 

[useless]

Which tool do I use to make it 7cm thick?

A band saw.

 

[jamaica]

Thanks everyone for the tips

Chainsaw, I'm not getting into that
Band saw or leaving it in or renting, that's off the table now since a new beam costs around 500 SEK to buy, so I might as well just buy one.
I was thinking of seeing if there's a trick I haven't thought of here at home.

I can buy a larger blade, & try to saw as someone wrote, with the circular saw. The problem is I don't have any support to keep it going straight, so I'm a bit unsure, but I can give it a try. Flip it over & finish with a handsaw.
If I buy a larger blade, what diameter should it have? Or I mean, how much of the blade roughly goes into the beam?

 

[Hep]

Can the circular saw really have a larger blade than the one that comes with it initially? That sounds strange.

 

[PNO]

Do you know anyone who has a planer? It's just 10mm that needs to be removed in thickness. You plane it away in three passes.

Take the height with a circular saw from both sides. Take the opportunity to plane the surface nicely while you're planing the other side.

 

[Dan_Johansson]

Why is a centimeter so critical? Can't the thickness be maintained, and then the rest will be easily resolved?

 

[MWHN]

You can also make a number of 5 cm and 1 cm deep cuts with the circular saw and then use a chisel to remove the wood between the saw cuts, and a plane to tidy it up afterwards. This can also be done in stages if you can't cut 5 cm at once with the circular saw.

 

[AG A]

Depending on the type of wood and other factors, you can try using a handsaw. Place the beam on its side and place 7cm studs or other support next to it. You can also have the beam upright, but then support is often needed on both sides of the saw. Then try to saw. Change the angle of the saw quite often to make it easier. It will take a couple of hours, but probably faster than the circular saw and chisel method. It might not work. As mentioned, it depends on several factors. But you'll quickly know if you're making any progress or if it feels futile.

 

[cpalm]

Bandsaw or submitting it or renting is not an option now as a new beam costs around 500 SEK to buy, so I might as well buy one.

That's the obvious option if you value your time in any way.

 

[jamaica]

Depending a bit on the type of wood and other factors, you can try with a handsaw. Lay the beam on its side and place 7cm battens or other support next to it. You can also have the beam on edge, but then support is often needed on both sides of the saw.
Then try sawing. Change the angle of the saw quite often, it will be easier. It will take a couple of hours, but probably faster than the circular saw and chisel method.
It is not certain that it will work. As mentioned, it depends on several things. But you will quickly know if you are making progress or if it feels futile.

I will give this a try. Thank you.
Otherwise, I guess I'll have to go and buy a new beam. At least I've looked over the options.

I haven't mentioned that the biggest problem is that the beam is slightly wider than the wall it sits between. I have widened an opening in the wall & will reinforce with this beam. The reason I want to narrow the beam is for aesthetics, because it certainly looks odd if the beam is a bit wider than the wall, right? In this case 10mm. That's 5mm on each side. Perhaps it doesn't matter?

 

[Dan_Johansson]

Well, you can always slap on a layer of plaster to cover the difference?

 

[J Vos]

I'm going to give it a try with this. Thanks In other case, I might have to go & buy a new beam. Now I've looked over the options anyway.

I haven't mentioned that the biggest problem is that the beam is somewhat wider than the wall it's between. I've widened an opening in the wall & will reinforce with this beam. I want to narrow the beam for aesthetic reasons, because it does look odd if the beam is a bit wider than the wall, right? In this case, 10mm. That becomes 5mm on either side. Maybe it doesn't matter?

I'm going to give it a try with this. Thanks In other case, I might have to go & buy a new beam. Now I've looked over the options anyway.

I haven't mentioned that the biggest problem is that the beam is somewhat wider than the wall it's between. I've widened an opening in the wall & will reinforce with this beam. I want to narrow the beam for aesthetic reasons, because it does look odd if the beam is a bit wider than the wall, right? In this case, 10mm. That becomes 5mm on either side. Maybe it doesn't matter?

I think it's just fine if the beam sticks out 5 mm on each side. The alternative is that the beam is even with the wall sometimes. You'd then have to 'choose' if it's even when the beam is at its widest in the summer or when it's at its narrowest in the winter. Then there's a risk that the beam might twist a little and it will be uneven anyway. I think it's better with a 5 mm projection that you can, for example, seal or wallpaper against.

 

[jamaica]

I think it's just fine if the beam extends 5 mm on each side. The alternative is for the beam to be even with the wall sometimes. You then have to 'choose' if it is even when the beam is at its widest in the summer or when it is at its narrowest in the winter. Then there's a risk that the beam might twist a bit, and it becomes uneven anyway.
I think it's better with a 5 mm protrusion that you can seal or wallpaper against.

we'll go with that then, thanks