Meet Our May Sawyer of the Month
Our May Sawyer of the Month is Todd Lawlar, owner and operator of Ichthys Sawmill & Wood Slabs and co-founder of Sawmill Central.
Todd has been milling for approximately 12 years. He is primarily located out of Bismarck, North Dakota but he is also licensed and insured to operate in California.
He decided to start milling to re-purpose logs taken down from Urban Forestry. Todd’s favorite part about milling is taking a round log and making useable material from it, be it 2x, 1x, 4x or mantles, table slabs, etc. His biggest challenge is sourcing and receiving material at a cost that allows him to stay competitive while keeping his customers happy and not go backwards.
Todd’s favorite materials to mill include:
Douglas Fir
Coastal Redwood
Any type of Cedar
He primarily uses his Cooks AC 4449 but he also had a TimberKing 2000. His primary blade choice is the WoodMaxx by KASCO. His mills are portable and his average time spent on the mills is 5 to 12 hours a day.
Some of his must-have tools include:
Chainsaw
Skid steer
Logging tape
Log caliper
Regular tape measure
Felling wedges
Basic wrench and socket set
4’ level
Todd’s favorite helper is his wife and he absolutely considers milling a form of therapy!
“Trees are a valuable, renewable resource. It’s a challenge of mine to be able to repurpose trees that have been removed for multiple reasons and turn them into something that could potentially last for decades,” says Todd. “I have a great respect for logger’s, logging companies, and tree services that strive to log and remove trees in a responsible manner that will continue to give to the logging communities and urban forestry for generations to come. My early ancestors had a mill set up in the beginning colonies of what is now the U.S. Growing up in a mostly agricultural environment, I find it strikingly odd that I have such a passion for responsible forestry and being a sawyer. It must be in the genes!”
Would you like to be featured as a sawyer of the month? If so, contact us! If we choose you, we will include your name in a drawing at the end of the year for a chance to win $500!
