Table of Contents

May 2010 Classifieds

Download the Southern Loggin' Times May 2010 IronWorks classifieds here!

Deep Roots by David Abbott

Sometimes people stay in one place long enough that they become part of the local scenery; they be­come part of the land, and the land part of them, their stories intertwined. So it is with the Waters family, which has been here for about a century, if not longer—no one is quite sure—working a farm on the same location all of that time. Melvin Waters, 71, the oldest living member of the family, can’t say for certain how far back their roots extend. “Daddy was 84 when he died, he’d be in his mid 90s if he were alive today,” Melvin recalls. Their placement around Beach goes back at least to his childhood. The family grows cotton, corn, soybeans, and many acres of pine trees.

FRA Focuses On BCAP, Bioenergy, Logging Capacity; Presents Awards

At its annual meeting March 13-15 at Hilton Head, SC, the Forest Resources Assn. (FRA) adopted a formal position on the USDA Biomass Crop Assistance Program (BCAP); pondered changes to the wood fiber supply chain being driven by the emerging wood-to-energy market; considered the impact of logging capacity as wood fiber demand accelerates; elected a new chairman in Dick Carmical; and honored several at an awards luncheon. About 170 members and guests participated.

Making the Move by Jennifer McCary

Five years ago, Keith Oswalt found himself unemployed after a falling out with the only boss he’d had since graduating high school. “It worked out for the best,” the 44-year-old owner of Keith Oswalt Logging LLC says now. “I just wished it had happened 20 years ago.” Oswalt had worked for the company 22 years and was responsible for running one of the company’s two sides about 20 of those years. Oswalt had earned a reputation for running a safe, efficient and quality operation.

As soon as the word got out, several companies called Oswalt to see if he was interested in branching out on his own. He and younger brother Steve, who ran the other crew and also lost his job in the deal, decided the time had come to do just that.

Nameless Towns

Since every job went at the speed of the mill, foremen often interrogated new hands about whether they could keep the pace and do the work. When Joe Malanders applied for a grueling job sorting lumber on the green chain at Wiergate, foreman Kate asked Malanders’ brother “Fat Boy” if his younger sibling could do the work. “Fat Boy, can that little man hold your job?” Kate asked. The brother replied: “If anybody can do it, he can. He is tough, he is used to hard work. I’ll help him if he gets tired, but I don’t think he’ll need help.” Gritting his teeth, Malanders did the job, noting: “At times there would be nothing but two by twelves and two by sixteens, all heart lumber, and you talk about somebody having a time pulling lumber! But I never had to call on my brother to help me, I stayed there seven years and eight months on that one job until the mill closed down.”

Current Industry News

Perhaps encouraged by increasing demand in April (see companion article), equipment manufacturers, suppliers and service providers continue to book space for Timber & Biomass Expo Southeast, the live-static harvesting equipment and technology event set for June 11-12 near Valdosta, Ga. Bowen, Hurst Boiler, Mid-GA Cleaning Systems and Woodsman Chippers are among the newest companies to book space.

The number of companies, dealers and product brands that will be represented now pushes 60 and could swell to around 70 by the show date, according to Hatton-Brown Publishers, Inc., parent company of Southern Loggin’ Times and sponsor of the event.

Hydraulics by Barry O'Leary

You can experience fewer repairs to pumps and motors with some simple preventive maintenance. You’ll achieve the biggest impact by focusing your efforts in four areas.

Hydraulic Oil—Always use high quality hydraulic oil of the proper viscosity range that meets or ex­ceeds the manufacturer’s specifications to ensure that it contains the following properties:

Anti-wear agents should contain a minimum 900 parts per million (ppm) of zinc.

Emulsifiers disperse small amounts of water in the oil to minimize component damage.

New Products & Technology

After three years of intensive product development, Tigercat completed the prototype 1135 harvester, shipping it to Sweden where it underwent intensive product testing throughout the winter with a number of harvesting contractors. After a successful round of testing and machine demonstrations, Tigercat AB, based in Hede Sweden, has retailed the machine. The 1135 replaces the Tigercat H09, falling into a specialized harvester class.

According to CTL product manager Jon Cooper, the 8-wheel drive machine “is specifically designed to maneuver between forwarding rows in tightly spaced first thinning stands, dramatically increasing forwarder row spacing and residual stand quality.” The narrow machine features powerful steer cylinders, a tight turn radius, perfect wheel tracking, bogie lifts and ample ground clearance. The Tigercat designed and built parallel linkage crane has a 9.3 m reach achieved with a 2 m telescoping stick. The crane base is equipped with fore/aft leveling to m

Calvin Johnson's Legacy Continues by DK Knight

After an interruption in early April, manufacturing re­sumed April 12 at Cutting Systems Inc. without Calvin John­son, its founder, active leader and most influential family member. Johnson, 82, was killed in­stantly in a car crash near Union Grove, NC on April 1. The mis­hap occurred on state highway 115, about four miles from the CSI plant. Johnson’s wife, Mary, was seriously injured but is ex­pected to recover.

Memorial services for Johnson were conducted April 9 in Wilkes­boro, NC. Burial followed at Pisgah Baptist Church cemetery.