I have a few logs I am wanting milled in to 2x lumber, beams, siding and 1x flooring.

the logs are 25" dia. at the butt and 15" at 50'.
I currently have 4 of them.

I will also have 4 that are 15" dia. at the butt. and 10" dia. at the top that are 24' long"


I am currently thinking one log for beams.

One for for 2x6 8' studs.

One for siding.

one for 2x first and second floor joists.
misc. 2x6'x16' construction lumber.
2x rafters.

The smaller logs can be milled where extra material is need to fulfill the the above requirements.

The building will be approximately 1200' sqft. total. Something like 800'/400'.

Obviously i am in the early stages of planning. But want to know how close/off I am going to be.

Theres a number of websites that will tell you the board feet yield given small end diameter and length.

Heres one that is in table form. You'll have to figure the board feet content in the boards your interested in.

Board Feet

I sent some old pine tree logs harvested from my lot to a local saw mill. Got back 1 by 8" and 1 by 10" planks most 8' foot and some 10' to use for book case and/or workshop paneling.

Thanks hangtime for the link. I am thinking a 2x6x16'=16 board feet.

If that is the case I am think in rough terms one of my big logs combined with one of the smaller ones is going to roughly equal somewhere in the neighborhood of 1125 board feet.

A rough calculation of a 1200 sq. ft building is 7650 board ft. So I will need closer to seven trees, not four.

You didn’t say what type of logs.
Soft wood measurements are nominal. Example: a dressed 2x4 measures 1.5 X 3.5 inches. Keep that in mind. Also, you’ll be milling your boards to rough cut measurements to allow for drying shrinkage and dressing loss.

Will be milling full dimension lumber. 2x6, 6x6 etc. No 2x4 though I am pretty sure.

You'll always end up with less than you think. The person operating the saw will put it through the way the machine wants it.