Betz's Mill — materials
A rough list to take to a sawmill. The frame is cut green — full-sawn timbers straight from the log — and pinned with dry oak pegs: as the timbers dry they shrink onto the pegs, and the drawbored joints pull tighter. The mill cuts every stick to its section and length; the framer cuts the joints.
Each length is the piece’s cut length plus 6 in for trimming and the tenons; the gear parts as listed, rounded up to the foot. A piece longer than 24 ft is ordered in two or more lengths joined by a scarf (A2-16), except a post or a rafter is not scarfed. Board feet are full-sawn: width × depth × feet ÷ 12. Sizes follow the model, which is proportioned from measured drawings, not engineered — a frame that will carry a load is sized by an engineer first.
The Amish mills
| Section (in) | Length (ft) | Pieces | Board feet | For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 24 × 24 | 16 | 1 | 768 | wheel shaft (bur oak) |
| 17 × 12 | 3 | 1 | 51 | hold-down (bur oak) |
| 11 × 18 | 20 | 2 | 660 | mill beam (red oak) |
| 15 × 12 1/2 | 4 | 1 | 62 | head block support (bur oak) |
| 17 × 11 | 3 | 1 | 47 | hold-down (bur oak) |
| 12 5/8 × 12 5/8 | 9 | 2 | 238 | counter shaft (red oak) |
| 12 × 12 1/2 | 5 | 2 | 125 | spur block (bur oak) |
| 15 × 10 | 3 | 1 | 37 | head block (bur oak) |
| 10 × 12 | 5 | 2 | 100 | sliding bearing block (red oak) |
| 10 × 10 | 20 | 1 | 167 | lower sill (bur oak) |
| 10 × 10 | 10 | 1 | 83 | lower sill (bur oak) |
| 10 × 10 | 9 | 1 | 75 | lower sill (bur oak) |
| 10 × 10 | 5 | 5 | 208 | post (red oak) |
| 9 × 10 | 9 | 2 | 135 | bridge tree (red oak) |
| 16 1/2 × 5 | 8 | 4 | 220 | bed-stone bearer (red oak) |
| 2 × 36 | 4 | 4 | 96 | wallower disc (red oak) |
| 5 × 12 | 6 | 1 | 30 | bray tree (red oak) |
| 5 × 12 | 5 | 1 | 25 | bray tree (red oak) |
| 10 × 5 | 5 | 4 | 83 | bray post (red oak) |
| 12 × 3 1/2 | 10 | 10 | 350 | floor plank (white pine) |
| 12 × 3 1/2 | 4 | 9 | 126 | floor plank (white pine) |
| 12 × 3 1/2 | 3 | 9 | 94 | floor plank (white pine) |
| 2 × 20 | 3 | 4 | 40 | trundle disc (red oak) |
| 3 × 12 | 4 | 16 | 192 | master cog-wheel rim segment (red oak) |
| 4 1/2 × 6 | 7 | 4 | 63 | master cog-wheel arm (red oak) |
| 4 × 6 | 5 | 4 | 40 | stone-floor trimmer (red oak) |
| 2 × 12 | 7 | 16 | 224 | water wheel shroud segment (bur oak) |
| 6 × 3 1/2 | 4 | 1 | 7 | floor plank (white pine) |
| 6 × 3 1/2 | 3 | 1 | 5 | floor plank (white pine) |
| 4 × 5 | 6 | 4 | 40 | counter cog-wheel arm (red oak) |
| 2 3/4 × 6 1/2 | 4 | 32 | 194 | counter cog-wheel rim segment (red oak) |
| 1 1/4 × 14 | 15 | 2 | 44 | hoop (bent boards) (red oak) |
| 4 × 4 | 7 | 16 | 149 | water wheel arm (bur oak) |
| 1 × 12 | 4 | 32 | 128 | water wheel bucket board (bur oak) |
| 3 × 1 | 1 | 8 | 2 | bed-stone wedge (red oak) |
4,910 board feet of green timber in 205 pieces.
Pegs: 354 of dry oak, 1 in by 13 in, estimated joint by joint — order a tenth over.
The workshop's own mill (graded: the cogs and rounds)
| Section (in) | Length (ft) | Pieces | Board feet | For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 1/4 × 4 1/2 | 2 | 60 | 59 | master cog (ironwood) |
| 1 1/8 × 4 | 2 | 108 | 79 | counter cog (ironwood) |
| 1 3/4 × 1 3/4 | 3 | 48 | 37 | wallower round (ironwood) |
| 1 3/8 × 1 3/8 | 3 | 26 | 13 | trundle round (ironwood) |
187 board feet of green timber in 242 pieces.
Boards: the stone floor (its planks are in the cut list) about 0 sq ft at 3 1/2 in thick (≈0 board feet); roof boards about 0 sq ft at 1 in (≈0 board feet). Add for waste.
Not in this list: stone, brick and mortar; siding, trim, windows and doors; roofing; nails; the cog wedges, one a cog (A6-79; HAER PA-64 sheet 6 detail A wedges the tails behind the rim): 168, the master cog-wheel's 60 and the two counter cog-wheels' 54 each; the iron (HAER PA-64): two wrought-iron stone spindles with their drivers, four-arm balance rynds and lead balance weights, the wheel shaft's and the counter shafts' gudgeons and bands, the lighter staff's wrought-iron fulcrum; the millstones, two pairs. Nothing here is priced.
Cut list, piece by piece
| Piece | Qty | Section (in) | Cut length (in) | Ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Amish mills: Lower sill (bur oak) | 1 | 10 × 10 | 111 3/4 | on a footing · on a footing, short of the wheel shaft |
| The Amish mills: Lower sill (bur oak) | 1 | 10 × 10 | 92 5/8 | on a footing, past the wheel shaft · on a footing |
| The Amish mills: Lower sill (bur oak) | 1 | 10 × 10 | 234 | on a footing · on a footing |
| The Amish mills: Spur block (bur oak) | 2 | 12 × 12 1/2 | 49 3/4 | on a footing · on a footing |
| The Amish mills: Head block support (bur oak) | 1 | 15 × 12 1/2 | 33 | butted on a spur block · butted on a spur block |
| The Amish mills: Head block (bur oak) | 1 | 15 × 10 | 27 | on the head block support · on the head block support |
| The Amish mills: Sliding bearing block (red oak) | 2 | 10 × 12 | 44 | on the spur block · on the spur block |
| The Amish mills: Hold-down (bur oak) | 1 | 17 × 12 | 24 1/2 | on a footing · carries the counter shaft's gudgeon |
| The Amish mills: Hold-down (bur oak) | 1 | 17 × 11 | 24 1/2 | on a footing · carries the counter shaft's gudgeon |
| The Amish mills: Wheel shaft (bur oak) | 1 | 24 × 24 | 177 | (the outboard gudgeon in its end) · (the inboard gudgeon in its end, banded) |
| The Amish mills: Master cog-wheel rim segment (red oak) | 16 | 3 × 12 | 42 | lapped and pegged (A6-78) · lapped and pegged (A6-78) |
| The Amish mills: Master cog-wheel arm (red oak) | 4 | 4 1/2 × 6 | 71 | housed into the rim · housed into the rim |
| The workshop's own mill (graded: the cogs and rounds): Master cog (ironwood) | 60 | 1 1/4 × 4 1/2 | 11 1/2 | through the rim, wedged behind (A6-79) · (its head) |
| The Amish mills: Water wheel shroud segment (bur oak) | 16 | 2 × 12 | 77 1/2 | lapped (ESTIMATED) · lapped (ESTIMATED) |
| The Amish mills: Water wheel arm (bur oak) | 16 | 4 × 4 | 74 3/4 | on the wheel shaft · housed into the shroud |
| The Amish mills: Water wheel bucket board (bur oak) | 32 | 1 × 12 | 38 | housed into the shroud · housed into the shroud |
| The Amish mills: Counter shaft (red oak) | 2 | 12 5/8 × 12 5/8 | 97 – 99 | in a hold-down · in a sliding bearing block |
| The Amish mills: Wallower disc (red oak) | 4 | 2 × 36 | 36 | (the rounds tenoned through it, A6-81) · |
| The workshop's own mill (graded: the cogs and rounds): Wallower round (ironwood) | 48 | 1 3/4 × 1 3/4 | 19 | through the disc (A6-81) · through the disc (A6-81) |
| The Amish mills: Counter cog-wheel rim segment (red oak) | 32 | 2 3/4 × 6 1/2 | 31 3/4 | lapped and pegged (A6-78) · lapped and pegged (A6-78) |
| The Amish mills: Counter cog-wheel arm (red oak) | 4 | 4 × 5 | 58 | through the shaft · housed into the rim |
| The workshop's own mill (graded: the cogs and rounds): Counter cog (ironwood) | 108 | 1 1/8 × 4 | 10 5/8 | through the rim, wedged behind (A6-79) · (its head) |
| The Amish mills: Post (red oak) | 5 | 10 × 10 | 49 1/2 | into the lower sill (A6-22) · into the mill beam (A6-02) |
| The Amish mills: Bray post (red oak) | 4 | 10 × 5 | 49 1/2 | into the lower sill (A6-22) · into the mill beam (A6-02) |
| The Amish mills: Bray tree (red oak) | 2 | 5 × 12 | 46 – 64 | through the bray post · through the bray post |
| The Amish mills: Bridge tree (red oak) | 2 | 9 × 10 | 96 | housed into the bridge-tree post (A6-76) · on the bray tree, keyed (A6-77) |
| The Amish mills: Trundle disc (red oak) | 4 | 2 × 20 | 20 | (the rounds through it, A6-81) · |
| The workshop's own mill (graded: the cogs and rounds): Trundle round (ironwood) | 26 | 1 3/8 × 1 3/8 | 19 | through the disc (A6-81) · through the disc (A6-81) |
| The Amish mills: Mill beam (red oak) | 2 | 11 × 18 | 234 | on a post · on a post |
| The Amish mills: Bed-stone bearer (red oak) | 4 | 16 1/2 × 5 | 84 | housed into the mill beam (A6-75) · housed into the mill beam (A6-75) |
| The Amish mills: Stone-floor trimmer (red oak) | 4 | 4 × 6 | 52 5/8 | on the bed-stone bearer · on the bed-stone bearer |
| The Amish mills: Bed-stone wedge (red oak) | 8 | 3 × 1 | 4 | on the bed-stone bearer · |
| The Amish mills: Floor plank (white pine) | 10 | 12 × 3 1/2 | 106 | on the mill beam · on the mill beam |
| The Amish mills: Floor plank (white pine) | 9 | 12 × 3 1/2 | 32 1/4 | on the mill beam · on a trimmer |
| The Amish mills: Floor plank (white pine) | 9 | 12 × 3 1/2 | 25 1/4 | on a trimmer · on the mill beam |
| The Amish mills: Floor plank (white pine) | 1 | 6 × 3 1/2 | 32 1/4 | on the mill beam · on a trimmer |
| The Amish mills: Floor plank (white pine) | 1 | 6 × 3 1/2 | 25 1/4 | on a trimmer · on the mill beam |
| The Amish mills: Hoop (bent boards) (red oak) | 2 | 1 1/4 × 14 | 173 5/8 | on the floor plank · |