Hearts Of Oak: Traditional Timber Frames and Timber Conversion.

Traditionally, timber would have been cut down and prepared using axes, with wedges used for splitting and adzes for finishing surfaces.

The ability to produce wrought iron enabled the production of metal that could be shaped, toothed and sharpened to form saw blades.

Prior to the 1840s and the introduction of rotating “circular” saws, saw mills exclusively used a vertical movement for converting the trees into timber. Saw mills were traditionally powered by water, with the rotary motion of the wheel being transferred via a crank shaft to a rip-saw blade mounted in a vertical wooden frame known as a sash.