I wrote:
"Split out billets that are not much bigger than you'll want. "
Bruce Sexauer wrote:
"It is quite wasteful to split pieces just thin enough to get one top from each piece."
Absolutely. When I've done this I've made billets about 2" thick on the wide side of the wedge. Given the taper and depending on the diameter of the log there can still be a fair amount of waste in that.
Note that the guideline for seasoning wood is at least a year for every inch of thickness with hardwoods, and a bit less for softwoods. That's another reason to cut them thin. There are lots of such things pulling in opposite directions, and it's a matter of some judgment to find the 'best' way for a particular log.
Michael Gurian gave a talk at a GAL convention about running his saw mill here in NH. He would actually hang resawn tops out on a clothesline when they were dripping wet to get the 'free' moisture out of them as fast as possible. Once that's done things like mildew and discoloration are less of an issue.
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