I am brand new to TF and the forum having just discovered it two days ago and have a question about cutting timbers from logs. I have a Woodmizer sawmill and was just given a big red oak log by a neighbor. I plan to make a TF covered porch off of my stick built house as my first project and plan to start my timber collection with the oak. I planned to split the log down the middle and saw two beams from top half and two from the bottom thereby keeping the center out. This is based on my experience that sawn boards with the log center usually have large cracks. Then I read pg 80 of Jack Sobon/Roger Schroeder's book where they say that large beams should be center-cut but small ones like braces need not. Q1 - Is it desirable to keep the center in large timbers or really not important? Q2 - I have a lot of sweet gum trees that are big enough to make timbers - any reason not to use them? Thanks for the advice.