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00:00My name's Mike Rowe, and this is my job.
00:06I explore the country looking for people who aren't afraid to get dirty.
00:11Somebody's eating their fiber.
00:12Hard-working men and women who earn an honest living.
00:15Stupid litter bugs, rotten dirty pigs.
00:18Doing the kinds of jobs that make civilized life possible for the rest of us.
00:22Hit it hard, Mike!
00:23Why are they yelling at us?
00:25Now, get ready.
00:26Excuse me.
00:28To get dirty.
00:32Coming up on Dirty Jobs, on the Bering Sea, if you've got the guts for fishing.
00:37What the heck is that?
00:37That there is a grinder.
00:38That's where all of our fish heads go off.
00:41Someday, you'll be fishing for guts.
00:43Ruh-roh.
00:44And later, building log homes takes a lot of sharp blades.
00:48We have to let it get to speed.
00:49And sharp tools.
00:51Dangerous as all hell.
00:52All you need is a sharp mind to use them.
00:54Don't let me cut myself in half if you feel like you can stop it from happening.
01:00Oh, God.
01:05Oh, God.
01:13Time now for another Dirty Jobs mailbag.
01:17As you might know, we get mail from 180 different countries.
01:20and it comes express delivered to me in a variety of different forms.
01:25Today's mail, I have no idea where it originated, but I do know it's going to arrive right here.
01:35You never know what you're going to find or what you're going to get.
01:39Let's see what I can discover in here.
01:42Let me see, let me see.
01:44There's so many to choose from.
01:46Oh, this looks like a good one.
01:49Ah, yes.
01:51Wow, it's a long one.
01:53This comes from Peggy.
01:56And it's a...
01:58Grief is page after page after page.
02:01Dear Mike, it gets very personal through here.
02:04Inappropriate there.
02:07Last night, last night my husband and I were watching your show.
02:11She writes on page 7.
02:13And we couldn't help but notice that you spent approximately 21 minutes
02:18inside of a turbine at the Wenatchee Dam
02:21trying to get a stubborn nut off of a sticky bolt.
02:26We're going to take all these nuts off.
02:27Oh, yeah.
02:28That goes up, right?
02:30Is it coming out, Mike?
02:32Uh-huh.
02:32Crap.
02:33Am I going the...
02:33No, there's no way I'm going the wrong way.
02:43Am I going the wrong way, Dwight?
02:44It's going the wrong way.
02:46Well, Peggy, here's the deal.
02:48If you think 21 minutes of primetime television
02:51dedicated to the process of removing
02:53a stubborn bolt from a sticky nut or vice versa
02:57is captivating,
02:59you're absolutely right.
03:00That's the secret to our show.
03:02You see, we treat the tiniest, most mundane thing
03:05as though it's absolutely critical.
03:08Life and death stuff.
03:09And if you're fascinated by that,
03:12surely you're going to be blown away
03:14at the prospect of getting some cod sperm
03:16out of a fish grinder.
03:18How long will that take?
03:20About as long as it took you to write this.
03:24When you're fishing on the Bering Sea
03:25aboard the good ship Legacy,
03:27you can haul in thousands of pounds of fish
03:30on a good day.
03:30Of course, the worst part of any fishing trip
03:33is cleaning your catch.
03:34The second worst part
03:35is the incredible stench of the processing room
03:38after the carnage has taken place.
03:43Bad one.
03:45The heck is that?
03:47That there is a grinder.
03:48That's where all of our fish heads go off.
03:51Well, you want to clean out while we're here?
03:53Well, yeah, we got to do that.
03:55I'm going to show you how fast that thing goes.
03:56I want to turn it on for you.
03:57Oh, just to instill the proper level of perfunctory fear?
04:01Yeah.
04:02And I also got to get you another tool.
04:03You need a knife.
04:05Great.
04:05You're going to have to cut some.
04:06Bring me all the tools you think I'll need.
04:10During processing, heads and guts and fluids
04:13and other unused fish parts
04:14all go into the grinder and out to sea,
04:16except for what's left in the grinder's teeth,
04:19which needs some serious flossing.
04:21And I'm going to go ahead and turn it on.
04:22Don't put your hand in there.
04:26You can see how fast that thing's going.
04:30A lot of dead things stuck to it.
04:32Oh, yeah.
04:32A little rotten flesh, yeah.
04:34Yeah, I'm going to go ahead and I'm going to lock it out.
04:36You promise?
04:37Yeah, I promise.
04:38I'll shut it off.
04:39Can you prove?
04:40I'm going to prove it to you.
04:41I'm actually going to have you...
04:42Okay, you'll bring me a key with the tag or something?
04:45All right.
04:46It's not that I don't trust you.
04:48I'll be right back.
04:49Steve's doing something in the engine room
04:51to bring me a certain level of comfort
04:55that the grinder is completely disabled,
04:58tagged, and locked
04:59before I reach my hands into it
05:02to pull out more sticky, rotten, rancid flesh.
05:07He's left me alone with you guys.
05:13This.
05:22I've got it locked out
05:23and here's the key.
05:25All right.
05:25And I'm going to show you
05:26that it's not going to come back on.
05:28That's the button.
05:29Yeah?
05:30Even if someone was to break that lock somehow
05:32and cut it off and turn it on,
05:34there's no way that's going to come on
05:35because it's in neutral right now.
05:37No way.
05:37All right.
05:38Can I see that key again?
05:39Yes, you can.
05:40The key is right here.
05:41That's the key right there?
05:42That's the key.
05:44There's no way
05:45that the grinder can come on.
05:47There's no way.
05:48As long as this key
05:49is in my pocket.
05:50Is in your pocket.
05:56All right.
05:58I'm going to tell you
05:58that if you lose key
06:00to girlfriend's apartment,
06:02you get no new key.
06:03See, I don't have a girlfriend.
06:04I'm married.
06:11You lose key
06:12to wife's boudoir.
06:14Yeah.
06:15You get no new key.
06:16No, I get no new key.
06:19See, you've been up for 30 hours.
06:21Yeah.
06:21You get the comedy.
06:22Yeah, I've been up a while.
06:24That's okay.
06:24Going on like two days now.
06:27It wasn't that funny anyway.
06:29Oh, yeah.
06:30I got to get one more tool.
06:35It just smells so bad.
06:37It is bad.
06:38It makes me want to put this
06:39deep into my nose
06:41to somehow
06:43make the smell go away.
06:51Oh, that one's...
06:54Yeah, that's...
06:56I have an ear.
06:57That's grease.
06:58Biogradable food grease.
06:59Food grease?
07:01Yeah.
07:01It's edible.
07:03Biodegradable edible grease.
07:04Yes.
07:06Oh, that hurts you.
07:11Tastes like grease.
07:13With a touch of cod sperm.
07:22I'll give you a sample
07:24of what you got to do.
07:26Reach in here like that.
07:28And you can see that
07:29it's frozen.
07:32It's just terrible.
07:33It's just terrible.
07:34Yeah, it's not good.
07:36Ah, it's great.
07:36It's terrible.
07:37And then you can
07:38cut it out like that.
07:41Ruh-roh.
07:42Just kind of dig in there.
07:43See, you loosen it up
07:44with your knife
07:45and then you can pick it out.
07:46You want to try that?
07:47Yeah, it sounds great.
07:48And then we can just
07:49set all the guts right here.
07:51Okay.
07:51And then we'll put it
07:52in the bucket when we're doing it.
07:55That's why you definitely
07:56want that knife though
07:57so you can cut it up.
07:58Yeah, yeah.
07:59This is just futile.
08:01Does it really make
08:01the grinder more efficient?
08:03Yes.
08:03Get too much in here
08:04and it'll ruin the bearings.
08:06Switching this out
08:07is not a fun job.
08:08I've done it once.
08:09I didn't like it.
08:10No.
08:21It doesn't help
08:22that it's frozen.
08:23No, it doesn't.
08:24Are we getting anywhere?
08:25No.
08:26No, I don't think we are.
08:28That's just, you know,
08:29frozen guts.
08:30Yeah.
08:31I guess we could squirt
08:32some warm water on him.
08:34Yeah.
08:34This might be frozen too.
08:36It is frozen.
08:37Jeez.
08:38I think we're out of luck.
08:40Everything's frozen.
08:41Yeah.
08:41What I'm going to do
08:42is I'm going to go get
08:42a bucket of hot water.
08:43All right, you do that.
08:44I'm going to see if I can't
08:45get these cakes
08:46out of my frozen hose.
08:47Okay.
08:50Frozen hose.
08:55What I'm going to do here,
08:56I think,
08:56is we're going to pour
08:57this hot water on it.
08:58All right, why don't you
08:58hand me the water
08:59and if some gets on Doug's head,
09:01that's cool.
09:02All right.
09:02So I'll go ahead
09:03and unlock that now.
09:04No, you're going to turn.
09:05I'm going to pour it
09:05while it's turning.
09:07Yeah.
09:07You want me to pour it first.
09:08Go ahead.
09:09Let's do it while you're
09:10turning.
09:10All right, this will be
09:11exciting.
09:12When that starts turning,
09:13I'll start pouring.
09:19All right.
09:20Then I'm going to stop,
09:21hit it backwards.
09:24See how it's loose?
09:25That's working.
09:30All right, there we go.
09:34It's the Cod Sperm Olympics.
09:40Fancy.
09:42Or more hot water would be great,
09:43but this is better.
09:45What kind of gut is that?
09:48That is seaweed.
09:50I was going to say,
09:51there's no way that thing
09:52came out of a fish.
09:53This is a job you give
09:55to somebody you don't like.
09:56Yeah, this isn't a job, man.
09:57This is punishment.
09:58Yeah, let me get down there
09:59and help you.
10:12Well, that's some ripe stuff.
10:13It is, man.
10:14It's like the stink
10:15gets on you.
10:16I feel like it's going to go
10:17with me when I leave.
10:18Oh, yeah.
10:19You're going to have to
10:19definitely buy some new clothes
10:20when you get out of here.
10:21Yeah.
10:24Yeah, there we go.
10:25Oh, yeah, that's money right there.
10:26That's good stuff.
10:27You don't find that at home.
10:28No, you don't.
10:30It's all for the adventure
10:31and the money.
10:32So far, I haven't seen any money.
10:34And if this is an adventure,
10:37I'm trying so hard
10:38not to throw up on you.
10:39It's really bad.
10:40There's plenty of shows on TV
10:42about fishing
10:43and all the glamour
10:45that comes with it, you know?
10:46The excitement,
10:47all the adventure.
10:47But really, this is
10:48what it's all about.
10:50This is it.
10:50This is the glamour.
10:56Why don't you send that
10:57to Mrs. Paul
10:58with a little thank you note?
11:05That is one clean grinder.
11:07Yeah.
11:08All right.
11:11Watch yourself.
11:12We're coming out of here.
11:12I don't remember
11:13smelling this bad
11:14in a very long time.
11:16Yeah.
11:21Whoa.
11:23By the way,
11:25don't run with
11:26these things
11:27in your hands ever.
11:31Coming up,
11:32making log homes
11:33depends on one
11:34critical factor.
11:35The wood on this truck
11:36needs to go into this pile.
11:37Yep.
11:38Getting the logs
11:38off the truck.
11:39You work this lever here
11:40for left or right.
11:41This lever here
11:41is for your primary cylinder.
11:43This lever here
11:43for the extendable.
11:44It's kind of like rocket science.
11:46Wait, did you get any of that?
11:47I don't remember
11:48anything he just told me.
11:57So, if you're in the market
11:58for a log cabin,
12:00I have some good news.
12:01There are many options
12:02to choose from.
12:03This design is called
12:04the portage.
12:05And it's lovely.
12:06You should see the inside.
12:07Took about two months to make.
12:09Costs about $100,000.
12:10Of course, we're not going
12:11to be making a log cabin today
12:12or purchasing one
12:13for that matter.
12:14However, if all goes as planned,
12:16we will make one of these.
12:18The railing.
12:19Making a log cabin railing
12:21is going to be fun
12:21and interesting,
12:22as will the construction
12:24of the spindles,
12:25which are right here.
12:25We're going to try
12:26and make some of those as well.
12:27If we have time,
12:28we'll make a few of the posts.
12:30And, of course,
12:30the D timber
12:32that actually constructs
12:33the walls.
12:34And the D timber
12:35has a double tongue
12:36and groove design.
12:37We'll get into
12:38all that later.
12:39And, you know what?
12:40If the light stays
12:42and we're feeling ambitious,
12:43we might even make one of these.
12:44This is a tie beam,
12:47critical part of the cabin's
12:48structural integrity.
12:50These are trusses,
12:51kind of in a decorative design
12:53in this case.
12:54We'll make some of those, too,
12:54if we can.
12:55Who knows?
12:55Anything could happen.
12:56That's a deer.
12:58Probably won't be making that.
13:03Rapid River Rustic Cedar Log Homes
13:05produces custom log homes
13:07and log home products
13:08from their 40-acre site
13:09in Michigan's Upper Peninsula.
13:11A team of craftsmen
13:12and four sawmills
13:13supply log homes
13:15to all 50 states.
13:18So that's a big pile
13:19of northern white cedar.
13:22And this is Joe.
13:23And this is Ben.
13:24And, Ben,
13:25you kind of run the show?
13:27For the most part, yeah.
13:28Joe, is that true?
13:29Yeah.
13:29Yeah, he runs the show.
13:31Okay.
13:32Great.
13:33Where are we exactly right now
13:34in context of the whole operation?
13:37Right now,
13:37we're in the backside
13:38of our manufacturing plant
13:39where all our inventory's kept,
13:40where we load up
13:41all our northern white cedar
13:42and get ready to process it
13:43and debark it through the peeler.
13:45All right.
13:46The peeler would be that thing there?
13:47That is it.
13:48And the, what do you call it?
13:50Processing?
13:50Deprocessing?
13:51Reprocessing?
13:51Yeah, we're going to process
13:52all this material
13:53to get the bark off it
13:54to prep it for the log homes.
13:55This stuff came from where?
13:59The local area,
14:00about a 30-mile radius
14:01of this manufacturing plant.
14:02Because it's all about cedar up here, right?
14:05Exactly.
14:05Okay.
14:06Joe, is that a soft wood,
14:07a hard wood?
14:08Soft wood.
14:08And soft wood is good
14:09for this kind of thing?
14:10Yeah.
14:11It's decay-free.
14:12Cedar is, anyway,
14:13decay-free when it comes
14:14to the homes, bug-free.
14:16Okay, so the wood
14:17on this truck
14:18needs to go into this pile.
14:19The wood in this pile
14:20needs to go through that device.
14:22Yep.
14:22And then the wood
14:23that goes through that device
14:24looks just like this wood
14:25and that wood,
14:26except it doesn't have
14:26any bark on it.
14:27Exactly.
14:27Is this step one?
14:28For the fence-making,
14:29for all the rails,
14:30posts, and spindles
14:31around decks and porches,
14:32this is phase number one.
14:33Can I go up there?
14:34Yes, you may.
14:36Think you can handle it?
14:37No.
14:38No, I don't.
14:39Ben, you're okay with that?
14:40Go ahead.
14:40All right, Joe,
14:41you operate this typically?
14:42Yep.
14:42All right, maybe you can give me the...
14:43Do I go this way
14:44or on the other side?
14:45On the other side would be best.
14:46You do know we've got to start it up.
14:47We've got to start it up
14:49first, obviously.
14:50Yes, yes.
14:50Pretty slow there.
14:53Slow and steady
14:54wins the race.
14:55Flip the seat over.
14:56Oh, that's handsome.
14:57Oh, yeah.
14:58It's a beauty.
14:59This is circa what?
15:00Turn of the century?
15:01Yep.
15:06You like that, eh?
15:07I like it, man.
15:09You're well-worn.
15:10What is the name of this machine?
15:12This is a pulp truck.
15:13Okay.
15:13And how does she work?
15:14Okay, first of all,
15:15you've got to set the downriggers down
15:17and you work this lever here
15:18for left or right.
15:20That's a downrigger?
15:20Yep.
15:21And what is a downrigger?
15:22Those things right down there.
15:23Oh, those are the things
15:24that will keep us from...
15:25From tipping back and forth.
15:26Okay.
15:27After that,
15:28let's see now.
15:29I run this so much,
15:30I don't remember how the levers work.
15:31It'd be a good time to focus, Joe.
15:33Okay, this one here
15:33is for the clam.
15:34That's the...
15:35The clam is the part
15:36that grabs the logs.
15:37That's the big...
15:38Okay.
15:38Yep.
15:39This lever here
15:40is for your primary cylinder
15:41for the main boom,
15:42up and down.
15:43Up and down.
15:43Yep.
15:44Okay.
15:44This here is for
15:45your secondary boom.
15:46That gives you the elbow,
15:48you know,
15:48so you can set stuff down
15:49and pick it up.
15:50Okay.
15:51And this one here
15:52is for your swivel.
15:53You want to straighten
15:54your logs out on a pile.
15:55Right.
15:55This lever here
15:56is for the extended boom.
15:57The end of the boom
15:58will go out
15:59like four and a half,
16:00five feet.
16:00Uh-huh.
16:01If you push it forward,
16:02it'll go out.
16:03If you pull it back,
16:04it'll come in.
16:05Okay.
16:05Okay.
16:06It's down here.
16:07You can't really be up here,
16:09can you?
16:09No.
16:10When this happens.
16:10No, you're on your own.
16:12You're on your own.
16:13Now, right here
16:13is your foot pedal.
16:14We're swinging left to right.
16:15Swinging left to right?
16:17Yep.
16:17So if I step on the left here,
16:18the whole thing goes this way.
16:20Over here.
16:21All right.
16:22So are we focused
16:22on these logs here
16:23or these logs here?
16:24We are taking the post
16:25from the back here.
16:26Post from the back,
16:26and we're putting them
16:27down there in that hole.
16:28Yes.
16:28Are you ready?
16:29I'm ready.
16:29Okay.
16:31This is a fun machine.
16:32It looks like it.
16:33It's unbelievable
16:35the stuff people let me do.
16:37I mean, did you get
16:38any of that?
16:40I don't know.
16:41And this thing,
16:41do you see this thing
16:42on the floor?
16:43It's just a...
16:45And this?
16:47Outbreakers?
16:49Hey, don't fire it up yet.
16:51I don't remember anything
16:52he just told me.
16:54Take it he's never
16:54done this before.
16:56Nothing.
16:57Oh, boy.
16:59Coming up.
16:59Holy crap.
17:01Moving logs
17:01with a big old hook.
17:02Crap.
17:03Wait a minute.
17:03And a boss man
17:04breathing down your neck.
17:05We don't got all day here.
17:06Crap.
17:07Here's a crappy job.
17:08Crap.
17:10And later.
17:12Dangerous debarkers
17:12and brutal buzzsaw blades.
17:15Enough to keep a guy
17:16on his toes.
17:24Are we ready yet?
17:25Yes, Joe.
17:26I'm ready.
17:27Okay.
17:27Okay, I'm gonna make contact.
17:29Very hopeful.
17:32All right, now,
17:33I think he said
17:33the first thing
17:34was to put these
17:35downriggers down.
17:39Did that one go down?
17:41He did.
17:41No?
17:43Push it forward.
17:44That's to bring it up.
17:45Oh.
17:47There you go.
17:50Push that lever forward.
17:51This guy?
17:52Okay.
17:54That'll be good.
17:55Good?
17:55Okay.
17:56Now, I would take
17:58the second lever
17:58and pull it toward me,
17:59I believe.
17:59Pull it toward you.
18:05Holy crap.
18:07That's big.
18:08Now, I'm gonna go this way.
18:09You're gonna swing her left.
18:10Swing and left.
18:13It should go.
18:14Swing her.
18:15Swing her right.
18:18I don't like that.
18:20I don't like the boom
18:20going over me.
18:21No, no, I wouldn't either.
18:24Slow down.
18:25There you go.
18:26Okay, your swivel.
18:27My swivel.
18:29And the lever on the right.
18:34Then your third lever.
18:36Raise your primary boom.
18:38Now that's lower.
18:40That's not too bad.
18:41I could get those
18:41right there, right?
18:42Yeah, we don't got
18:43all day here.
18:43Crap, wait a minute.
18:44Third lever would be
18:45this guy.
18:47Crap, so I turn.
18:48Try to make your clam
18:49so it's kind of
18:49even with the weight
18:50of post are.
18:51It's on the swivel part.
18:52Yeah, there you go.
18:55Oh, yeah, smooth.
18:56Okay, close the clam.
18:58Ah, third one?
19:00First one for the clam.
19:02Crap.
19:03Oh, this is...
19:03The other way.
19:04Your left foot pedal.
19:06There you go.
19:07Okay, try to clam that up now.
19:09Clamming it up would go...
19:10Oh, the other way.
19:12So we raise her up.
19:13Pushing forward.
19:14Primary boom.
19:14Second lever.
19:15Second lever.
19:17I'm going down, aren't I?
19:18You pull it the other way.
19:19There you go.
19:19Damn it.
19:21Okay, check your clam
19:22and close it.
19:23That's toward me?
19:24Yes.
19:28Okay.
19:30Now...
19:30Yeah.
19:31You're going to right swing...
19:32Right.
19:33To your right.
19:33I got it.
19:34I'm just going easy.
19:35And swivel your posts
19:36so they line up
19:36with the rest of the woodpile.
19:39Oh, don't stop.
19:41Don't stop, right?
19:42You want them over here?
19:43Put them right on the ground,
19:45right in front.
19:45Right on the ground, all right.
19:46Yeah, swivel the other way.
19:48The other way?
19:48Yep.
19:50Okay.
19:52Now your second lever...
19:53Yep.
19:54...forward.
19:57A little crooked, though.
19:59Yeah, I know.
20:00Let's see.
20:03Now maybe a secondary boom toward me?
20:06Yep.
20:06Secondary boom.
20:07Actually go forward.
20:08There you go.
20:10All right.
20:10Now primary boom.
20:13Oh, nice.
20:14Open your clam.
20:19Well, at this rate,
20:20I should have you out here by Friday.
20:22Yeah, it'll be time to go home.
20:23You want to do one
20:24just to show people
20:25what it looks like
20:25in the hands of somebody
20:26who's not an idiot?
20:27Absolutely.
20:34I like doing this.
20:35This with one hand
20:36and this with the other.
20:37I need a switch.
20:38I need to do that.
20:39It's just very difficult.
20:40A lot of gears.
20:42A lot of, uh...
20:43No, he does make it look easy.
20:52You see, Joe's part of the machine.
20:53He's not thinking
20:54third gear up,
20:55second gear back.
20:57He's literally...
20:57His brain has somehow
20:58leaked down into his arms
21:00and trickled out
21:01toward his fingers.
21:02It's thought guided.
21:11Joe Sabota.
21:15Too much.
21:17So after the wood
21:18is stacked there,
21:19it is then magically
21:20stacked here.
21:22Frank?
21:23Yes.
21:24And Dave?
21:25Dave.
21:25Right.
21:26And of course,
21:26we know Joe.
21:28And this is the point
21:29where another machine
21:31comes on
21:31and more chaos ensues.
21:32Yeah.
21:34In technical terms,
21:35tell me again,
21:36this is the debarking?
21:37Yes, it is.
21:38Why is it important
21:39to take the bark off, Dave?
21:40To free up any, uh,
21:41rot
21:42and expose any rot
21:43that we have to take care of
21:44for fencing
21:45our porch rail system.
21:47What specifically
21:47do we think
21:48that these logs
21:49are going to wind up being?
21:51Most of these
21:51are just going to be fencing.
21:53And why?
21:53Is it...
21:54Are they substandard?
21:55They're crooked.
21:56Uh-huh.
21:56Uh, too large on one end,
21:58too small on the other end.
21:59For porch systems,
22:01we're looking for something
22:02uniform and straight.
22:03All right.
22:04Well, tell me about this machine.
22:06Got the one lever.
22:07More levers.
22:08It raises the shoe.
22:09Uh-huh.
22:09And that adjusts
22:10how much you can take off.
22:12You just run the bark off
22:14and then if you want
22:14to size the post,
22:15say it's good enough
22:16for a porch system.
22:17Right.
22:18And you'll drop the shoe
22:19and it'll take more
22:20of the cambium layer,
22:21the second layer off,
22:22make more of a uniform post.
22:25That second layer
22:25is called a cambium?
22:26Yeah.
22:27Right there.
22:28All right.
22:28So this is bark.
22:29That's the bark.
22:30This is cambium.
22:31That's the cambium.
22:32Do a couple safety features
22:33first when you're
22:34cleaning the bark out.
22:36Don't get under
22:37that auger like there
22:37because it will break your arm.
22:39Okay.
22:39Okay.
22:40No, that's the kind
22:41of safety tip
22:41I'm interested in.
22:43This one spins the wheels.
22:44It does have a forward
22:46and reverse.
22:47This is that shoe.
22:49That's this unit right here.
22:50It's hooked up hydraulically.
22:51Uh-huh.
22:52It goes up and down.
22:53Raises up and down.
22:54All right.
22:55Where does it come out?
22:55Comes out down that end.
22:57That's when you hit neutral
22:59and stop this lever.
23:00Uh-huh.
23:01So you don't break the wrists
23:02of the guy out there
23:03catching it.
23:03I see.
23:04So the things that can break
23:05so far very easily
23:06are arms and wrists.
23:07Yeah.
23:07There's a crooked one.
23:08Get back over here.
23:10Uh-huh.
23:10So when this was crooked
23:12it'll hit here
23:13before it gets you.
23:14Believe me, it hurts.
23:16How many times
23:17have you taken one of those?
23:18Lots.
23:19All right, cool.
23:20Fire it up.
23:22Lincoln Logs were invented
23:24in 1916 by John L. Wright,
23:26son of architect Frank Lloyd Wright.
23:28While most people assume
23:30the toy's name
23:30is connected to Abraham Lincoln,
23:32it was chosen
23:33because Frank Lloyd Wright's
23:35given middle name
23:36was Lincoln.
23:51The first step
23:52in making a log home
23:53is debarking
23:54to cut logs.
23:55The second
23:56and third steps
23:57are staying
23:58out of the log's way
23:59and not letting
24:00the machine
24:00pull your arm off.
24:15Jeff, look at this.
24:17Just the one
24:18that you've mentioned
24:19had.
24:20Pretty great.
24:24Ready?
24:27Ready?
24:28Ready?
24:28Ready?
24:30Ready?
24:30Ready?
24:30Ready?
24:32Ready?
24:34Ready?
24:56So what we're doing here
24:58is making it easier
24:59for somebody later
25:01who's got to sand it
25:02down even further.
25:03Exactly.
25:12This is the part
25:13that can break my arm.
25:14If you get underneath
25:16that log
25:16or don't bring a long
25:17sight.
25:33they just keep coming.
25:37The logs all day long.
25:38How long did you stand here
25:41doing this?
25:59I'm going to talk to Dave, all right?
26:08Let's go.
26:12go.
26:13Go there.
26:30The debarking crew peels
26:32about three hundred and fifty logs a day.
26:33How much bark dust they inhale has yet to be measured.
26:53It's loud, it's dirty, and it's dangerous as all hell.
27:00So far, so good.
27:02New machine, and same guys.
27:05And when I say new machine, Frank, I mean different.
27:08You know, I'm not sure.
27:09I just got done asking Joel that.
27:11I can't remember if it's made out of a Model A or a Model T frame, but one or the
27:14other.
27:15Okay.
27:16What's it do?
27:17It puts a tenon on the end of the posts.
27:19We call them rails, dowels.
27:21What are those stacked right there?
27:23Those are the spindles.
27:24This is a spindle.
27:25Okay.
27:26And that was the thing?
27:28They run up and down.
27:29Right.
27:29So the railing's here and the spindles.
27:30Exactly.
27:31All right.
27:33And so this machine does this, but it also does the railing?
27:36Yes.
27:38Different diameter chucks.
27:39Two inches long, two inch diameter.
27:41So all we're doing then is putting these little things on the end?
27:43And trimming them to length.
27:45Are we using the straight ones, the good ones, the bad ones, the small crooked ones?
27:48Anything in that diameter range.
27:51And most of them, pending rot on the ends, if you'll look here.
27:55Pending rot.
27:58It'd be a great name for a band, wouldn't it?
28:00Of course, we can't make nothing out of that.
28:02No.
28:02So then, one at a time, we take these.
28:04You push them through this way?
28:06Yep.
28:06But that's the small doll we're set up for the rails.
28:08And this really isn't a machine.
28:10This was something that was made.
28:11It was a car frame.
28:13I love it.
28:14Is this as loud as the other thing?
28:15No.
28:16Gasoline.
28:17All right.
28:17Let's see how it works.
28:45That was for you, Mike.
28:48This is going to be a rail.
28:49It's going to be a rail.
29:08Just kind of push her in and pull it over.
29:11Center it.
29:12Just clamp her down.
29:13Yep.
29:13Give her a chop.
29:18The mortise and tenon way of joining things goes back to Stonehenge.
29:22Although the cutting methods and machines have changed down through the centuries,
29:26it's doubtful Henry Ford ever dreamt that one of his cars would end up covered
29:31to what the guys here refer to as a mortise and tenon buzz rig.
29:42The buzz rig, part car, part blade.
29:46Not as noisy as the other thing, but they'll kill you.
29:53Coming up, peeling a pole, shaping a D-log, tongue-in and groovin.
29:58What is this called?
29:59Well, it gets very confusing.
30:00That would be the inside.
30:02Hell, I don't know what I'm talking about.
30:03I don't know how to ask a smart-sounding question at this point.
30:13New machine and a new guy, but Dave, right?
30:17Dave, yes.
30:17Everybody here, his name is Dave or Joe, it seems.
30:19Dave, Joe, or Frank.
30:21What do you call this thing?
30:22This is a German peeler.
30:24This is the machine that we use after the log goes to the debarker, then it goes to the buzz
30:30rig.
30:31Now it comes here to get smoothened up.
30:33Right.
30:34So that when people run their hands down there...
30:36They don't scream and file a lawsuit.
30:38Yeah, they don't get the...
30:39Yeah, those are the ones we just...
30:42Mortise than a...
30:44Tenon.
30:44Tenon.
30:45And you're going to smooth the whole thing.
30:47Yeah.
30:47Well, you are.
30:48Well, we are.
30:49Okay.
30:50This is all about teamwork, Dave.
30:52All right.
30:53The way I work is I watch you do it, and then I attempt it.
30:56Okay.
30:57Thereby allowing the viewer to make a comparison between your skill level and mine.
31:01Well, this shouldn't be much different.
31:02It's a pretty easy machine.
31:03We'll see.
31:04Go ahead and turn it on if you like.
31:06Straight up.
31:08We have to let it get to speed.
31:10Okay.
31:17All right.
31:18You're getting towards the center of the blades.
31:20It works a little bit easier for you.
31:22You're going to run a circle.
31:24You just pull it back real nice and slow.
31:27Then you flip it over and go the other way.
31:31If you want a longer field, Mort, before you flip it over, you can do this.
31:37And what's that accomplishing?
31:38It just makes it look a little bit more like it's been hand-feeled.
31:45It's actually starting here.
31:47It's a little bit easier when you start it in the center on the second try to drag it back.
31:52It does a little bit more of the work for you.
31:54Why don't you do that the first way?
31:56Grab it in the middle and bring it back.
31:57You can.
31:59I just didn't.
32:01And I always think.
32:02Well, I must be good.
32:04This is normally your station where you spend a lot of your time?
32:08No, I'm a carpenter.
32:09I'm a craft and I make furniture mainly.
32:12So everybody here does everything?
32:15Much, yeah.
32:15I'm the only one who makes the furniture.
32:17Yeah.
32:22Now, if you want to do it like the way you said, you can start from the middle and pull
32:25back.
32:25I think I'll do that.
32:26And you don't have to be ginger or anything.
32:36Why do they call it a German feeler?
32:38Was it made in Germany or?
32:39I believe so.
32:41The Germans must have got sick of using the draw knife.
32:43So they did this one.
32:46That's nice.
32:47Can't ask for no better than that.
32:48This log would actually be cut back for a shorter reel because we found some rot.
32:52You want to try to peel that out, that little spot.
32:57Pockets of rot are the real enemies of a good quality log.
33:00If the rot isn't completely taken out, the log will just continue to decay.
33:09It's a tedious job.
33:10You'll think it's lunchtime around 10 o'clock.
33:12I always think it's lunchtime.
33:14You got that many more to go?
33:15Yeah, as many as you like to do.
33:17I don't want to slow you down.
33:18Why don't you go ahead and grab another one?
33:22The German peeler.
33:24I'm not sure if it's really German or not, but it is definitely appealing.
33:48I was saying that that's Joe.
33:51Joe's up there in his machine and he's basically got this laser beam on the ceiling and it's
33:57shining down and the mill's taking off.
34:00This is a wonderful place for some B-roll.
34:03B-roll is the part in the show where you see stuff and learn stuff, but I'm not actually
34:07in the shot.
34:08It's not that I don't want to be in the shot.
34:09It's just that I can't hear myself think.
34:12So sit back and relax and enjoy some B-roll.
34:17About 700 pieces of timber pass through the mill every day, getting shaped into the D-logs
34:23that form the walls of the log homes.
34:26After a pass through the tongue and groove machine, the D-logs are ready for the final
34:31step of the process.
34:38Well, there's another machine, sort of.
34:41And if you listen carefully, I think the sound of silence?
34:45Silence.
34:46Oh yeah, it's nice.
34:47Man, a little break.
34:49Unbelievable.
34:49This is a Kim and this is a Shannon.
34:52Yep.
34:52And that's the machine you operate?
34:54Yeah.
34:54I guess tool might be a better word.
34:56Can I have a look at it?
34:58What's it called?
34:59Draw a knife.
35:00Of course.
35:01And you're going to take this and you're going to be doing this?
35:04Oh yeah.
35:05After all the machines I've seen today, why are you guys out here with this old thing?
35:09I think we're the youngest.
35:11I think you're probably right.
35:12And this stage of the game is happening instead of a tool or another machine?
35:20I guess if you want a molded trim, I'll usually have one side to be molded, this side will
35:27be around, nice and plain.
35:29We usually take a tool, we usually run it down on the side here where the tongue is.
35:37So this is the tongue and groove part of it?
35:39Yeah, this is the tongue and groove part of it.
35:41Another log sits down here and this is for your side of your house.
35:44What is this called?
35:45We just call it a tool.
35:47Yeah, pretty much just a tool.
35:49Somebody says, hand me the tool?
35:50That's what you get.
35:51This is what you want.
35:51Okay, good.
35:52Well, what were you doing right before I walked up here and interrupted you?
35:55Just giving it a rustic surface there, kind of giving it a little look to it.
36:00Show me what that looks like.
36:09Is there a machine that can do this?
36:11I guess we're just one of the companies like to do it, the old style.
36:15Is the gold to get all the brown off?
36:17Some people do like the white face and stuff, so we have peeled them white, but then some
36:22people like the scattered, nice little kind of two-tone look there.
36:26So on the home itself then, this will be facing out?
36:31The outside, we do have one people that kind of want it backwards, where this will be the
36:35inside though.
36:36Backward people?
36:37Yeah, I guess a little, but inside out, I guess.
36:41So this is to the point where we could move it somewhere?
36:44Oh, yeah.
36:44Where do you want to put it?
36:45We could stack it right over there on that pile over there.
36:50Tongue and grooves up?
36:51Yep, tongue and grooves up.
36:53So those tongues and grooves, they all fit together.
36:57That would be the inside.
36:59We're facing, hell, I don't know what I'm talking about.
37:01I don't even know how to ask a smart-sounding question at this point.
37:03All right, give me one of those tools and I'll start doing stuff to this.
37:07Coming up.
37:07Elbow catches?
37:08Peel around those and...
37:09A draw knife is simple, but deadly.
37:13Always help.
37:20One of the last steps of log preparation is giving them that rustic look.
37:25A drawing knife, so it's...
37:26Yeah, it is.
37:27Don't you fall down, man.
37:29I've got no show without you.
37:31No offense, but, you know, you guys come as a team.
37:33I want to keep you together.
37:34I'll live.
37:35Tandem forever.
37:37You draw it toward you?
37:38Yep.
37:44Did I go too deep?
37:45Oh, no.
37:46Okay.
37:51You cut yourself right in half with this thing.
37:53Oh, yeah, you could.
37:54Oh, yeah, I've done it.
37:56You cut yourself in half?
37:57Yeah, right here.
37:57You healed back remarkably there, Sean.
37:59Oh, yeah.
38:00If there's a technique, you know, tell me, share it with me.
38:03Don't let me cut myself in half if you feel like you can stop it.
38:06No, just pull back and look for bad spots or processors.
38:09What's a processor?
38:10That's where it's all kind of chewed up and knotted up.
38:12We try to take some of that out.
38:16Is that a processor there?
38:17Or is that just a knot?
38:18That's just a knot.
38:19You want that out, though, right?
38:21The knot?
38:21No, that's all right.
38:22Oh.
38:22They're good elbow catchers, though.
38:25Elbow catches?
38:26Oh, yeah.
38:27You get some of those people that like the knots sticking out a little bit for the extra character.
38:31Peel around those and...
38:32Elbow catches.
38:35I learn something new every day on this gig.
38:38The Drawknife crews custom finish about 250 logs a day,
38:42giving them the classic rustic look lots of people look for in a log home.
38:49If you guys want to work on that, we'll do this one.
38:51Oh, all right.
38:51Yeah, why don't we all grab one and do something?
38:52We never do anything together anymore.
38:54I don't know.
38:54I know.
38:55We're all just kind of running around with our heads cut off.
38:57Just wake up, grab a coffee, come to work, go back home, grab a beer, go fishing.
39:04Well, there's a certain symmetry to it, isn't there?
39:06Oh, yeah.
39:06You got to have some kind of rhythm down, otherwise your day just goes down and splats.
39:18Kim?
39:20Am I done?
39:21No, that don't look too bad.
39:27Sorry.
39:29The use of a drawknife to peel and shape timber is a labor and time-intensive way to do things,
39:34but it gives every single log a distinctive, handcrafted look
39:39that make Rapid River rustic homes some of the most popular in the world.
39:49All right, I'm thinking that looks done.
39:52You think you'll ever live in a log house yourself?
39:54Oh, it'd be nice.
39:55Yeah?
39:56What is it, Johnny Cash there, one piece at a time?
39:58I got it one piece at a time, and it didn't cost me a dime.
40:01Here, throw one of these in the trunk and...
40:02So you're going to take your house home one timber at a time.
40:06If you can get away with that, you deserve it.
40:08What's up with those big boys behind you?
40:10The pine?
40:10That's pine?
40:11How do you approach it?
40:12You got them on top of them?
40:13Oh, no, that'd be all right, too.
40:16No, just pick a spot.
40:19And start working.
40:20And start working.
40:21So this would be like a girder inside of a cabin, right?
40:25This is your big honking support.
40:28Oh, yeah.
40:29Might as well do these two.
40:30Oh, yeah.
40:32These huge pine timbers are used for rafters, joists, girders, and beams.
40:37And because they're not as resistant to rot as cedar, exterior pine timbers are treated
40:42with a weather-resistant stain.
40:47You hit him earlier?
40:49Oh, yeah.
40:49The pine snake.
40:50Some more goodies you find in the mill yard.
41:05Smash your fingers on knots.
41:06It wakes you up in the morning.
41:09Always something.
41:15Drawing knife.
41:16Not noisy.
41:17Kind of dirty.
41:20Definitely...
41:20dangerous.
41:24Not all of the cedar that goes through the mill
41:27is a good enough quality to make it into a log haul.
41:30But even the stuff that's crap winds up getting used.
41:34Back here is another great example of B-roll.
41:40Take it, Troy.
41:46All of the unused wood from the mill is ground up and turned into landscaping mulch.
41:51Because of its high acid content and resistance to insects, cedar makes a perfect mulch.
42:01Well, we never got to the deer, but I did learn a lot today.
42:04I learned that making log cabins is loud and difficult.
42:09And as hard as we worked, what did we get?
42:11We got three, four of these rustic Ds.
42:14Well, I got a couple of these horizontal rails.
42:16Didn't get to, uh, didn't get to the post.
42:18One or two.
42:19Didn't make it.
42:19Maybe I'll come back another time.
42:21Did manage to get to some of these spindles, though.
42:23I do enjoy making the spindles.
42:25Made two of them.
42:27Oh, and I also got all of the bark off of this giant girder.
42:30And, uh, if you look closely, you can see what may appear to be imperfections and flaws.
42:34Think again.
42:35They are simply part and parcel of the rustic finish.
42:41What?
42:42You want me to beg?
42:43You want me to fall on my knees and beg?
42:45Fine.
42:46Please.
42:47If you have a dirty job or know somebody who does, I'm begging you.
42:51Go to discovery.com forward slash dirty job.
42:54Sometime like, oh, I don't know, now, and tell us all about it.
42:58I'd be grateful.
42:59In fact, I'll give you a big round of applause.
43:19Gets in you, man.
43:19Gets way in you.
43:21It's like the loaves and the fishes.
43:23It looked like you only had enough to go around for a very small group, but then suddenly you had
43:28more than you thought.
43:29Of course, that was a miracle.
43:30This is just unfortunate.
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