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Hand-hewing timbers requires that you skin the bark from the tree. 

Hand-hewn timbers are widely sought as decorative additions to modern homes. In many cases, these timbers are reclaimed from barns or homesteads that may be hundreds of years old. A less expensive, more labor-intensive route to purchasing hand-hewn timbers for your home is to make them yourself. Making them requires little in the way of tools, but will require patience and a willingness to take on a project that even the original settlers did not take for granted.

Things You will Need

Chainsaw

Flat-blade shovel

Adze

Select the tree that you want to cut for your timber. Cut it down with a chainsaw in the spring, when the sap will allow you to skin the tree more easily. Cut off the tree's branches close to the trunk. Cut the trunk into sections that are the desired length.

Skin the trunk of the tree using the flat-bladed shovel. Position the shovel's edge between the bark and the white inner trunk of the tree and use your foot to power the shovel. Do this as soon as the tree is felled to make the job easier.

Flatten the sides of the log so that they can be more easily cut. Use a bow saw or chainsaw to cut into the side of the log at 6-inch increments along its length. Cut into the log only a few inches.

Chip away the wood between the cuts, using an adze. Strike each blow at a slight angle.

Work the log with the adze until you have carved four square sides into a square or rectangular shape.

Tips and Warnings

Hand-hewn lumber is almost never produced with laser-straight edges. Avoid overusing tools that early craftsmen did not have access to in order to make certain that the timber looks authentic.

Skinning a pine tree is considerably easier than skinning hardwood trees such as maple and oak.

Wear safety glasses when working with the chainsaw and the adze. Both can throw chunks of wood into your face and damage your eyes.

Be careful when using an adze as it can cause injuries if you do not handle it properly.