band saw mills

[stephenj]

Anyone here have any experiance with small band sawmills

Lately i have been kicking around the idea of saving up for a small manual mill
My intentions are to cut some lumber for a building and maybe if things work out
Use it to cut a few logs for extra pocket money .. not so much as to be a actual business
But having the ability to work a couple weekend days a month and making a bit of play money

I am under no illusions as to the work a manual mill involves .. in my youth
I worked my tail off on a manual circle mill for two years .

I know nothing about the small band mills .. havent ever been near one
To referance the size of mill i am debating ... the wood mizer lt 15 looks like it would fit my requirements .

So give me all the input you have .. what mills to look at .. maybe whats good and bad with them
Anything you can tell me .

[labradigger1]

I do jot have one but i have a fella saw a few thousand feet a year for me at 200.00 per thousand bd ft, he uses a woodmizer lt 40 with power everything and we have done 4k feet in a day before and it was quality wood!
Go to county and state fairs or dealers for demos. Hardly any waste from bandmills.
Lab

[starmac]

I played with an lt 40 for a couple of hours. All I can say is they are double sweet, and the blades are pretty inexpensive. You can cut siding , even shingles with them. I think you can do most everything with the 15, just a lot more work.

[bear67]

I have operated several brands of mills but the most experience in on the woodmizer 40. Biggest headache was taking blades to the shop to get sharpened. This one belongs to a state agency and I operated as they did not have a sawyer who understood quarter sawing. We cut a bunch of big cypress logs that had uprooted in a flood and some was used for conference table in the state offices. I have a friend in our antique tractor club who bought a chain saw mill and he has lots of experience sharpening chains now.
I don't need any more jobs, but I think the mills with some hydraulics sure help in reducing labor and I would set up to sharpen my own bands. You also need a metal detector. I too spent a little time on a circle saw mill 50+ years ago and it was work and dangerous--long before OSHA. For several years when we were clearing a building site or somewhere on the farm, I put all of the Eastern Red Cedar logs in a barn after painting the ends. Then loaded 3 gooseneck flatbeds with logs and carried them to a local stationary band mill. I paid his fee per thousand, but I sawed my own logs. Wound up with about 25K bd ft. great and beautiful lumber. We did use a metal detector on all of this as some logs came from old home places. Largest thing I have found lately was a railroad spike in a Red Oak tree. Found it with my Stil 265 and a brand new chain. Going to build some furniture with some of the Cedar and some Mesquite this spring.

[Beau Cassidy]

Look them up on sawmillcreek.org

[texassako]

I have a Mister Sawmill bandmill out of Flippin, Arkansas. I had a specific need for handling short logs that other brands did not handle well, stumps and crotches down to 18" long. You might check out forestryforum.com. Lots of knowledge over there. I like Woodmizer's support and they used to have a program where you could go see one run, maybe they still do. If they handled the short stuff, I probably would have gone with an LT-15. My blades and sharpening come from Cook's and the only cant hook you will ever need is from Logrite (I also have an arch from them). The biggest piece of advice is buy the biggest engine you can when you get it.

[MtGun44]

A friend is part of a group that fell hardwood trees and mill them for lumber to feed their
wood working hobby. Timber King BK-20 is what they have and it has worked
very well for them. They have a video on youtube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lg4qZPSOxIs

Bill

[jlucke69]

I have a small portable mill for personal use. Similar to the LT15. It does have limitation on log size, but for me it is worth the money. I have a wood shop and access to trees. I now have 10-15 varieties of wood available to work with in the dimensions that I want. I have access to local wood that I cannot buy anywhere else. As for the unit itself, mine runs on tracks and is pretty easy to setup and run by myself. It takes a little room to store, but not much. I use a dolly to move the head out of the garage and canthooks to maneuver logs. Max logs for me are 25" or so in diameter by 10ft long. Even if the mill did not limit at this, I cannot manage logs any bigger by myself.

[reloader28]

We have an old woodmizer that a friend gave us. I mean OLD. Model number 0.
It was portable and you could make 16' cuts which is a little small for our normal work. We gave it a permanant spot, added on to the deck and we can now cut 38' logs. Much better.

[sdcitizen]

An uncle has one he built himself. Maybe a bit larger than the LT-15. I think it has a 15 hp engine on it. Quite doable for one person to run, although a bit faster with two people, I think max log size on his is 24-25". I have run it a few times, it works well for making decorative lumber, or very large expensive planks, but as far as 'normal' size lumber I would just purchase that for the work involved. Definitely learn to sharpen your own blades, his go maybe 6-8 hours between sharpenings, less if its hardwood.

[geargnasher]

My neighbor has a Timber King, not sure what size but I'll say "medium". He's been ripping a lot of lumber from trees burned in the Bastrop area fires a couple of years ago, and has kept the saw busy since he bought it in 2006 with Mesquite logs that he uses for cabinet, door, and custom furniture lumber. He has a collection of bullets, barbed-wire, old nails, etc. that the Mesquite has hidden before he got smart and bought a metal detector. One thing that keeps it going efficiently is a sharpening service in the next town that does everyone's saws, blades, router bits, shaper bits, planer knives, etc. on a computerized sharpening machine.

The other thing that he has that seems absolutely essential is a skid-steer loader with a grapple attachment.

Gear

[BDJ]

An LT 15 and a few other tools put to work.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3utt2Y5aH0

[stephenj]

I dont realy need a larger mill being able to cut a 28 - 29 inch log is plenty
Any bigger and hydraulics are a must . And hydraulic mills are way more then i will be able to spend .

A nice small manual mill will fit my needs ... if i can go out and cut 500 board feet in a day thats more then enough.
Pricing store bought lumber here lately a mill will cost about half of just the framing material i need
Not to mention siding and roof sheeting .

Sometimes being frugal can make for a lot of hard work ... but sweat is free and hard work hasnt killed anyone i know of yet

[Petrol & Powder]

My neighbor used a portable mill to cut lumber for a few years. He made enough lumber to add onto one house and practically make another but the maintenance and repair costs were high. I'm not sure were the break even point is but they are far more expensive to operate than they first appear.

[jlucke69]

One thing to remember is that you will need to plan ahead. I cut my lumber in the winter/spring and it is not ready to use until the following winter (assuming we have a hot summer. You will need to cut and store your lumber for a 9 months to a year before using to build with or you will be in for some trouble. Air drying takes time.

[Petrol & Powder]

An LT 15 and a few other tools put to work.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3utt2Y5aH0

/\ That is SUPER COOL !! /\

[PatMarlin]

I can get you fixed right up stephenj...!

I'm selling my 1996 LT40 HD Kawamizer..

This LT 40HD has all hydraulic power toeboards, debarker, lube system, power assist engagement, log turner.

It's been completely rewired and upgraded with just about every bearing replaced, and many other upgrades. I installed a new 27HP water cooled Kawasaki engine that kicks butt and sips fuel. New debarker. I have redundant repair kits and new spare bearing kits, all of which is hardly ever needed on a Woodmizer.


http://www.patmarlins.com/1mill.jpg




http://www.patmarlins.com/2mill.jpg




http://www.patmarlins.com/3mill.jpg




http://www.patmarlins.com/4mill.jpg




http://www.patmarlins.com/5mill.jpg

[PatMarlin]

But wait there's MORE...

Buy now and get a Woodmizer sharpener, and Solfolk dual blade setter and my custom made sharpening table...

http://www.patmarlins.com/6sharpener.jgp



http://www.patmarlins.com/7sharpen.jpg



http://www.patmarlins.com/8setter.jpg

[PatMarlin]

Build stuff like this and be the envy of your neighborhood.

Better than a Corvette for getting girls..!

[AlaskanGuy]

What would a setup like that run Pat???? And how much are you wanting for it???

[PatMarlin]

I don't know yet.

I need to figure out a fair price. New with all those options and sharpening system would make ya shiver... $25-$30k

Few hundred bucks if I get to personally deliver it to AK... :mrgreen:

[AlaskanGuy]

Sold pat... Can you have it up here in time for the red salmon season this spring???? Copper River Reds.... Yummmmmy [smilie=1:

[PatMarlin]

You really know how to get to a guy.

I haven't drug a rotary killer and watermelon flasher for several years now.. :mrgreen:

Me and my Skipjack far to long ago. That's going to change this year.


http://www.patmarlins.com/1skippy.jpg


http://www.patmarlins.com/1salpatmon.jpg

[stephenj]

That is a nice looking mill .... way way way more then i need .
I think i actualy would hate to have one of those .... it might cut into my shooting time

A question on band life ... any idea what actual band life is as far as board feet .

I like the idea of the cantileaver head on the wood mizers .. but the size of mill i want doesnt have it
Woodmizer is calling the lt 15 a semi cantileaver ... it sure would be easier
If a person could find a few differant mills somewhat localy to look and compare .

[PatMarlin]

Everything Woodmizer makes performs, and is engineered to run years and years. Really you are buying much more with that company.

Great product support and very reasonable costs on replacement parts.

Their blades are the best IMO. They make the very best portable band mills in the business.

[stephenj]

Pat
Have you ever cut any of the tougher hard woods on the mill .. think hickory
Or something similar .

I plan on cutting my all of the posts beams and siding out of locust. And it can be rather challenging to cut on a circle mill with a big kerf
I kinda lean towards the thin bands making it a bit easier to saw ..
With the expected reduced band life .

[PatMarlin]

No hickory. I have actually milled locust.

You need the correct blade with the correct rake angle and tooth offset for your wood. If you have the blade set correctly, it's no problem. Wrong blade with the wrong log = problems.

[AlaskanGuy]

Well pat, if you bring that mill up here, we can do some real fishing... The kind where you spot and stalk on the river, with the ever present threat of meeting a brownie.... Its a great time.... By fathers day, you will have no trouble with copper river reds like this daily morning catch....

98824

[PatMarlin]

Nice...!

[PatMarlin]

Pat
Have you ever cut any of the tougher hard woods on the mill .. think hickory
Or something similar .

I plan on cutting my all of the posts beams and siding out of locust. And it can be rather challenging to cut on a circle mill with a big kerf
I kinda lean towards the thin bands making it a bit easier to saw ..
With the expected reduced band life .

Trying to remember some blade geometry numbers for you but I've just been out of that loop to long now.

My brain gets to focused on the task at hand for this technical stuff. Back in the 80s through the 90's I was audio engineering records. Next 10 years milling logs in the outback. Past 5 years tool and die and CNC machining.

My brain just has trouble shifting gears back and forth, and I forget the old stuff... :mrgreen:

[Mal Paso]

I don't know yet.

I need to figure out a fair price. New with all those options and sharpening system would make ya shiver... $25-$30k

Few hundred bucks if I get to personally deliver it to AK... :mrgreen:

Water cooled Too? Very Cool! Thanks for showing! Let me know if you do decide to sell. I could include visiting rights.:wink:

[PatMarlin]

Hi Mal-

Yes I'm selling. Also have a CAT ASV 2810 diesel skid loader and quick release attachments all needed for just a place like yours. And shop trailers etc. and more equipment that I used to use up thar.,.

[winchester85]

i now have over 1300 hours on my woodmizer lt40 super hydraulic. it is 42hp turbo charged diesel, double hydraulic pumps, and computer setworks. when it is working well, it is a great machine. however, when it gets out of whack for whatever reason it is a pain. i used to do a lot of milling and resawing of reclaimed lumber and that stuff is really hard on blades and bearings and just about everything. woodmizer does make a good product, but i have had issues with some of their staff and their electronic equipment. my mill was purchased new by me back in 2003. it came with computer setworks called accuset, i had 4 computers **** out. each time one craps out, the mill is DEAD! finally on the 5th time they sent me the upgrade for accuset 2 which was supposed to be far better. it also allowed you to use the mill manually if the computer died.
2 years after i got the new "free" upgrade to accuset 2, it crapped out! i was not happy about having to BUY a new computer for $800. the electrical support staff tried to say that it went bad because i had improperly installed it and failed to maintain my mill properly. they have never seen my mill or how i use it or how i maintain it. i posted a rant about all the problems that i had had with my mill on forestryforum. the woodmizer guy that is the electronic tech support guy who i think helped develop the accuset 2 trashed me on the open forum to no end. he posted for everyone to see, what parts i had purchased from woodmizer. he and a moderator proclaimed that the problems that i had were 100% my failure to properly install and maintain the parts. it turns out that the computer will die if the voltage drops too low for any period of time. think starting a diesel in sub zero temps, or using the hydraulics to position logs, i was told that i could not run the hydraulic pumps "too long", or crank for more than 30 seconds or i would risk destroying the computer! shortly after installing the new computer (which came with no installation instructions), i started having problems with the saw head having a mind of its own, i would start a cut and all of a sudden the head would drop to the deck or raise to the top limit. talk about hard on bearings! i was told that i probably needed a new transducer, or maybe the cable between the transducer and the computer. it would be another $600 plus for the transducer and another $125 for the cable.

at that point i pretty much said forget it. spending that much money on a mill did not make much sense. making money in the lumber business is tough especially the softwood market.
since then i have only put about 20 hours on my mill.

[PatMarlin]

Glad my mill doesn't have a computer. Sheesh.

[Alstep]

I've got a Delta "The Lumber Company" portable one man band saw mill. Got it with some equipment I bought years ago and never used it. So I can't say how it works. It's in really nice shape and shows very little use. Easily fits in the back of a small pickup. I have no use for it, so if you're interested, do a little research on it and get back to me with a PM. I'll work out a very reasonable price with you. Might even be able to get out to Ohio for you this summer, as I go out to the National Matches in July.

[stephenj]

Alstep

There is next to zero info on it i can find .. except it was only made a few years

I will send a pm ...

[PatMarlin]

THis was my first mill:

http://www.woodbug.com/

Cuts very accurate lumber and is easy to use for a manual mill. I milled a lot with it. Built a room addition on my old place and numerous projects like shelving, etc.

[quilbilly]

Don't have one but several people in our area do. They work great. We built parts of our barn from fir and hemlock from our own trees then did our decks from full dimension red cedar from our own trees. The only problem with milling your own wood for buildings is that even though full dimension wood is far stronger than nominal wood from Home Depot (real 2x6 vs nominal 2x6 which is actually significantly smaller) building inspectors in some locales won't approve your construction unless the wood has another bureaucracy's stamp of approval. Very stupid and irritating.