Building a band saw: decisions dilemmas and delusions

BeeBazaar · May 17, 2023, 05:34:34 PM

So I'm in the planning stages of building a band sawmill and I anticipate from what I've read from other people I'm looking at close to a year to do this being as I work full time etc etc. I want to Mill wood now and in the meantime. I've looked at some cheaper options, smaller Mills. I really am not fond of the tracks on a lot of these entry models in the 2800 range I just don't like them and all the models and brands seem to be right around that price range. A guy just listed locally an Oscar 121 that I went and looked at tonight the mill seems nice enough I like the track better I guess it's 16 ft long and he wants 2,800 with seven extra blades and a Peavey. I don't know if that seems high or fair or what. I figure if I get a little mill like that they'll hold me over till I get done and I could probably sell it and recoup most of my money later on or decide to keep it and have a small mill or possibly mounted on trailer I don't know. Does anyone ever have a large mill and a small mi? I don't know if cutting an 8 or 10 inch log on a bigger mill for a 36 in bigger log if that presents other issues or if it's just one mill and that's it.
(Admin edit: craigslist ads not allowed)

My other dilemma is I'm looking at some plans I got I guess I think it's Texas bens Mill and I'm actually quite impressed with it but it's a lot of work which is fine I'm not worried about it. Today I'm here I saw something about Linn lumber Mills and look at that out curiosity and I actually like their complete carriage that you have to build and assemble yourself. I guess there could be pros and cons to either but the Linn kind of looks like I could stretch it and you got to build your own track anyway. I have a donor engine with like 20 hours on it, it's 19 horsepower off of a riding mower that I am going to use with regardless of what I do.

I think if I go to Texas Ben's plans the mill might be a little more robust but in all honesty, I'm looking at probably a year or more with the Linn I can probably have it built in 6 months or 8 months or whatnot maybe faster maybe by Christmas I don't know I still need to call and talk to them about lead times and all that stuff. In the meantime if I get that Oscar I could literally be sawing tonight if I went and picked it up if I got a entry level mill, frontier or woodlands or whatever I've got to wait for several weeks and then build it and I already know I don't like the tracks on them for whatever reason I don't know. But I'm getting analysis paralysis either way and I just want to cut my freaking Cherry logs....

(Sorry for the book 🙄)
Phil

fluidpowerpro · May 17, 2023, 11:32:17 PM

If it's a Hud-son HFE21, it's not an Oscar, its a Homesteader. The Oscar is a heavier duty saw compared to the Homesteader. $2800 is a fair price if it's in reasonable condition.

Southside · May 17, 2023, 11:41:32 PM

To answer your question - those 8" or so "logs" are going to give you more problems - lower quality lumber - than a 36" log - speaking in general terms here - due to the nature of the fiber itself, not the mill on which you saw it.

fluidpowerpro · May 17, 2023, 11:55:59 PM

If you have never milled before, I think there is a lot of value buying a lower cost mill before you build one. In addition to learning how to saw, you will get a better idea of what features you want to incorporate in the one you build.

jpassardi · May 18, 2023, 06:31:29 AM

Good advise given above. Generally 12" is the minimum log I saw unless it's walnut or cherry.

Good luck.

BeeBazaar · May 18, 2023, 06:46:09 AM

Thanks all. I was thinking it might be nice to have a small one for familiarity and learning. I posted a link to the add, but I guess thats not allowed? here is the mill.

Old Greenhorn · May 18, 2023, 08:05:09 AM

What you have there is an Oscar 121. I have a 328 and they are quite similar. I bought mine used and it needed some TLC, but not much before I was making wood. It took a couple of years before I was making 'good wood' and I am still working on improving. When I began running an LT50 it was an easy step up and all that basic knowledge came along with me and got applied immediately.
There are (IMHO) 3 major components to getting into making lumber. The first is getting a mill, which is the easiest and smallest part of the overall effort. The selection depends on your output goals and requirements. LOTS of good discussion points available for your reading all over this forum, do some reading.

The second part is material handling, this can be a much bigger nut to crack depending on your situation. How do I get logs on and off, or even up to the mill? What do I do with slabs, sawdust, and other 'waste' products? Where do I stack and sticker wood, how do I keep it dry? How do I turn logs on the mill? So that part can take a bit of work and/or expense

The third part is the big one, and that is milling knowledge. Understanding how to read a log, predict what it might do, plan your cuts for the best yield, and how to get the most useable lumber out of any given log. Also learning your mill, it's maintenance requirements, repairs, spare parts. Blades are another whole set of 'classes'. Wood drying and behavior, insect control, and a ton of other stuff comes up that you never thought you would have to take time to learn. Some folks spend several decades learning this stuff. There is no school for it, except maybe right here.

(I note that a bunch of us from all over NA just drove/flew/walked/swam or waddled all the way down to GA last month to share 2 days sharing such knowledge and learning at no small personal expense. This is what some of us do just to get a little bit better.)

I tell you all that so I can say this: Choosing a decent entry level manual mill is not a bad place to start, especially for someone new to sawing. Some of the reasons have been mentioned in the replies above, some of the things you need to learn I mentioned already in this reply. A manual mill puts you closer to the work. You can see and feel how the mill responds up close. You gain and appreciation for handling logs, selecting cut patterns and working thoughtfully so as not to waste effort and time. In addition, you very quickly learn where your plans have holes that need filling or adjusting. With a small mill modifications become easier and less complex to do. If you want to build down the road, you will learn a great deal about what you want, what you need to improve on, and maybe what you want to copy as is. The learning benefits alone can save you lots of time, materials, and money when you start building your dream machine.

I don't think that 121 is made anymore, but not to worry. Hud-Son uses similar parts on most of their machines and all parts for that should be available with a phone call at a reasonable cost. There is always an English speaking person answering the phone. Many of their parts can be replaced with standard hardware available most places. They are pretty easy machines to work on. If you do pull the trigger, run 4° blades on that mill, you will be happier. Took me almost 2 years to learn that one. ;D
I did find a video of that mill in action. Caution, this fella let's some salty language slip in here and there. He's up in Newfoundland and his accent kind of gives that away. :D

Best of luck to you, keep us in the loop. (BTW, if you read the forum rules you will understand why that link was removed.)

BANDSAW OSCAR 121 MILLING LUMBER - YouTube

BeeBazaar · May 18, 2023, 09:31:43 AM

makes sense... walk before you crawl I suppose. I do think it would be a good reference for a build too.

I am picking it up tomorrow. I have some White Ash and Wild black cherry to mill and I cant wait. This can do everything I have sans 1 24" ash log thats 9' long. I may take it and have it slabbed by someone in the mean time, idk.

He has 7 or 8 extra blades. Is there an easy way to tell if a blade is sharp before you put it on the mill? or is it just see how it cuts?

Ljohnsaw · May 18, 2023, 01:05:38 PM

Quote from: BeeBazaar on May 18, 2023, 09:31:43 AMHe has 7 or 8 extra blades. Is there an easy way to tell if a blade is sharp before you put it on the mill? or is it just see how it cuts?

Let the blade loop slide down your leg. If you start oozing a lot of blood, it's sharp. If it just leaves a little white scratch, not sharp.😉

When I saw HF I was thinking Harbor Freight and $2,800 was too much.

Good luck with your new toy!

fluidpowerpro · May 18, 2023, 01:52:38 PM

Congratulations on your purchase. Based on the pictures, that mill looks to be in really good condition. It is as you said an Oscar which is a better design. The main difference is it has 4 posts in addition to the 2 that the saw runs up and down on. This makes for a very sturdy frame.
If you also got the base that under the track, that is a huge plus. The steel angle iron tracks from Hudson are pretty sturdy, but I have found that it's important to have them well supported. I suggest keeping a spare drive belt on hand. They do last quite a while but sometimes if a blade breaks it will damage the belt.
I expect that you will be happy with your purchase and you will be able to do more with it than you expect. Make sure and keep us posted on your upcoming journey.

BeeBazaar · May 20, 2023, 08:07:24 AM

thanks for the insight all. I picked it up last night and milled a small pine log i had just because i wanted to cut something lol now I need to figure out what im doing. overall 1st impressions were good. i think the blade might be dull. Im going to change it. motor needs a tune up im sure. i dont have anything to compare it to, but i think the log dogs I think they are leave something to be desired on that track. but I think this is easily enough remedied. if the weather cooperates I can see some of this cherry and ash today.

I also really like the working model i can examine. the basic structure is rather simple. so i still need to ponder full build vs a Linn. but ive got time now

Stephen1 · May 20, 2023, 08:53:25 AM

A nice mill that will help you learn to saw wood. Soon you will forget about building your own mill and just buy a bigger mill with hydraulics so you can even more sawdust!

BeeBazaar · May 20, 2023, 03:51:27 PM

had a crash course in mill maintenance today. i am changing the blade. and noticed the drive belt is about 90% broke. so I changed that. but then sonce i had to loosen the pillar block to change the belt, I checked and the idle side inside of the sheave was ~1/2" off a 6 foor level. so how do you knwo wheich side isnt straight? or does it not really matter as long as the level touches both side on the same plane? its straight edge good now. but it was the diel side that seemed off even tho I loosened the drive side....

Ljohnsaw · May 20, 2023, 04:20:25 PM

I'm not sure what you are saying or trying to show. The wheels need to start out in the same plane but as you test and adjust your tracking, they will likely no longer be in the same plane as you tip the wheels independently as needed for the blade to track on each wheel.

Hope that makes sense.

BeeBazaar · May 20, 2023, 04:33:23 PM

I put the blade on per manual. And turn the whole thing by hand 4 revolutions. The blade is off the back of the sheave about an 1/8" when I took the old one off it was even on drive side and 1/4" in on idle side. After aligning the wheels and new blad both sides track the blade the same but it's hanging off in the back just a bit. Is that ok?

I ran the mill and had no issues but that's with no load.

BeeBazaar · May 20, 2023, 04:59:55 PM

Quote from: ljohnsaw on May 20, 2023, 04:20:25 PM
I'm not sure what you are saying or trying to show. The wheels need to start out in the same plane but as you test and adjust your tracking, they will likely no longer be in the same plane as you tip the wheels independently as needed for the blade to track on each wheel.

Hope that makes sense.

QuoteI don't know what's supposed to make sense yet the videos and what I have read, the Oscar wheels are set first. But I can't say if that's right or not. I'm not 100% sure what proper tracking is either if I'm being honest. I have read that saw mills need a slight amount of toe in. But Oscar has this double bar on ea side of the wheel. But then again the wheels can still be twisted inside of it so ... 🤷🤷

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fluidpowerpro · May 20, 2023, 06:43:25 PM

I have an Oscar 18 and typically I set it up so the back of the blade is even with the side of the wheel. If the blade is riding the same on both wheels, I would think your ok. Just make sure you adjust the blade guides so the blade is not touching the bearing on the back of the blade. You want about 1/8" clearance. It shouldn't contact that bearing while sawing.

BeeBazaar · May 20, 2023, 09:20:37 PM

Thanks. I set it that way initially but it set itself after turning it buy hand. But didn't move after running with no load for a few minutes. And I have the guide set like that per the manual, so should be good. Couldn't cut today. Had to get a honey bee swarm. I work tomorrow and after work I have to tend to bees. Hoping Monday I can try it out. If I have issues I'm sure I'll be back 🙄