Stacking Rack & Sticker Jig

Rick-Wi · February 16, 2003, 12:37:23 PM

I am in the process of making a rack and sticker jig. I was just wondering what everyone else uses? What I am making will keep the stickers in place while stacking the row of lumber, then pulled out and moved up for the next row. Lay your stickers in, and pile on more lumber.

Rick-Wi

dan-l-b · February 16, 2003, 01:22:05 PM

Rick-Wi, Gene Wengert had an article in sawmill and woodlot management on that very thing. I will try to pull it up. Dan

DanG · February 16, 2003, 05:54:04 PM

Rick, I've got something like that trying to form itself in my head. My idea is to make some sturdy pallets to stack on, right off the mill, then move them to the drying shed with the forklift I don't have. :-/ I'm thinking of building a rack with a vertical back, with slots to hold the stickers in place from one end. When the pallet is full, it would be removed with the forklift, and replaced with a fresh one.

Until I get a forklift, I'll probably just continue to dead-stack on the trailer, then restack when we get to the barn. This multiple handling thing is getting old, already. :(

Rick-Wi · February 17, 2003, 04:46:58 AM

Dan, I thought about the channels to keep the stickers in place, but rejected the idea, as the channels would be to small, and not take abuse from loading and unloading. What I intend to do is use 2" x 2" square tube, and a rail between them. Mounted in the rail will be a U with a rod on the back of the U. Pull the rods out 2" Lift up bar, push rods in.

Rick-Wi

dan-l-b · February 17, 2003, 05:39:07 AM

Rick_WI, sounds like you found the article before I did. :D The 2X2 tube are used as the bunks? What is the rail? Are the rods acting as the guides for your stickers? Sounds like you have something working here but I'm cornfused ???
I'm with you on wegerts design. Dan

Geoff · February 17, 2003, 10:03:34 AM

Just finished building a bunch of them. My design was just like Rick_WI's design. Now that I have them, I wouldn't go back. Made them from 1/8" wall, 2x2 HSS. Built the sides 4' high, and the four posts are 48" apart, with 6' spacing between. This makes them useful for 6'-14' lumber piles.

Anything over 4' high is not wise, since the forklift couldn't pick them up anyways (even though it's a 6000lb International rough terrain).

We use breezedried fluted stickers, and they run down a u-channel trough.

The other thing I did was with the edger. Trouble working alone with the edger is that the boards would come out the outfeed conveyor and turn into a pile of mess real quick. I extended the conveyor to 20', and at the 12' mark, ran some 1/8" flat bar on edge. It made a radius starting at one side, and then finished at the other side at the end of the run. This way, as the boards (and rips) come out of the edger, they get nudged sideways and fall into a neat pile for sorting & stacking at the end of the day. Cheap & easy....Bob's yer uncle.

Geoff

Rick-Wi · February 17, 2003, 05:44:31 PM

Dan, I never seen Gene's design. Just came up with this on my own. The bottom is two 15' 8" long 6" I beams on 6 wheels. They are joined with three cross I beams. Hey, I know it is overkill but the beams are free. Since our stacks are 42" wide I made it 43" between upright 2x2 Square tubing. The 2x2 square tubing is 39" high. There are 5 each side. The 2x2's act as a vertical guide for a sleave that fits over them. To the sleave is a horizontal mounted 1x1 square tube, in the tube are holes, that allow the sticker guides the guides are 1/2" tall, 3/4" spacing between the U's, and 2" long, to be pushed in, and pulled out. When pushed in it gives even spacings, for the stickers. When the boards are stacked accross the pile, the sticker guides are pulled back, Tubing is raised, and guides pushed back in. These guides are on both sides of the Stacker. When you want to pick up the pile the 1x1 tubing and guides, are lowered below the lumber stack, and out of the way. Make sence?

Rick-Wi

Don P · February 18, 2003, 04:47:25 AM

Here's a lo tech way I've seen. Have you guys got a pic, you're losing me ???

Rick-Wi · February 18, 2003, 05:36:59 AM

Don, I will get a drawing of it up.

Rick-Wi

HORSELOGGER · February 18, 2003, 05:43:25 AM

Don, that is what they use at the woodmizer plant in Indy. It seems like the simplest and easiest to make and use. All you really need is an alignment guide, not so much a "holder" for the sticks.

sawyerkirk · February 18, 2003, 07:18:03 AM

When I built my kiln many years ago, I bolted 4x4's on the floor every 18" and then screwed a 2x2x5' piece of angle to each 4x4 this just simply acts as a guide to the sticker. You slide it across the pile and against the inside of the angle. this way the stickers are always in line above the 4x4's