Sawmill advice

[John25mm]

After my deployment I plan to get a sawmill to;
a, Make some timbers that are 6"x14" that vary from 8' to 12' long. This is to repair a log house on some property I just bought in SE Ohio.
b, Make some lumber for trim work in both that house and any other.
c, Make siding and timbers for various buildings.

I want advice on what size mill and brand would be good for this type of work. Also why you would recomend this saw/brand. THis has to have good support for a newbie to call when I am scratching my head going "What the hell have I done now."  Yes I know having someone else to do this would be cheaper but I am the type that like to learn new things, do my own work, have my own toys and also to have a tool that I can make a little money with when I retire. I plan on it being semi-permantly mounted/on a stand under a shed roof.
It will be kept in South east Ohio but I will have a house just outsde of Charleston SC. So as to buying and parts for whichever you recommend keep this in mind.
Thanks.   

[woodyone.john]

welcome john,if your inerested in making life easy for your self dont start,its highly addictive ,but if i can dissuade you with a simple plea get a hydraulic operated mill cause then you will be able to keep up the addiction till youre really frail.in that case it will probably extend your life. cheers john

[Nomad]

     Welcome to the FF, John.  Most mill manufacturers make good mills, and each brand (predictably) has it's own cheering section.  How much are you looking to spend?  Planning on a used mill, or going for a new one?  And as Woody said, and others will repeat, sawing is addictive!

[jdonovan]

I want advice on what size mill and brand would be good for this type of work.

Any of the major brands will do what you want, and all have good support networks, and spare parts availability.

The size of the mill will come down to what level of production you want. A 10hp fully manual mill will do the same job as a fully hydraulic 60 HP mill... but the 60 HP mill will do in 30-45 min what may take you a day on the 10hp unit.

I recently went through this process and after looking at mills and watching video, I decided my mill needed to have hydraulic log handling.  I'm guessing from your mention of retirement, that you're not 20-something anymore. Logs are VERY heavy, and often don't like to roll/move the way we want. Being able to pull a lever and re-position the log in 2-3 seconds is a huge time/back saver. 

Depending on support equipment you have available, a tractor, skid steer, backhoe etc.. you might need less log handling on the mill, but for my situation, being a solo-sawyer, I wanted all the help I could get. I searched for about 8 months for a good condition used mill, and finally found one.

[John25mm]

Thanks for the info. I like the idea of hydralics. I assume that is for lifting the logs onto the machine and then rolling them. I will be using a Kubota tractor to load the logs to begin with but that is something to think about. I am planning to make the shed for it so I can add track sections to it if needed and load the whole length of whatever I plan to cut.
I know life could be easier buy hireing it out where would the fun be in that.

[Magicman]

First John25mm, Welcome to the Forestry Forum.  It sounds like you are in Military Service, and if so, Thanks for your service to our country.  25mm? 

Any of the sawmill manufacturers listed on the left produce quality products, and "bells and whistles" are there for a reason.  Maybe not so important for hobby or personal use, but for being portable and making some $$$ they are well worth the cost.  I sawed a 33" butt 16' freshly felled Pine log yesterday that simply could not have been handled without hydraulics.

[paul case]

I have a few recomendations for you.
I started out with the same ambitions as you listed, basically mine was build a new house with my own lumber. I bought an ez boardwalk model 40. The cost was about what the framing lumber would have cost for my house. I also milled some live edged stuff for trim and made my own kind of paneling.
Almost as soon as I got the mill I had folks wanting me to saw for them. Three years or so after I bought the first mill I bought a used one with hydraulics. Sold the first mill and am still sawing(when not cattle ranching or pastoring) and it is making me a living.
My advise.
Get to know someone with a mill. Go help them and get to know the way things work. This will help you when you set yours up and you wont have near as much trouble getting up and running.
Look at mills. 
Look used. If you buy used you may not get a warranty,but you can usually get to saw with it some. The previuos owner can help you aout a lot.
Ask lots of questions.
Good luck on your search and let us know what you find. PC

[davey duck]

Hi John ,Welcome to the Forum .It all depends on what you want to spend on a mill,they range from $3,000.00 - 60,000.00 depending on the options.

[John25mm]

Thanks for the info I am looking for new in the $5 to $6k range. I want new so I do get the warranty> I am one of those people that right after I buy it that one little part that is a pain to get on a old machine will break for me. It is just my luck that way. As to the '25mm' part of my screen name is due to the bore diamater of the cannon on a Bradley Fighting vehicle. I have spent waaay too much time on them. However it does beat walking. 

[jdonovan]

Thanks for the info I am looking for new in the $5 to $6k range.

At that price point, you are going to be 100% manual....
hand crank blade up/down, push/crank the blade through the cut, remove the board/slab, pull the carrige back to start another cut.
Turn the log with a can't hook

A the 6k price point, you can't get into a new woodmizer LT15, the LT10 would be in your price range, but it is a VERY VERY basic machine, and a significant work out to run.

[sigidi]

Welcome to the forum!!

John, don't limit yourself to a bandsaw, u can also get portable swing blades. My first Lucas was a 6-18 great little mill and would do a terrific job for hobby, semi-pro work, but for your situation you'd be lookin at a model 7. I've found Lucas to be extremely helpful and the mills to be totally reliable. I best not say more, but I can ;D ;)

[bushhog920]

think of support equipment, get a sharpener and setter will cost about $2000 for a good one I use cooks works great. you will go through 2 blades aday and at $7 ea and a month turn around I do it my self. I have a 40 x 100 full of wood from my 13hp noorwood, whats the point of having a big hyd mill and all you wood is sitting outside rotting. BUILD A SHED TWICE THE SIZE YOU THINK YOU NEED.

[Tree Feller]

Hello, John and welcome to the Forestry Forum.

I recently got a two-year-old, fully manual mill. I'm not exactly a physical specimen and sawing big logs is a chore for me. I'd love to have a hydraulic mill but...

For the expense, I really can't justify one. I have no intention of sawing commercially. I primarily wanted a mill to saw my own hardwood lumber for woodworking projects and some beetle-killed Pine for outbuildings.

I'm framing the first building, a 10' x 20' storage building but I also have 400 bft of Post Oak drying in a solar kiln, about 800 bft of 8/4 and 4/4 Pine air drying, 300 bft of 4/4 Walnut air drying and another 300 bft of kiln-dried Walnut stored in a mini-warehouse. I'm overrun with lumber and have several Post Oak and Red Oak logs waiting to be sawn.

The point is that unless you are unable to physically operate a manual mill, a hydraulic mill for sawing your own lumber is an expensive luxury, not a necessity. Yes, it is a lot faster and easier but that just means you will accummulate more lumber than you can use in a shorter time period.

I think any of the entry-level mills mfg by the sponsors here would serve you very well and save you some dollars also. In the event you decide you do need a hydraulic mill, I've found that band mills hold their value very well.

[mikeb1079]

Yes, it is a lot faster and easier but that just means you will accummulate more lumber than you can use in a shorter time period.

:D :D :D  so so true!

where hydraulic mills shine is sawing commerically.  i wouldn't even consider sawing to make money without a fully hydraulic mill.  for personal use a manual mill will do ya right.  i've heard good things about several manufacturers:  woodmizer, norwood, ez boardwalk, etc etc. 

one thing to keep in mind is to buy as much hp as you can afford.  you won't regret it!

[Woodey]

Welcome John,

I would suggest that you spent some time with someone with a manual and hydraulic mill before you make your purchase.

When I was at your stage in my mill search I was going to start out with a $6,000 manual mill.

I hired 2 different people to come out and mill for me and learned all about the mills. That was a money well spent, because then I realized that I wanted a bigger hydraulic mill.

I started out with a used Woodmizer LT40HD24, upgraded to a LT40HDD34cat.with accuset.
I like the customer support, They even have a service program and they come out once a year and service your mill and get it back to cutting just like it rolled out of the factory for a small fee.

Keep us posted and have a good day!

[hackberry jake]

Ez boardwalk jr. $4000... Parts to convert it to hydraulic. $2000... Having a new hydraulic sawmill for $6000. Priceless (well $6000 if ya wanna get technical). That's what I'm in the process of working on.

[thecfarm]

John25mm,welcome to the forum. I have a all manual mill. I had to get the tractor to turn some logs for me the other day. Usually I don't cut many big logs,just to hard to deal with.Those manual mills are a lot of work. That's why I say,if I don't do it,it don't get done.You will need at least one Logrite Cant Dog or Peavey,sponsor on the left. Do you have a tractor ATV to get the logs out?