INITIAL THOUGHTS ON WOODLAND MILLS HM126

[RAYGYVER]

Ok. This is my first mill. I am a mechanical designer, and have designed automation equipment. I currently design conveyor systems for the package sorting industry....so I have a pretty good point of view to make an initial review/first impressions.

1. Seems beefy. It is sturdy.

2. I like the aluminized coating over the steel track and other parts.

3. The factory set the blade tracking right, all I did was adjust the 25 ft-lbs on the tension handle and I was cutting.

4. The guide system is very nice, and easily adjusted. Easily replaceable guide blocks and guide bearings.

5. leveling feet are indispensable, I cannot believe some manufacturers charge extra for leveling feet. WM feet are heavy duty and work great.

6. 14 HP engine runs strong.

7. Controls are in the right spots.

8. Lube system is nice, tank looks bad @$$ to me.

9. Cant hook is really nice, the handle is fat and socket head cap screw shoulder bolts used should last a good long time.

10. Very nice hardware/lock nuts/bolts/washers.

11. Raise/lowering cable and pulley system is very nicely done and required very little adjustment.

12. 14 hp Engine is hard to start. No matter what combination of choke I use, it takes 5 or 6 pulls to get it to run. It'll sputter and spit a few times. Then suddenly it'll come to life. I wonder if the oil level switch has something to do with it. I thought at first it may have had some air in a fuel line. But after 4 or 5 starts that should have worked itself out by now.

13. The copper lube tube was cut too short and the angle was off. It was spitting water on the ground, totally missing the blade. Easy fix, I just re-bent the tube.

14. The latches on the blade guard doors are good, but the teeny tiny screws and nuts are hard to install. You have to take the blade out to get enough clearance for your fingers to start the nuts. I have large hands, and am assembling this on a lawn. If I were to drop one nut or screw it would have been lost. I suggest looking into options of making that a little easier. Not a huge deal, just a little annoying. A little man with little hands would have no problem.

15. I am curious how much clearance is supposed to be in the guides that guide the saw head up and down. I can push and pull on the saw head, and it wiggles on the post frame that guides it. Its not as tight as I would like to see. You can hear the saw head clanking back and forth on those upright 2x2 steel posts. Maybe I can adjust those teflon guides?

16. The assembly manual is lacking some detail and organization. Might be a subjective matter, but its not how I would have done it.

17. I did have some holes that weren't lining up well on the saw head frame. I had to get the drifts out, and force it a little. I've designed enough things to know this issue is going to happen, especially on anything that has been welded on. I found it acceptable, but thought I might mention it.

18. I had a lot of paint problems. Its been four days and already seeing some rust on edges. There were a few scratches that had the paint flake off....The nice aluminum water tank had a rub spot from shipping that is unattractive, and a lot of scratches. Not critical, but kinda disappointing to see that nice tank all booger'd up, and a few spots of rust already.

Overall, I'd say the pros outweigh the cons all day, and for the price point I am not complaining about anything. I'll contact WM to see if the hard start is an issue they know hoe to solve, and ask about the guide clearances. Other than those two issues, I'd say I am satisfied.

 

[thecfarm]

Have fun!!

[Skipper11A]

Nice rundown of the Woodland mills HM 126.  I'm sure it will help someone trying to decide on their first mill.  I want to know what kind of wood you have cut on it and how it performed in the wood.

[RAYGYVER]

Nice rundown of the Woodland mills HM 126.  I'm sure it will help someone trying to decide on their first mill.  I want to know what kind of wood you have cut on it and how it performed in the wood.

So far I have cut a spalted Honey Locust, and a Eastern Red Cedar that was dead standing before I bought my place two years ago. I have no idea how long it had been standing there. The heart wood was rotten. I split the log in half, and am going to do that river table approach, but make two long cedar benches. I'm filling the rotten heart core with epoxy. I also had enough log to make two end stools for the end of the table.
Each log it cut like butter.

I screwed up on the spalted locust, and missed adjusting the backstop post (whats it called?) It needed to be 1/2" lower. So on my 2nd pass ever I hit it and screwed up the first blade. :D Good thing I bought a pack of 10 spares.... That was the post near the far end of the cut, so I only had about 20" to go. So I decided to try to cut the last 20" with the messed up blade....that was a big mistake. The blade got hot, stretched, and the cut started to get wavy. But that was all my fault, total operator fail. Lesson learned though!!! Messing some things up, and standing back to evaluate what went wrong, is a good way to learn what not to do...hahaha.

[Southside]

So on my 2nd pass ever I hit it and screwed up the first blade

Well - at least you go that out of the way. There are only two types of sawyers.  Those who have tried to saw off a piece of their mill, and those who lie about it!!  ;D

[Dana Stanley]

I too bought the 126 with the 14 hp Kohler Engine. I fully expect it to be a cold blooded thing (hard starting) as Kohler always has been. I have it together and just need to level the track, then drop the head onto it. Hope to do that tomorrow. I too had a little trouble with one of the posts, and the micro screws. I think I will need to adjust the tracking, but won't know for sure until I get it on the track. It does seem like a sturdy piece of equipment. I have 6 years as a professional welder/fabricator.
 I bought a hand held metal detector, and hope that will keep me from wrecking blades, but it seems everyone hits the stop at least once!! We have had so much rain this year, my nice level dry area that I have set it up on is saturated, and muddy, so I will be re leveling the tracks periodically, and possibly prewashing logs. I got a good load of logs for $200.00. I feel it's a good deal! all 14 footers

 

[MAF143]

We got one of the HM126 mills with the 9.5HP Kohler back in March of this year.  It starts easy and cuts just fine.  We cut mostly Locust, dead Ash, and Oak so we got 7* blades and one of the automatic sharpeners for it.  I am going to make a tooth setter this winter when I get some time.

We've been very happy with it and set it up on a knee high Locust post and beam foundation with enough track to mill 16' lumber.  We still haven't got the shed built around it yet, but are hoping to yet before the snow flies.  Just not enough hours in a day...

So far it has done everything we have asked out of it.  We have milled several 20" or larger 16' Locust logs and the smaller motor works just fine.  We aren't in a production situation at all though.  Just a hobbyist wanting to get some lumber from my woods for some drying racks, sheds, deck for the house, and maybe a little furniture in the future.  We just picked up a semi trailer that is getting converted into a solar kiln at the one end and tool shed / shop on the other end.  Too many projects all going on at once this summer.

If you are looking for a low cost mill and don't mind the manual labor, it has worked out fine for us so far.  Log handling equipment is a must to have as well.  We don't have much, but we do have a TO-35 tractor and so far we've been able to handle the logs.  The 22" x 16' Locust was about all we could get out of the woods and up onto the mill though, anything heavier we wouldn't be able to move around.  In fact we had to get out the old Ford 600 to assist dragging that log up the hill out of the bottom to the mill.  Another winter project may be a log arch to assist getting logs up to the mill from the other side of the river crossing.

[MAF143]

OH Yeh, about those posts to clamp the log against...  There are 3 of us that run the mill...  There are 3 posts with 1/2" or so missing from the top...    We are all rookies but having fun and learning a lot.

[RAYGYVER]

OH Yeh, about those posts to clamp the log against...  There are 3 of us that run the mill...  There are 3 posts with 1/2" or so missing from the top...    We are all rookies but having fun and learning a lot.

Thats what its all about man. No one is an expert when they first get going at anything in life. I've actaully had a lot of people look at me funny when I tell them I bought a saw mill. We live close to Louisville KY. Not a huge amount of logging opportunity here. But I get free logs if I come cut em'.

[RAYGYVER]

I too bought the 126 with the 14 hp Kohler Engine. I fully expect it to be a cold blooded thing (hard starting) as Kohler always has been. I have it together and just need to level the track, then drop the head onto it. Hope to do that tomorrow. I too had a little trouble with one of the posts, and the micro screws. I think I will need to adjust the tracking, but won't know for sure until I get it on the track. It does seem like a sturdy piece of equipment. I have 6 years as a professional welder/fabricator.
I bought a hand held metal detector, and hope that will keep me from wrecking blades, but it seems everyone hits the stop at least once!! We have had so much rain this year, my nice level dry area that I have set it up on is saturated, and muddy, so I will be re leveling the tracks periodically, and possibly prewashing logs. I got a good load of logs for $200.00. I feel it's a good deal! all 14 footers

What species is that?

[Skipper11A]

I screwed up on the spalted locust, and missed adjusting the backstop post (whats it called?) It needed to be 1/2" lower. So on my 2nd pass ever I hit it and screwed up the first blade. :D Good thing I bought a pack of 10 spares.... That was the post near the far end of the cut, so I only had about 20" to go. So I decided to try to cut the last 20" with the messed up blade....that was a big mistake. The blade got hot, stretched, and the cut started to get wavy. But that was all my fault, total operator fail. Lesson learned though!!! Messing some things up, and standing back to evaluate what went wrong, is a good way to learn what not to do...hahaha.

RAYGYVER,  You finished the cut with the dull blade correctly.   20" of wavy cut is much better than having to back the blade out of 8' of your cut.  Backing the blade out of a cut is a PITA and is only done when you have no other choice.

And that won't be the last time you hit a backstop, the best you can hope for is that you don't have any witnesses when you do it.

[MAF143]

Getting the tracks straight, level, and aligned with each other is very important.



 

Strings are easy to use.  I made some oak blocks to set on the rails to reference the string.  It would have been better to do this before setting the head on the track, but our limited lifing resources didn't always allow for the easiest ways.  We just put the head at one end and checked it, then rolled the head to the other end and checked it again.  It has seemed stable all summer, but we will check it again in the Spring even though our posts are 4' in the ground well below the frost line here.

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We set the posts so they would be close to being underneath each of the mills adjustable feet.  We just wanted to eliminate any bow that could happen in the beams setting on the posts.  Some of the logs we cut are pretty heavy.  We are going to put two rail ramps beside the mill with removable 4' spans next to the mill.  This way we will be able to use a winch to roll the logs up onto the mill.  We have been lifting them on with the tractors using log tongs on 3 pt. hitch booms.  This method needs at least two people there on larger logs to do it safely, even then it gets a little dicey.  We think the ramps and winch will be much safer and allow for one person to load logs onto the mill.

[Southside]

Backing the blade out of a cut is a PITA and is only done when you have no other choice.

Skipper, I am going to respectfully disagree with you on that.  I keep several plastic felling wedges by the saw in case I need to back out of a cut.  Obviously the band is not turning, but using the wedges just behind the head a couple of feet and leap frogging them back I can back out quite easily, usually just a thump with my hand is all that's needed on the wedge to open the kerf enough.  

[FLPINERAT]

Thought I saw a little gadget on the post head that is set to hit the log stops before you shave em...that was a 130.

[Dana Stanley]

I too bought the 126 with the 14 hp Kohler Engine. I fully expect it to be a cold blooded thing (hard starting) as Kohler always has been. I have it together and just need to level the track, then drop the head onto it. Hope to do that tomorrow. I too had a little trouble with one of the posts, and the micro screws. I think I will need to adjust the tracking, but won't know for sure until I get it on the track. It does seem like a sturdy piece of equipment. I have 6 years as a professional welder/fabricator.
I bought a hand held metal detector, and hope that will keep me from wrecking blades, but it seems everyone hits the stop at least once!! We have had so much rain this year, my nice level dry area that I have set it up on is saturated, and muddy, so I will be re leveling the tracks periodically, and possibly prewashing logs. I got a good load of logs for $200.00. I feel it's a good deal! all 14 footers

What species is that?

Oak and white pine! May be some other harwood with the oak, not sure. I have a lot to learn about identifying wood.

[Dana Stanley]

Thought I saw a little gadget on the post head that is set to hit the log stops before you shave em...that was a 130.

There is a little safety stop, but it seems it is kinda funky to adjust just right. I cut my first log today!! My wife says I need to make something special out of the first piece I cut. I wish I could turn it into a couple of dollars. That would be special! :laugh: I think in the spring I'm gonna bring in some fill and push the whole thing back 20'. Before I build a shed for it.

[Skipper11A]

Backing the blade out of a cut is a PITA and is only done when you have no other choice.

Skipper, I am going to respectfully disagree with you on that.  I keep several plastic felling wedges by the saw in case I need to back out of a cut.  Obviously the band is not turning, but using the wedges just behind the head a couple of feet and leap frogging them back I can back out quite easily, usually just a thump with my hand is all that's needed on the wedge to open the kerf enough.  

Southside,  Much respect back to you but you've only described 1/2 of the PITA when backing a blade out of a cut.  You forgot the part about changing the blade and then leapfrogging your wedges so that you get the new blade back into the cut.  That's what I call a PITA.  You will spend a lot of time wedging the blade out and wedging the new blade back in, I mean A LOT of time.  If I'm only 20" from the end of a cut, I'm going to finish the cut with the dull blade 100% of the time.  Usually, even with a dull blade, the final cut is just fine.  These blades are amazing in that they can cut into our steel backstops and still be sharp enough to cut wood.  I think GOD must be a sawyer.  I believe that his son was a carpenter.

[Southside]

Honestly - I just run in the kerf, depending on how far in it is I may just run with the band engaged right down the same spot, or if it's a really heavy board above the kerf I will wedge the end up and then run it down with the band turning.  I have never leap frogged one back in.  

I sawed an order of 24' and 28' beams this summer for a customer and did a whole bunch of back and forth with the band still in the kerf - not running as I was moving the beam further onto the saw.  The cuts all came out clean.   

[RAYGYVER]

Thought I saw a little gadget on the post head that is set to hit the log stops before you shave em...that was a 130.

There is. I, like a big dummy, didn't have it set right. I will try to remember to have it set the next time I cut...

[btulloh]

That thing helps some, but it's not a guarantee.  Every once in a while you just need to saw a backstop to embrace the full sawing experience.  :D

Sometime soon you need to get some different blades than those 10 degree Lennox blades.  A lot of us use four and seven degree Kasko's.  You can get 'em from Cutting Edge in WV.  FF member.

Glad to things are going well with the new saw.  Looking forward to seeing your test floor.

[RAYGYVER]

That thing helps some, but it's not a guarantee.  Every once in a while you just need to saw a backstop to embrace the full sawing experience.  :D

Sometime soon you need to get some different blades than those 10 degree Lennox blades.  A lot of us use four and seven degree Kasko's.  You can get 'em from Cutting Edge in WV.  FF member.

Glad to things are going well with the new saw.  Looking forward to seeing your test floor.

You know, I dont think I would have hit that back stop if my wife wasn't standing there shooting a video of it.... :D.....at least I can laugh at myself.

[Magicman]

Backing the blade out of a cut is a PITA and is only done when you have no other choice.

I keep several plastic felling wedges by the saw in case I need to back out of a cut.  Obviously the band is not turning......  

Plus make one of these from a broken blade to remove the sawdust:


 

[RAYGYVER]

Oh yeah, the cant hook I got with the mill has an issue already...

The tip of the hook bent over after using it the first time. Maybe the tip is supposed to be heat treated? Well, mine was soft as anything I've ever seen. The first ash log bent the tip over like a wet noodle. I'll take a picture later and post. 

Maybe a rep from woodland mills has a solution? I can bend it back out, and heat treat it, oil quench. I'd be affraid that it might get too brittle though and break off instead of bend. Thoughts?

[maple flats]

Before very long you will want to get a Logrite cant hook, it will not bend. You can see them in the left column. They are a sponsor and great people to deal with. In fact, I have 4 of their cant hooks and 1 peavy, plus some other tools from them.

[Cargibbs]

I agree with the original post that the paint work is a bit shoddy. I have a 5gallon weed sprayer full of old diesel from changing filters etc. Spray everything steel gently with it here anyway to stop salty air corrosion. My cable setup on the Hm 130 has alignment issues but nothing a few washers/shims won't sort out. I found the assembly instructions to be very good once my son had got over the instructions are for dummies issue!
Very happy with this mill thus far.