Timber Harvester

Bri · January 21, 2016, 09:09:14 PM

I'm Looking at a Timber Harvester 30 mill complete hydraulic. Do you guys think it compares well to a super hydraulic lt40? Speed and reliability. Any help would greatly be appreciated.

Chuck White · January 22, 2016, 06:36:13 AM

Welcome to the Forestry Forum, Bri.

I've never seen a Timber Harvester close up, but from a distance anyway they look like a very stout machine!

dutchman · January 22, 2016, 06:52:34 AM

I run a 95 30HT.
Don't know the lt40.
TimberHarvester is out of business.
Parts are generic and easy to find.
I've made improvements over the years.
I'm a part time Sawyer.

esteadle · January 22, 2016, 05:33:13 PM

Hi,
I have a 2003 30HT25 that's fully hydraulic. It's a good mill and I really like it, though I've not owned any others. I wrote up a lot of info for another fellow that recently purchased a TH mill, and thought I might just copy and paste some of that here for you to look over.

Here's what i can tell you about my experiences with my Timber Harvester sawmill. I have the 30HT25 which means it has 25" bandwheels, can cut about a 30" log, and has a Hydraulic turner. I bought it new in 2003, so it's 12 years old now.

I also ordered mine with 3 extra features over their standard package: Chain Drive (hydraulic), Debarker( hydraulic) and Stainless Steel bunks.

All 3 are useful, but at this point, I have damaged the Debarker and it does not operate properly (but it's fixable, I just haven't had the time to fix it yet).

It takes me about 30 - 60 minutes to level out the mill and get it set up, depending on terrain. I recently bought 5 new 5000lb screw jacks (40 bucks each on Amazon) because my old jacks were just worn out, and were taking far too much effort to turn. (Good investment). When I get onsite I move the saw into position, I block the wheels, then lift the front part of the mill off the hitch and roughly level. There are 4 steel legs, one on each corner, that get dropped and tightened up with a T bar (I use a large crescent wrench to get some extra leverage on them). Then there are 2 jacks one either side of the supports for the axle/wheels that lift the wheels up off the ground. I set these jacks and tighten up until I get a rough level. Then I move to the back of the mill and set another jack, so that i can set the back legs.

Sometimes I need to add a little height to one of the legs, so I'll cut a disk off any convenient log with a chainsaw and put that under the legs where i need them. After I get it leveled out, then I unbolt the saw head (4 - 9/16" bolts) and free it to move. Finally I unbolt the 2 arms for the log loader and set that down on the ground (it's heavy so sometimes I use a chain that slips around the loader connecting arm and attaches to the sawhead .... this lets me let the legs down with the hydraulics, but I have to fire up the engine first, so sometimes I just GRUNT and let it down by hand ;-) Basically at this point the saw is ready to go after adding fuel, a blade, and some lubricant to the lube tank.

Hydraulics: Everything is hydraulic on this mill: The saw advance, the head up/down, the clamps and the posts, the log loader (huge advantage over ramps), the debarker, and tapers, and also the sawblade roller bearing (to open the saw throat when cutting wide slabs), and finally the Hydraulic turner. The engine runs at 2 speeds, so when I'm in high production mode, I can get things lined up and set for the next cut quickly. And when I need a little "finesse", I can run all the hydraulics at low idle speed too. So far, the only real issue has been with a couple of hydraulic lines that have worn out and busted, and needed to be replaced (2 hoses this season -- I got replacements at NAPA and they made them the same day, so I could finish sawing).

There are a few quirks that I have learned to live with. Hydraulic "loops" have some slack in them and there is a "balance" when running the saw forward that I use a flow control valve to adjust. The saw speed needs to be managed throughout the cut anyway though, especially on the opening cuts to get the log sawed down to a cant. When I push the advance button, the saw head can "lurch" forward, so I always start it a few extra inches back from the log or cant so that the sawhead can lurch and then settle down into a steady forward speed. This avoids a possible wavy cut as the saw enters the wood. And as others have mentioned, there is a little bit of warmup time for Hydraulics before they get flowing well, when the temperature is cold out (less than 40). But that works itself out in the first couple of cuts.

Other mill parts I've replaced: clamp post (I sawed mine off by mistake one day :-), roller bearings, belts, and hoses. I had to re-run the hydraulic hoses because the cable ties deteriorate in the sun, and break which allows the hoses to squirt out of their bundles. And a couple of switches in the control box (that are used all the time, so tend to wear out). I had to replace the idle wheel bearing (sealed) twice now, and also the hydraulic turner "face bracket" on the motor, and a pillow bearing block on the turner axle (that was my fault for being a little to aggressive when trying to position a log too big for this mill).

The hardest part I had to replace was the lifting gearbox that moves the sawhead up and down. That is made by motovario, and getting ahold of a dealer for that was the tricky part. But you now know who they are, and so you're up to speed on that.

I would buy a used Timber Harvester mill at this point, even though they are out of business. Most of the parts I might need are standard parts that I can find replacements for on the Internet, at NAPA, or from a Sawing supplier like Cooks Saw. And since I'm in Pittsburgh, I have access to a lot of local machine shops, welders, and etc. that can build me something if I really need it. But the good thing is I haven't ever had to do that. And the engine is the most complex part, but mine is Kohler, and I can spit in any direction and hit a local Kohler dealer around here.

If you have any specific questions, please write back and I'll do my best to answer...

Eric

esteadle · January 22, 2016, 05:50:59 PM

A question for you... does the TH that you are considering have "Setworks"? I would guess that it does, but check that. A setworks is almost a requirement to get good production speed and accuracy of thickness. On a fully hydraulic mill, it's a no brainer.