Useful sawmill mods

Tom · July 28, 2004, 12:40:52 PM

Here is one I did to my Woodmizer that has been a good one.

Problem: When the hydraulic solenoid sticks (it will when it begins to go bad) the hydraulic pump runs every time that the power button reaches the power strip. Because of the noise and attention to other things, it is easy to miss. The pump runs and bypasses the valves which are closed. That's a lot of wear and tear.

I wired a small light on the output side of the solenoid so that it lit when the pump was running. I mounted the light on the front of the hydraulic box and out of the way of damage.

Now, if my solenoid is going bad, I can see it. If I know it is going bad and it is running the pump all of the time, it reminds me

Oh! Sometimes the centering springs on the handle break and cause the pump to run also. It's piece of mind to know what is going on by looking at the light.

Tom · July 28, 2004, 12:43:50 PM

Putting a glass sediment bowl in the fuel line has been a good move too. I think everyone should have one. It helps the filter last longer and keeps condensate water from getting from the fuel tank to the carburator or fouling the filter. If you put in the open where you can see it all of the time, it is really handy.

Tom · July 28, 2004, 12:46:05 PM

There are all kinds of things sticking out of the frame of a sawmill that will hurt your leg or tear your pants. The one that almost always gets me is the "all-thread" on the end of the travel chain on a Woodmizer. I cut a piece of old garden hose and stuck it on there to save my legs as I walked by.

Tom · July 28, 2004, 12:50:13 PM

On the back of the loader of a Woodmizer, the hoses enter the Ram. The fitting is solid tube and is next to the ground where it will break if it comes into contact with a scrap of wood, or the loader digs a hole. When mine broke, I replaced it with two end fittings stuck into a piece of hydraulic hose that was as short as I could get it. There is about 1.5 to 3 inches of hose between the fittings. It gives the fittings just enough movement that they don't break if something gets under them.

Tom · July 28, 2004, 12:59:41 PM

Here is something that I always wished that I had done and didn't.

I wished that I had put a sleeve on the loader side of the beam on my Woodmizer (out of the way) to hang the fenders. Many times I have driven off without them and had to go back. Finding a place to put them is always a hassle.

If they were hung on the beam of the mill, they wouldn't get left and they would also create a small worktable to set wrenches, etc. on when working on the mill.

A small ammunition box bolted or tacked to the diagonals of the mill will keep those pertinent wrenches on hand too. There are only 3 or 4 that are needed. You could keep a few spare nuts and bolts in there too. Keeps you from having to always go back to the truck. Put one on the front and one on the back of the mill. Use one big enough to get your hand into though. :D

A few first aid items stuck in there might be a pretty good idea too. :P

And while you are hanging stuff on the mill......don't forget the coffee cup holder. :D

Tom · July 28, 2004, 01:34:50 PM

Above the throat of a woodmizer, behind that door that you open to change blades, is mounted a bearing. That bearings purpose is to dampen the vibration of the blade between the wheels on the top side. It's a bad place for bearings. Hardwoods and water soon cause it to seize. I replaced mine in the woods one day with a block of oak that I drilled a hole through. Tilt it a little so that the corner is within 1/8th of the blade and tighten the nut. When it wears, loosen the nut, turn it closer to the blade and tighten the nut again. It lasts a really long time.

Tom · July 28, 2004, 01:37:46 PM

Woodmizer owners

Do you need to make a scale to do a special one-time job? turn the moveable scale over and make your marks on it with marker. Something you can clean off with alcohol, rust reaper or the like. It's pretty handy to have the blank piece of aluminum handy like that.

Tom · July 28, 2004, 01:53:36 PM

Hit a Nail?

Keep a fine bastard file, one witha round edge if you can......a chain saw file is next best.

The blade mounted between the wheels makes a pretty good jig. Run the head of the mill to the end of the mill where you can get to the blade easily and put it at a good working height.

Knock the metal from the face of the tooth where the nail welded itself to the blade. Straighten any obviously bent teeth, fille the backs of those that have lost the very tip to try to sharpen it a little. Don't worry about those that are broken completely off as long as the gaps created are no more than 3 or 4 teeth in one place. (try not to disfigure the gullet)

The blade might get you through the rest of the log. A customer will appreciate your making the blade go as far as you can when he's being charged for the blade.

Tom · July 28, 2004, 02:03:37 PM

Have you ever gotten your mill trapped at a site with wood and slabs around it where you can't get out and you want to move it to the side?

What you need is a Moon Cap. One of those old timey hub caps that is smooth and dish shaped. Put it under the front leg, or jack of the mill, close to the coupler. It will provide a smooth skid with turned up edges that will allow you to pull your mill into the open, with rope or chain, where you can hook the truck to it.

You can use a sheet of plywood or sheet metal too, as long as there is a "stop" in the middle for the jack and the edges get turned up so that it doesn't dig in.

In mud or soft dirt, a sled like this works better than a wheel.

Tom · July 28, 2004, 02:07:55 PM

One of the least maintained things on a portable mill ends up being the wheel bearings. Install "buddy bearings" and it will give you more piece of mind on the road.

......and a spare tire isn't a bad idea either.

slowzuki · July 30, 2004, 11:20:08 AM

I've been trying to think of a nice waterproof container to store spare blades in that can be attached to the mill, anyone have slick solutions?

VA-Sawyer · July 31, 2004, 06:32:57 PM

I've been working on that same issue for 6 months now and still don't have anything for storing blades on the mill. If you get a good idea for it , you sure will be my hero. ;D
VA-Sawyer

FeltzE · August 02, 2004, 07:54:14 PM

I added a licence plate light just above the scale index for when I've been stuck finishing the last log at sunset.

I clipped a utility light to the log side post at the top of the mill to illuminate the log (same reason as above... not to facilitate night sawing just finishing up)

I added an electric fuel pump to my wisconson in the same location as listed earlier. I have had some problems with the engine driven pump this fixed that.

The trailer brake battery box has been removed. (by inadvertant force) It was poorly mounted outside the pump box. I belive the new mills have fixed this problem.

I almost forgot I have most carefully trimmed some steel off of the clamp unit and the first adjustable stop as well. :

Eric

Tom · August 05, 2004, 11:18:37 AM

VA-Sawyer, Some of the smaller blades will fit into a 55 gal drum. use one with a removable lid that clamps on.

Eric, That's a good discovery, I have removed some excess weight from my log dogs too. The best time to do it is when you are "testing" blades. :D

Gilman · August 05, 2004, 11:40:53 AM

Has anyone used the original engine alternator (the one that isn't used) on their WM for lighting?

Bibbyman · August 05, 2004, 12:51:00 PM

Arky installed this light for night sawing. He had another above the console but it got knocked off.

ARKANSAWYER · August 20, 2004, 07:52:59 PM

Well Bibbyman got my lights which have saved me more then once. They also help when backing up at night to get out of some where.
Here is my brush to keep cedar bark from getting balled up around my rollers. They save alot of work cleaning our the bark fuzz.

I travel alot of dirt roads and cross creeks with Wanda so I wipe down the bottom rail before I start sawing. It only took once for my wrist to hit the corners of the power strip before they became rounded over.

Needed to put name on mill but there was very little space that was not taken or recived alot of wear. So I filled in my fenders and put on sticker. Has gotten me more then one job.

About all that is left to do is a dust free 12 v coffee pot.
ARKANSAWYER

Gilman · August 20, 2004, 07:57:51 PM

Arkansawyer,
I like your way of posting your sign. I had one made for my front guard, but that guard takes a lot of abuse. I dont' see my sign lasting very long. I think I need to modify my fenders and put my signs there. Heck you can even face them towards the road when sawing.

Thanks!

SawDust_Studios · August 21, 2004, 03:03:20 PM

What about one of them flat tools boxes that they used to use for the back of a pick-up seat. Don't know if they make em big enough, but they might work? I might see if one of my boat boxes will fit on top of the HD control box on my lt40hd

Bibbyman · September 04, 2004, 09:04:26 PM

We ran a manual Wood-Mizer for 7 years. Short logs, long logs, it didn't matter as we had to manually set the back supports anyway. And, as you walked along with the mill and had to use the cant hook to turn the logs, logs shorter than 8' were no more of a problem to saw – only they yielded less lumber per hour.

But everyone that has sawn more than a few short logs on a Wood-Mizer hydraulic mill knows you have to use the manual back supports to saw short logs. If you've got a good helper, it's not too bad. If you're sawing alone, you'll spend a good amount of time traveling back and forth returning the sawhead to the contract strip and setting the back supports and using the clamp and turner. A few short logs or for that time you loaded an 8' too far forward or back and need to use the manual back supports, it's not so bad. But we're running into the situation where we are sawing hundreds of short logs and some days nothing but short logs.

I've had enough and decided it was time to see how we can improve our short log production rate.

There are a couple of areas where improvements could be made to better handle short logs. But the most obvious improvement would be to power the manual back supports. But how to get power to them? I "thunk" about it quite some time. Last Monday I started off actually doing something. I ordered out a new back support – the model that is used on the front and back with the lever that connects to the cylinder and tie rod.

I knew going into this that the front and back support would not work "as made" as replacements for the manual back support. So I had to make some modifications.

Here's what I did.

The lever on the new back support installed "as made" hits the frame well before the support is fully raised. Also, the lever is inline with the lever on the front back support – thus, there is no clearance to install a bolt or yoke between it and the tie rod.

I knew I had to keep the bottom hole in about the same position so that the "swing" would be the same as the other two supports. I started by tracing a template of the lever on a piece of paper and making a few measurements. I then scribed a line up the vertical edge (when standing) of the lever. This edge appears to be close to the center line of the hole. I also scribed a line on the horizontal edge of the lower part of the lever. I repeated this on both sides while I was at it.

I took the back support to my chop saw and cut the lever off along the vertical scribe line. Then I took the severed end of the lever and flipped it over onto the loader side of the un-severed lever.

I aligned the horizontal scribe mark with the horizontal edge of the lever and clamped it. I used my template to check and adjust the two parts until the hole was back where it was.

My welding won't win any awards and it sure is not up to Wood-Mizer standards but I put a bunch on. The overlap gave me a good chance to apply a lot of weld all the way around.

I painted the parts with AGCO Allis orange paint. It looks a bit bright when first applied but once dry, it very close. And... in a year, I guarantee nobody's going to notice the difference.

The tie rod was made up of a 1/2" female tie rod end, a 1/2" yoke, 12" of 1/2"-20 threaded rod, and a 12" section of 1/2" heavy pipe. I replaced the 2-1/2" tie rod bolt with one 3" long – now that it had to pass thru two tie rod eyes. A couple of extra washers were used to provide just a little more space.

I assembled the back support in place and then assembled the tie rod without the 1/2" pipe. I kept trying the swing of the back support and adjusting the length of the tie rod until I got it where the new powered back support would not hit the frame on the full up position and the tie rod assembly was just loose. I didn't want the full force of the stopping of the back support travel to fall on this back support. I cut the 1/2" pipe to the length to fill the space between the clevis and the eye end and added it to the assembly. I tightened the eye and yoke until the pipe was a compress fit.

Now.... For the OTHER manual back support. I've got ideas. But I'm still "thunkin".. ???

Linda · September 05, 2004, 07:09:26 AM

WoW Bibby,

That's some good thinkin' ;)

Best mod yet 8)

Linda

Minnesota_boy · September 05, 2004, 07:24:36 AM

Nice job, Bibby. Now design the linkage to raise one of the manual log stops on my extension. If you think running around to set the manual on a short log is bad, try setting the end one for a 32' log.

While you are at it, design a hydraulic roller toe board and control for it to fit at about 24' too. ;D

ElectricAl · September 05, 2004, 07:32:17 AM

Bibby,

Stop the competition, we have a winner 8)

Where is your order form ;D

ElectricAl

Bibbyman · September 05, 2004, 07:49:10 AM

Do you think WM would put me on their R&D staff and give me an account number and access to their material, machine shop and engineering talent? :D

Power back supports on an extension should be far less of a problem than the manual ones on the mill. Just install the back supports with lever legs on the front and back locations and a cylinder and tie rod from an HD mill. I would think they'd be a bolt-in fit with nothing in the way.

Then tap into the back support hose with a flow control valve and quick compilers. You could use the same back support valve to run the supports on the mill OR the extension. If you didn't use a flow control valve, then both would work. May have to have some kind of flow regulators in the line to keep both working in sequence??

Bibbyman · September 07, 2004, 07:34:36 AM

Tuesday morning update...

We've sawn over 500 bf on the mill after adding power to one of the middle back support (see post #44 above) and all has worked well. I even gave the new support a "stress test" by putting a heavy chunk of edging under it and closing it down on it until the hydraulic pressure maxed out. Everything held.

While we've not sawn any short logs yet. And we've not got power to the other back support, I've not found a problem or down side from making this mod..