Useful sawmill mods

[Bibbyman]

I thought perhaps when you said field kits, WM finally put together a kit of commonly needed parts for repair, replacement in the field.

THANKS!

Dave

They do... (or at least they did)   

They have kits for different machines and different levels of field repair.  The basic kit includes wear items like belts and guide rollers, fuses, etc.

The professional level also includes more expensive items like drive motors, solenoids, pumps, valves.  These kits are meant for the guys that saw a lot and have people on the payroll so they can't afford to be down until "next day air" brings them a part.

Just ask the WM parts guy.

[SawDust_Studios]

Yep, contacted them today

$338.29 for a complete, likely mid level, kit.  Most belts, filters, even switches, spark plugs, guide blocks, solenoid.  Purchased separatly, they are 10% more.

Dave

[Bibbyman]

Yep, contacted them today

$338.29 for a complete, likely mid level, kit.  Most belts, filters, even switches, spark plugs, guide blocks, solenoid.  Purchased separatly, they are 10% more.

Dave

Yea!  And the shipping of all those items one at a time would add up to more than that!!

We've got a lot of spare parts.  That way you know that part will never break again!  8)

[Bibbyman]

Mary makes a mod...



The next day after I changed the tension lever out for a nut (see post above some place),  I came home to find Mary had added her touch to it.  After changing two blades and bumping the tension a couple of times,  she got tired of stepping around the mill to where the wrench was hanging and fashioned this hanger out of some VERY stiff wire.  I figured the wrench would rattle but it doesn't.  I'm thinking of replacing it with a scabard or at least a nicer looking hook. But for now,  it works just fine.


P.S.  3/4" was the right choice for the tensioning nut as it's the same size as the tracking bolts.

[Brucer]

I put a rack beside each of my machine tools that holds all the wrenches needed to adjust the machine. Ya don't need high quality wrenches to adjust machinery, so the cost was only a few dollars. The time I've saved by having stuff "right there" has paid for those wrenches many times over.

In a few days I'll be adding a hook under the control console on my mill to hang my ear-muffs from. The bent coat hanger just doesn't have any class  ;D. While I'm at it, I'm going to add a small horizontal bar there to hang my gloves over. Simple stuff, but the minutes saved add up over time.

[Randy]

This is a BIG help to me------------Keeps the saw dust blown off.   I have it wired into the ign switch. I also used a flemsy piece of metal to attach it with, because when a board drops down there by mistake the metal will give. I had it bolted SOLID broke the fan off the first day. This has been on about 2 months now. Randy

[Bibbyman]

More details please... 

Where did you get the fan? Looks like something out of a junk PC.

[Randy]

Its a 12 volt fan. I use these in the amplifiers I build. I am sure radio shack has them, but I buy mine a 100 at the time. A computer fan is usually 120 volt. I used a fan guard on it to keep things out the fan blade. I ran 1 wire to the ing. switch then grounded it where its bolted on. Hey it works GOOD, but using something flemsy(?) to bolt it to the machine is important-----------you know slabs and boards fall into that area all the time, but you could take time to build a SOLID case over the fan to protect it. I just throwed it on fast------------after the first solid mounted one broke off. Randy

[OneWithWood]

Here are a couple pics of a simple mod I made for my WM mill.  I got tired of looking around for my pencil, spacer block, etc so I purchased a basket made for regridgerators or closets for $2.47 at Lowe's, drilled a couple small holes and voila a possibles basket for all that stuff that falls out of your pockets or gets buried in the sawdust  8)




I still need to place a finer mesh in the bottom to keep the pencil from falling out.

[Gilman]

One,
What do you use the spacer for?

Bibby,
Thanks for designing those powered backstops.  Just installed mine last weekend and I love them.  No more worries about short logs, or those tumbly burls.  I think they help with edging too, helps keep the boards square.

[DR Buck]

One,
What do you use the spacer for?

What he said ????

Dave

[Bibbyman]

Here are a couple pics of a simple mod I made for my WM mill.  I got tired of looking around for my pencil, spacer block, etc so I purchased a basket made for regridgerators or closets for $2.47 at Lowe's, drilled a couple small holes and voila a possibles basket for all that stuff that falls out of your pockets or gets buried in the sawdust  8)




I still need to place a finer mesh in the bottom to keep the pencil from falling out.

I'll go out on a limb and guess he uses it to toe up short logs that do not reach the roller toe boards. 

How'd I do?  What'd I win? ;)

[Rockn H]

Doesn't the manual recommend using a block to check the blade and deck being parrallel or something? ???
If I win I'll be glad to except the cash value equivalent to keep the shipping cost down. :  ;)  :

[Kirk_Allen]

After yesterdays cutting I HAD to do something to get out of the sun.  It was just to miserable.  Even though I stayed hydrated it was too plum hot to work in the sun.

Today was much better  8)

[beenthere]

I like to see those hard-working sawdust remover 'mods' like you have on the left there.  :D ;D ;D

[Kirk_Allen]

What this photo doesnt show is the HOLE that is at the front of the mill.  When I started the conrols box was even with my head the hole was so deap.  I had Daren rake the sawdust into the hole in the front of the mill and after two days of cutting, I was back on level ground! 

[OneWithWood]

For those inquiring minds, the spacer block is used to level one leg of a carpenter's square with the bunks when I use it to set a pith dead center.  The spacer is set on the rail bringing the square up to the same level as the top of the bunk.  See Larry's thread on centering the pith when sawing cants.
Tom explained a simpler method of sighting down the dogs to achieve the same end to me at Sawlex so the block may not see much more use.

[Gilman]

Hey Tom,
I think I know what OneWithWood was saying on sighting down the Dogs, but could you give us your own explaination on how you do this?

Thanks in advance,

[Shamus]

Can you call it a mod if you built the mill in the first place? ??? ???

Well I duct taped together a Procut style chainsaw mill, and got to work making sawdust. Didn't take long 'til the honeymoon was over, I got tired of stooping over to push most cuts, and sucking in exhaust. Borrowed a little bit of bicycular technology and welded this bad boy up. Much nicer, and the grips dampen the vibration.



The brake lever with cable pulls on the drilled throttle trigger on the saw handle.

[Brucer]

Here's the first, and simplest modification I made to my mill. Just some strips of adhesive-backed high-friction tape applied to the frame of the mill. This is where I stand to check the oil and service the engine.



When I was working for Louis last year, the only time either of us came close to being injured was when he climbed up on his mill (in the rain) to check the tension on the drive belt. His foot slipped on the wet metal and he very nearly went down  :(.

The strips have been torn up a bit by stray slabs, but they still provide excellent traction. I've since added them to the platform above the axle on the "driver's" side.

[Brucer]

I still remember one day last August when Louis was sawing dry pine with the wind blowing in our faces. We couldn't breath and we couldn't see but we had to get the job done that afternoon. When I wasn't pulling boards, I'd be running around with a roll of duct tape patching holes in the blade guards and sawdust chute.

When I got my new LT40, I was looking forward to having a nice, "tight" mill with everything fitting up snug and not much room for sawdust to blow out. The newer mills even have an extra sawdust "catcher" built into the drive side blade housing. But I was most annoyed to discover that the new design has a short bottom-less section between the blade housing and the sawdust chute >:(.



Fortunately there's a pair of matching holes on either side of this open section just behind the blade catchers. They seem to be begging for a cover to hold in place so I bent up a piece of galvanized sheet metal and made a retaining pin from galvanized rod.



The cover has a little extension tab that holds the retaining pin in place. Push the cover up over the open bottom, push the pin through the holes, and rotate the end of the pin down into the extension tab.



And there it is. Quick and easy to remove for cleaning, and the pin even makes a great tool for cleaning out bark and stuff that gets hung up in the blade catcher fingers. I eventually put on a coat of galvanized metal primer and then painted the cover with Tremco Orange -- almost the same as WoodMizer yellowish-red, and it gives the mod a professional look .

[fabrik]

Here's a shot of the exhaust extension I put on my portable mill. It really makes work a lot more enjoyable. If your local muffler shop can't supply you with the fittings you need you can buy mandrel bent exhaust fittings from www.jcwtruck.com.  They sell 45 degree, 90 and 180 degree bends. They are well made and reasonably priced. The fittings are aluminized steel but they don't sell aluminized straight pipes. You will have to get that from your local muffler shop. The support bracket took a little while to make, but is easy enough to accomplish. I haven't made it yet, but will make a flapper cap on mine or maybe just a 90 degree bend to keep rain out of the exhaust. Safe sawmilling to all of you-Mike

[Brucer]

These are my ramps for offloading timbers. There are two extensions (painted orange) that hook onto the main frame just about anywhere. A couple of ramps (painted black) hook over pins on the ends of the extensions. When I'm sawing heavy timbers I place a couple of 4 x 4's on the ground beside the mill. When a timber is finished, hook the extensions over the frame, mount the ramps, and roll the timber onto the extensions. Then roll or slide the timber over to the ramps and slide it down to the ground. Remove ramps and extensions (stack 'em on the pile of finished timbers) and I'm ready to saw again.



This is a closeup of the extensions. Man, that image compression software sure improves the quality of my welds ;D.



The angle that rests on top of the rail has a length of 1/8" neoprene glued to it. This acts as a bit of a cushion when I roll a heavy timber onto the extension. The neoprene also keeps the extensions from sliding along the rail if I have to push or pull the timber to line it up with the pile on the ground. I put a couple of strips of adhesive-backed low-friction tape on top of the extensions so I can slide the timbers around easily before sending them down the ramp.

It only takes a minute to mount these and remove them later -- far less time then it would take to jockey a timber off the mill. Saves my back as well, which at my age is getting more and more important :D.

I built these for a WoodMizer, but the principle will work for just about any mill that has the bed well off the ground.

[Brucer]

This is my favourite and most useful "mod" so far. The clamp on my manual mill is most easily accessible from one side, but with my bad shoulder it's hard to shift the side stops from that side.

The new WoodMizers have a 5/8" hole through each of the side stops near the top (they're used to mount bearings on the Super Hydraulic). It was a simple job to make up a removable handle to give me extra leverage -- just a piece of 1" square structural tubing and bit of 5/8" shafting. Drilled a hole through the tube near one end, pressed in the shaft, and ran a bead around the back side to hold it in place.



When I need some extra leverage to shift a side stop, I just grab the handle and push the shaft into the hole on the stop. Because the handle can pivot in and out, there's no worry about scraping my knuckles on the face of the cant as I lower the stop.



Best of all, WoodMizer even provided a handy storage rack for the handle. Here it is parked for travelling. Most of the time I leave it in a hole near the centre of the mill so I can reach it from either side.



I added one more feature after taking this picture. Since the bed of my mill is 2-1/2" above the top of the main frame where the side stops attach, I used a permanent marker to make a scale along the handle, starting 2-1/2 " from the end. That way I can rest the end of the handle on the frame and get a direct reading on how high the stop is above the bed. Just a little less chance of sawing more metal off a stop.

[Gilman]

I don't think this is a "Useful sawmill mod" but a overly useful.





I removed the down angle on the exhaust chute.  A bit too much.  If the wind is just right, it's great. You wouldn't have to shovel sawdust for weeks.  If the wind is bad, you can imagine what happens.

I'm going to modify the chute angle to be adjustable.  Better yet, Hey Bibby!, could you remove Marry's blower on her mill and design and test a adjustable exhaust chute for us?  You did such a great job on the powered backstops I figure you'd do a great job on this one too.  ;D