I have a bad back - should I even consider buying a mill someday??

[Chuck White]

I would suggest a hydraulic mill, an operators seat & a minimum of 1 helper!

It doesn't take brawn to operate a sawmill, but you would need it if you did the bull-work on the other side!

[Busy Beaver Lumber]

Warbird

I have had two spinal fusions with metal plates and three other disks operated on in my neck and upper back due to two major automobile accidents, one where I got tail ended 30 years ago by a tractor trailer and one 6 years ago when I got tail ended by a bus. In addition to the spinal surgeries, I have also had 2 shoulder surgeries to my left shoulder and only have about 30% use of my left arm and about 25% use of my left hand. About twice a week, my left hand will cramp up so bad that I can not move my fingers or straighten them out. When it happens, it is incredibly painful and feels like someone stabbed me in the hand with a knife, and then gave the blade a twist for good measure.

Ok, that is the bad news. The good news is I own and operate a LT-10 and absolutely love the mill and truly enjoy using it. Like many have said, I have gotten creative over the years in finding ways to lift and move heavier loads using other pieces of equipment and techniques.

In addition to this, my wife and I own a firewood bundling business and this year we are under contract already to deliver over 25,000 bundles of wood. By coincidence, we are just starting to bundle for the 2011 season tomorrow morning and hope to do 500 bundles tomorrow. 500 bundles is basically equivalent to 3 cords of wood. It is a lot of lifting and bending, but to tell you the truth, although I can feel a bit sore on any given day that we bundle or deliver the wood, in general I find that I feel better and have more overall flexibility in my entire body during the 8 months a year that we bundle and cut wood versus the 4 months that we do not, and I can not wait to get back to doing it in the spring. I also find that it helps to decrease the number of times my left hand cramps up. If I bundle for 4 or 5 days in a row, the first day the hand will give me some problems, but then the other 3 or 4 days are usually pretty much pain and cramp free.

My 2 cents for what it is worth based on my own personal experience

[terrifictimbersllc]

What Jeff said.  If you really want one don't let your back stop you.  Probably not get a swing mill because there's more physical demand with the mill and moving the lumber.  But with my fully hydraulic band saw the main places my back hurts is jacking up the outriggers (maybe use an auxiliary car jack when needed) and carrying away the board return table.  I can mill a whole very productive day when the customers do all the heavy work.  If you're thoughtful and methodical and carry jacks and always use power or leverage options, you might not ever strain your back.  But when you get in a jam hurrying around or whatever trying to get out of some situation that's when you might drop caution and hurt yourself.  If you always remember not to strain your back then you probably wont strain your back.  : :

[Whitetail_Addict]

Buy a mill.  I think I can sympathize with the "bad back" like many others who have responded to this post.  I have a broken vertebrae just above my tail bone that has long since healed on its own.  I have a torn disc between L5-L4 and four herniated discs in my thoracic spine.  I have pain every minute of every day.  Often times the physical pain wears on my mood and causes mental pain because I worry about things I may soon not be able to do (I'm 33 years old).  I purchased my WoodMizer LT28 almost a year ago and absolutely love sawing.  It's a manual mill that requires a lot of physical input.   ;)  However by choosing a mill with a log deck near waist height it keeps me from having to bend over to pick up boards.  Big plus!  I have a John Deere tractor with FEL and a set of forks that does all my heavy lifting.  I can't wait for this snow to FINALLY melt so that I can get the mill up on the hill and tear into some logs.  Like you I had been eyeing sawmills for quite some time before finally taking the plunge.  Now most of my weekends and some evenings during the week are dedicated to sawing.  Do what you can to live life without regrets... even if it hurts a little along the way.

[Magicman]

I'm into my 10th year sawing and have never sawed without back trouble.  I always wear a weightlifters belt and it's shown in many posted pictures of me.



Helping on a mission trip.



What I wear.



It is for support and is no substitute for proper exercise and muscle warmup.

[thecfarm]

I would buy one for sure.Jay will be old enough SOMEDAY to pull slabs and boards.  ;D  Start them out young.

[teacherman]

Hey guys.  I dream of owning a sawmill someday but I have lower back issues.  Crouching, bending, or slouching for long periods of time hurt me bad.  I can lift okay but have to be very careful.  Standing in one spot for long periods also kills my lower back.

So what do you think?  Should I give up the dream of having one someday?  If not, then what sort mill would you recommend that is easiest on a guy's back?

I'd only own the mill for my own use, hobbyist stuff, and helping out friends.  Doubt I'd ever go commercial with it but ya never know.  Interested in your opinions.  Thanks.

Are you good with levers and rollers? Willing to take your time? I carved stone in the 1990s, and got into architectural carving (big fireplaces) before a wrist injury took me out (it eventually got better). I could easily move, lift, and roll or turn over 1 ton rocks. I had a derrick, a chain fall hoist, stone straps with a rigged up roller system I invented, and a cheap engine crane. I plan to keep the stuff and use it to handle logs as I start to mill in my seventh decade drawing God's sweet breath. I weigh under 11 stone, can maybe lift 50 lbs once or twice, but I hope to do me some milling and maybe even rig my way into erecting a timber framed something. Hydraulics and leverage turn brains into muscle.

Anyway, you can always ask/hire someone to handle the physical part if you really want to be there and be part of the action...
That's my ignorant opinion!

[Jeff]

@Warbird its only 9 years after starting this topic

[Warbird]

@Warbird its only 9 years after starting this topic

Yeah...  my life took a much different turn than expected what with becoming a dad, taking on a large job, then moving jobs and taking another big job.  I don't think buying a plot of land and milling my own lumber for a house is in the cards for me.  Ya never know, though.  Maybe when I retire at 60 and actually have time.

[Warbird]

Anyway, you can always ask/hire someone to handle the physical part if you really want to be there and be part of the action...
That's my ignorant opinion!

Not ignorant, at all!  Being a husband, dad, and IT guy, consumes me.

[Wintergreen Mountain]

    I have lower back problems, sometimes have trouble even walking. My mill is all manual and I have very little trouble operating it. If my back bothers I just slow down or take a break.
   Yes! Buy a mill! 
   As long as you don't push yourself and get someone to help if you can't handle something easily yourself. I think it is actually a great exercise machine.


    Leon

[Magicman]

Maybe when I retire at 60 and actually have time.

James, thinking that you will have time after you retire is folly indeed, but I smiled when I saw your name show up.  We need to hear more from you sharing some of your activities.  I can only imaging how much Jay has grown??  :P

[Warbird]

Maybe when I retire at 60 and actually have time.

James, thinking that you will have time after you retire is folly indeed, but I smiled when I saw your name show up.  We need to hear more from you sharing some of your activities.  I can only imaging how much Jay has grown??  :P

Hey Lynn!  I'll have to make a post with some pics.  Yeah, Jay has grown a LOT.  We keep feeding him and he keeps growing.   :D  He's going to be a large man.  

[GAB]

I fully agree with MM's statement - "James, thinking that you will have time after you retire is folly indeed"
Earlier this month I turned 60-12 and I would of never thought that I would be this busy today 20 years ago.
GAB

[Wudman]

its only 9 years after starting this topic

Just shows the value of this forum.  Folks still learning from stuff that's buried.  Thanks.
Wudman

[farmfromkansas]

My back was sore 9 years ago, still is.  Still have my mill and still mill with it. Just keep adding more toys.  Skid steer is a wonderful thing.

[EOTE]

I've had back problems all my life and have had to live with pain since I was a teenager.  I've had therapy, CAT scans, chiropractors, and doctor's analysis about how much my disks have wore down or got crushed over the years.  The doctor suggested I have the bones fused together in my lower back.  

3 years ago after being retired by the company I worked for I ended up buying a sawmill.  Standing and working 10 to 12 hours a day offloading, sweeping, stacking and stickering the lumber and before I knew it, I don't have back problems.  Sure, I am sore and tired, and I hurt from all the work but the sawmill actually was good physical therapy that no doctor could have recommended.

It boils down to how much do you want the sawmill and how much are you willing to give to the dream to make it happen?  Running the sawmill is only a small part of the whole dream.  So think about it, are you willing to go for it or sit there and always wish you had?

[Magicman]

Remember guys, Warbird posed this question March 31, 2011, and his life has taken many twists and turns since then. 

[EOTE]

Remember guys, Warbird posed this question March 31, 2011, and his life has taken many twists and turns since then.

I stopped looking at dates when I retired.  Probably should have this time. Heck, I don't even switch my clock to daylight savings time.  Who needs to save daylight anyway?  :D

[lazyflee]

My Grandpa always said "if you're not completely wore out when it's over, you didn't do enough" I'm trying hard to live up to that.

[stavebuyer]

I sold my last mill a over a year ago. Since that day I have not had any "back episodes". Before parting with the mill half a dozen times per year I would find myself with severe back issues where it would be a battle to get out of a chair, put on socks, tie shoes, walk etc. There was seldom an event like " you knew better than to try and hoist a 200lb anvil". Sometimes just a reach or a twist and I would notice a  "catch" and the next morning trying to roll out of bed would be a 20 minute adventure. Sometimes no clue what I did to trigger it. I recently did a little house remodeling and had to wrangle my 60 gun safe around solo so I am still stupid and active but suffered no back issues from safe moving.

 My mill was fully hydraulic, plenty of rollers, full time help and a fleet of loaders so my experience seems to run contrary to the others that have posted. I miss my mill greatly but not the back episodes. I would not recommend anyone with a history of back issues to buy a sawmill.

[SwampDonkey]

As Red Green would say, "keep your stick on the ice"

YouTube

[Sawdust creek]

I had a bad back when I got my first circle mill.  I am now on number three. I've tried, to quit but instead I'm just slowing down. 
Go for it. 
Lee Gibbs 

[beenthere]

 

Hey Lynn!  I'll have to make a post with some pics.  Yeah, Jay has grown a LOT.  We keep feeding him and he keeps growing.   :D  He's going to be a large man.  

How is Warbird and the "youngster" doing, as well as the family? @Warbird 

[NaySawyer]

I feel allot better about my knees after reading this thread .. Lol
Say you can or say you can't,
Iether way you are right!!